How does Net Promoter Score® help in retaining customers?

Net Promoter Score® is a loyalty metric leasing companies use to manage Customer Experience. Basically, it measures customer loyalty based on the possibility of recommendation or referral. NUMR, a customer experience management (CXM) company recommends using NPS® to streamline your entire CX initiative. Since, it is calculated based on 1 question, it is easy to understand. The question being,

“On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend us (product/service) to your friends and colleagues?”

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And, respondents answer on an 11-point scale. Now, based on their answer, all customers are divided into 3 categories. Namely-

1. PROMOTERS- Customers who give a score of 9 or 10. Because, these are fans of your brand, they help your company grow through positive word-of-mouth.
2. PASSIVES- Respondents who rate 7 or 8. Since, these are partially satisfied customers, they aren’t loyal and may churn anytime.
3. DETRACTORS- are those who give a rating of 6 or below. They are angry customers and have a high chance of attrition.

NET PROMOTER SCORE® AND CUSTOMER RETENTION

Clearly, Net Promoter Score® is an indicator of Customer Loyalty. And, a strong loyalty to a company is emblematic of more customer transactions. To clarify, a high NPS® means that most of your customers are happy. This, in turn means that they are more likely to continue transacting with your company. Therefore, usually, a high NPS® results in a high Customer Retention Rate.

(To read about how easy but effective steps that can help you increase your NPS®, click here.)

As discussed above, Net Promoter Score® segregates all customers into 3 groups based on their degree of loyalty. Therefore, it provides a system to easily prioritise high risk customers. Right away, a company should follow up with Detractors and perform Close Looping. Furthermore, companies should engage with Detractors to retain them since “it is six to seven times more expensive to attract a new customer than it is to retain an existing one.”  Additionally, “probability of selling to an existing customer is 14 times higher than that of selling to a new customer”.

After all, making sure that customers feel heard is essential to running a successful CX program.

Furthermore, NPS® is a real time metric. Therefore, it allows companies to quickly identify customers who are about to Churn, leaving them with enough time to retain them. (Read how NUMR, a customer experience management (CXM) company does Churn Analytics, click here.)

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, Net Promoter Score® is a powerful tool for reducing attrition and improving customer attrition. In fact, it goes one step forward. Instead of merely retaining customers, it has the ability to turn customer into loyal brand advocates. As Reichheld the creator of NPS® wrote, “The only path to profitable growth may lie in a company’s ability to get its loyal customers to become, in effect, its marketing department”.

*Net promoter Score® and NPS® are registered trademarks of Bain & Company,  Satmetrix and Fred Reichheld