TikTok Shop's new policy: 12-hour response rate becomes the new standard for customer service assessment!

In 2025, TikTok Shop's globalization strategy has significantly accelerated. The platform has established over 15 sites worldwide, covering key markets such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Mexico, Spain, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, the Philippines, and Singapore, spanning Southeast Asia, Europe, the Americas, and other critical regions. In the first half of 2025, TikTok Shop's global GMV exceeded $26.2 billion, representing a year-on-year growth of 100% to 120%. More and more sellers are flocking to TikTok Shop, and an increasing number of buyers are eager to shop through TikTok livestreams and stores.





During this rapid development, TikTok has identified several issues. For instance, some sellers previously did not respond adequately to customer inquiries, which negatively impacted the overall shopping experience on the platform. By raising response requirements, TikTok aims to encourage sellers to place greater emphasis on customer service quality.

To address this, TikTok has adjusted its policies to make the 12-hour response rate a key metric for evaluating store health, thereby raising customer service standards and enhancing the overall buyer experience.


TikTok Shop Policy Adjustments
Initially announced for the TikTok Vietnam site, this adjustment has now been extended to multiple sites, including cross-border and local sellers in Malaysia, the Philippines, and others. The specific adjustments are as follows:

From 15th July 2025


	
12-Hour Response Rate will be added to your Shop Health page.
	
No more Violation Points for missing chat targets.

From 15th August 2025


	
Strong performance in 12-Hour Response Rate will boost your Store Rating and replace the 24-Hour Response Rate

Coming Soon


	
Chat Satisfaction Rate & Average Response Time will be added to your Shop Health page
	
Strong performance in Chat Satisfaction Rate & Average Response Time will also boost your Store Rating

These changes have significantly improved customer service response standards, shortened the assessment time from 24 hours to 12 hours, and placed higher demands on sellers' customer service capabilities.


Why Does Good Communication Matter?
Maintaining high chat performance helps you:


	
Improve customer satisfaction, which can lead to more repeat buyers and stronger loyalty
	
Gain eligibility for Campaigns, Flash Sales, and Affiliate Marketing Tools by boosting your Store Rating performance
	
Qualify for exclusive seller programmes like Mall and Star Shop

The following will be excluded from calculations:


	
Chats received while in holiday mode.
	
Chats initiated by the Seller (including broadcasts).
	
Chats resolved by automated replies and FAQs.
	
Chats from customers you have blocked.



Impact and Challenges of TikTok Shop's  Adjustments on Sellers


	
The 12-hour response requirement essentially forces sellers to align with the target market's working hours, posing a significant challenge for small and medium-sized sellers lacking local operational teams or unable to overcome time zone differences.
	
For individual or small-team sellers, scheduling pressures have intensified, making AI customer service a necessary supplementary tool.
	
While the new policy does not directly impose penalties, it affects traffic allocation, activity eligibility, and store competitiveness, indirectly increasing operational pressure for multi-store models.
	
Sellers need to adjust their customer service team schedules and invest in more efficient customer service tools and management systems to meet the stricter response time requirements.
	

	
	






How Duoke Ensures a 12-Hour Store Response Rate
To address the challenges brought by TikTok's new regulations, Duoke offers a comprehensive solution to help sellers easily meet the 12-hour response rate requirement.

Duoke now fully supports all TikTok Shop global sites, with official API secure integration ensuring no association risks for multi-store operations. Duoke provides end-to-end operational empowerment to help sellers improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase revenue.


	
Cross-Platform Message Aggregation for One-Stop Management

Unified processing across multiple platforms: Aggregates messages from major e-commerce platforms such as Shopee, Lazada, TikTok Shop, and Tokopedia. Customer service agents no longer need to frequently switch accounts, managing all customer conversations in one place to improve response efficiency.


	
AI-Powered Customer Service with 24/7 Accurate Responses

Duoke’s AI customer service integrates over 140 industry-specific scenarios, accurately matching response strategies in real-time. It leverages GPT's semantic understanding capabilities to answer buyer questions precisely by identifying product details.




	
Smart Order Follow-Up and Marketing to Boost Conversion

Tracks every critical stage of customer orders, automatically sending reminders for payment and order confirmation to improve store conversion rates.

Pre-sale: Automatically sends welcome messages to create a positive shopping experience.

Mid-sale: Tracks order logistics in real-time to enhance buyer confidence.

Post-sale: Reminds buyers to confirm receipt promptly, intelligently recovers abandoned orders, and reduces negative reviews through proactive care and communication, helping sellers build a stronger store reputation.


	
Responsive on Both Mobile and PC, Anytime, Anywhere

Supports web, desktop, and mobile devices, making it easy to reply to customer messages anytime, anywhere.



Click the image below to register for Duoke now and secure your tool to guarantee store response rates!