In the fast-paced world of SaaS, attracting customers is only half the battle. The real victory lies in keeping them happy and loyal. Two crucial metrics that help you gauge this customer sentiment are Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) and Net Promoter Score (NPS). Understanding and tracking these will provide invaluable insights into the health of your customer relationships and, by extension, the success of your SaaS.
Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) is a direct measure of how satisfied customers are with a specific interaction, product feature, or overall service. It's typically asked immediately after an event, like a support interaction or the completion of a key task within your application. The question is usually framed as: 'How satisfied were you with [specific interaction/feature/service]?' with responses on a scale, often from 'Very Dissatisfied' to 'Very Satisfied'.
To calculate CSAT, you focus on the 'Satisfied' and 'Very Satisfied' responses. The formula is straightforward:
CSAT Score = (Number of Satisfied Customers / Total Number of Respondents) * 100
For instance, if 80 out of 100 respondents indicate they were satisfied or very satisfied, your CSAT score is 80%.
Net Promoter Score (NPS), on the other hand, measures overall customer loyalty and the likelihood of customers recommending your product or service to others. It's a more forward-looking metric that hints at future growth. The standard NPS question is: 'On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend [Your SaaS Product] to a friend or colleague?'
NPS categorizes respondents into three groups:
- Promoters (score 9-10): Loyal enthusiasts who will keep buying and refer others.
- Passives (score 7-8): Content but unenthusiastic customers who are vulnerable to competitive offerings.
- Detractors (score 0-6): Unhappy customers who can damage your brand through negative word-of-mouth.
The NPS score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters:
NPS = % Promoters - % Detractors
graph TD
A[Respondents] --> B{Score 0-6?}
B-- Yes --> C[Detractors]
B-- No --> D{Score 7-8?}
D-- Yes --> E[Passives]
D-- No --> F[Promoters (Score 9-10)]
G{Calculate NPS} --> H[NPS = % Promoters - % Detractors]