Introduction

A business can choose from numerous existing methods and survey types to gauge customer sentiment toward a particular product. However, measuring the CSA score remains one of the most common options -  easy to follow and just as easy to adapt when necessary. 

Now is the best time to start including this measurement in your performance analysis if you haven’t already done so. Below is a beginner guide that covers all you need to know. 

What Is CSAT Score? How To Measure It

Definition

It assesses customers’ satisfaction with a brand’s service or product (Image source: Stockvault) 

A CSAT score (short for Customer Satisfaction Score) is one of the most popular metrics for evaluating customer satisfaction levels with a brand’s services or products. 

The final number is based on survey feedback, usually shown as a percentage (e.g., 0% for terrible, 100% for fantastic) to indicate the percentage of the total customers who feel happy. 

How To Calculate CSAT Score

The formula: (Number of Satisfied Customers / Total Responses)*100

• Companies ask customers about their satisfaction level through surveys. The surveys often have a question with a scale, like "How satisfied are you on a scale of 1 to 5?" (with 5 being very satisfied).
• Based on the chosen scale, responses are categorized as positive, neutral, or negative. To calculate the final score, divide the number of positive responses by the total responses and multiply by 100.

Example

Suppose you run a clothing store and want to measure customer satisfaction after they receive their online orders. You decide to mail a short customer satisfaction survey with one key question. Out of 100 customers who received the questionnaires, you got 65 responses:

• 5 responses: Rated 1 (Extremely Unsatisfied Customers)
• 10 responses: Rated 2 (Unsatisfied)
• 20 responses: Rated 3 (Neutral)
• 20 responses: Rated 4 (Satisfied)
• 10 responses: Rated 5 (Extremely Satisfied)

First, you must categorize the positive responses (satisfied customers). In this case, it’s the sum of ratings 4 and 5: 

20 (Satisfied) + 10 (Extremely Satisfied) = 30 satisfied customers. 

Therefore, your CSAT score based on this survey will be:

(Number of Satisfied Customers / Total Responses)*100

= (30 / 65) * 100 

= 46.15% (rounded to two decimal places).

What Is Considered A “Good” Score? 

The exact number varies across different business sectors. But generally speaking, most critics categorize them into four major score benchmarks:

• Above 80% is considered a very positive score, indicating an impressively high level of customer satisfaction. 
• A score between 75% and 80% is still good, though there is certainly room for future improvement. 
• Anything in the 50% to 70% range is neutral: your customers aren’t necessarily unhappy about anything, but they are not particularly impressed, either. 
• Scores below 60% are quite concerning, as they suggest the possibility of widespread dissatisfaction within your customer base. 

As you can see, aiming for above 80% will put you in a strong position regardless of which industry your brand belongs to. It’s also important to track the score over time to identify trends and measure the effectiveness of the changes you make (if any). 

How To Measure

You should create a short, targeted survey that doesn’t feel overwhelming (Image source: Stockvault). 

As mentioned above, customer feedback surveys are the primary method to measure CSAT scores: 

Step 1. Creating The Survey

The survey should be short, targeted, and does not overwhelm respondents. Your best bet is to include a clear and concise question, preferably a scaled one, such as:  "How satisfied are you on a scale of 1 (very unsatisfied) to 5 (very satisfied)?"

If possible, consider adding extra open-ended questions to gather more detailed feedback on what’s working well and what isn’t. 

Step 2. Distributing The Survey

There are multiple ways to send your survey to customers. Let’s see some of the popular options: 

• Email surveys after interactions (like a purchase or support experience). 
• Pop-up surveys on your website or app.
• SMS surveys for on-the-go convenience.
• In-person surveys after face-to-face interactions.

Step 3. Collecting The Survey Responses

Choose a data collection method that aligns with your survey distribution from Step 2. Make sure the survey platform is user-friendly and encourage customers to hit “Send” once they finish!

Step 4. Analyzing The Data

After gathering the responses, you must categorize them based on the rating scale (e.g., 1-2 = negative, 3 = neutral, 4-5 = positive), then use the CSAT score formula above to calculate the overall score. 

If any open-ended survey questions are included, you must also look through all the open-ended answers to identify specific areas of strength or weakness. 

When Should You Use CSAT Score?

Ideally, send them the survey at least 6 months before the renewal date (Image source: Creazilla). 

After Customers’ Lifecycle Moments

CSAT surveys are most impactful when tied to specific moments in a customer's lifecycle journey. Our team has researched and compiled several key customer lifecycle moments where CSAT scores can provide the best actionable insights: 

Onboarding

Once a new customer signs up for your service or makes their first purchase, you can send a CSAT survey to gauge their initial experience and identify existing onboarding roadblocks. It ensures a smoother, better introduction to your brand for future customers. 

Support Interactions

After a customer interacts with your support team (via chat, email, or phone), give them a quick CSAT questionnaire to understand how well their issue was resolved. This will allow you to assess the effectiveness of your support team and pinpoint weaker areas in addressing customer concerns. 

Order Fulfillment

Following an online order or service delivery, you may send a customer survey to get feedback on the fulfillment process (e.g., speed, accuracy, and communication). If not addressed as soon as possible, logistical bottlenecks might seriously damage the brand’s image in the long run. 

Product Usage

At a predetermined point after a customer starts using your product (say, 1 week to 1 month), you should survey your customers for their initial impression and any existing usability issues. From here, it would be easier to improve the product’s current features for better user experience and satisfaction. 

Before Renewal

Unhappy customers or those facing unresolved issues are more likely to churn (cancel their subscription) at renewal. 

A CSAT survey before renewal helps you identify these at-risk customers and take proactive steps to salvage the relationship before it’s too late! You might offer solutions/discounts or simply show them you value their opinions; remember that retaining existing customers is always much cheaper than acquiring new ones.

Most importantly, don’t wait until the very last minute. Ideally, we suggest sending the CSAT survey at least 6 months before the renewal date. That way, you will have plenty of time to analyze the feedback and take immediate action if necessary!

How To Get A Good CSAT Score

Maintaining Your Brand Voice At All Customer Touchpoints

StringeeX is currently one of the best omnichannel solutions available (Image source: StringeeX). 

Building customers’ trust and familiarity with your brand would be much easier with a consistent voice across all interactions. 

Customers love to feel like they’re interacting with a real, unified entity rather than encountering a disconnected experience at different key touchpoints! Hence, when they feel understood and valued throughout their journey, they’ll be more likely to be satisfied with the overall experience and return for more. 

That also explains why omnichannel solutions like StringeeX have become increasingly common. 

You can use the same StringeeX interface to connect and monitor customers across all communication channels (Facebook, WhatsApp, email, website chatbot, etc.) without the need to switch between platforms every two seconds. Your brand’s voice will remain uniform and identifiable as a result, setting you apart from the competition.

Personalization Is Key

Personalized service demonstrates that you care about their unique preferences. 

When customers feel like they’re being treated as individuals and not just numbers, your product recommendations, offers, solutions, etc., will be more likely to resonate with them. This mutual trust smoothens the customer journey, leading to faster issue resolution and — you guessed it — increased customer satisfaction reflected in the CSAT score.

On the other note, striking a balance is also crucial; otherwise, intrusive data collection might backfire rather than help. You should be clear about how you’re using data and offer customers the option to opt out of personal offers if desired. 

Acting On Feedback

Customer feedback is a goldmine of valuable insights, allowing you to identify areas for improvement in your service, product, or overall experience. 

However, listening alone is not enough; you must communicate the actions taken to close the loop and show them you genuinely want to get to the root of the problem. You may do so through follow-up emails, in-app notifications, or even personalized responses to the customer’s initial feedback. 

Satisfied Employees Mean Satisfied Customers

Many studies have proven that satisfied employees are more engaged and invested in their work, which translates into a higher quality of service and a more positive attitude toward customers. 

Long story short: engaged employees go the extra mile to provide exceptional customer experiences! 

Thus, you should create a positive workplace where employees feel respected, acknowledging their achievements through competitive compensation and benefits packages. Opportunities for career growth are also strongly recommended.

Other Customer Satisfaction Metrics: How They Differ From The CSAT Score

NPS (Net Promoter Score) measures customer loyalty and how likely they will recommend your brand to others. The scale is a single question with a 0-10 point range, categorized as Promoter (9-10), Passive (7-8), and Detractor (0-6).

On the other hand, CES (Customer Effort Score) evaluates the perceived effort required by a customer to resolve an issue or complete a task. It’s often based on a numerical scale (1-7, for example), with 1 being effortless and 7 being very difficult.

As you can see, CSAT is often transactional, while NPS is broader and considers the overall relationship. CES, meanwhile, applies to specific tasks only, such as finding information on the website or contacting the support team. 

>>>> Read more: 8 Essential Call Center Metrics For Customer Experience and Agent Productivity

Conclusion

Measuring the CSAT score should not be considered an irregular task; your brand must monitor it on a frequent basis to take action where applicable. 

So far, StringeeX is one of the best software for monitoring and communicating with customers across all channels. Click here to learn more about its potential.