Want to improve your CX? Start with your Net Promoter Score

Apple. Disney. Amazon. Microsoft. There’s a common denominator in the success of these titans of industry, and it’s more than the tech. The most visionary and influential organizations of the last few decades have all excelled at one thing — creating exceptional customer experiences. These companies build their businesses around their customers, and they have the data to prove it works.

But prioritizing CX isn’t just for the titans anymore. The past few years have accelerated the pace of digital transformation to breakneck speeds, and everyone in every market has had to keep pace. With the massive shifts in the way we learn, work, and live, our world is more connected than ever before — bringing unique challenges to businesses across industries. DNBs (Digital Native Brands) emerged, increasing the competitive landscape. Technology demands rose sharply and abruptly, straining budgets. And in this new world, customers came to expect secure, seamless, and satisfying experiences from the companies they do business with— or they will find them elsewhere.

So, if CX is a major focus area for your organization (as it likely is), where do you start?

Your Net Promoter Score℠ is the best bet.

Understanding the Net Promoter Score

Net Promoter Score is said by some to be the “holy grail” for understanding customer satisfaction, and in turn, customer loyalty. It’s a simple score between -100 to 100 that helps organizations rank themselves both independently and within their industry.

However, organizations are discovering that it can be used for more than just benchmarking themselves over time. It can shape cultural change, improve experiences, and build happier, longer-lasting customer relationships. These ultimately will impact the business on a financial level.

And it all starts with just one question.

The soft side of CX

So, what exactly is CX? That depends on who you ask. If you ask the internet, you’ll find a wide range of answers. CX is like “brand” in that it’s very important but can be challenging to define. There are phases of discovery, purchase journeys, satisfaction, and support with metrics collected at every stage to analyze and action. Other factors like employee engagement, marketing efficacy, and company culture play in.

There is an art to CX as well. Knowing how to talk to your customers, anticipating their needs, and keeping them in the conversation at every touchpoint are just as important to CX as the data itself — maybe even more so. These soft skills inform your customers’ opinions and perceptions and are crucial, not only to your CX, but to the health and future of your brand.

How do your CX soft skills stack up?

• Does your organization have a customer-centric mindset?

• Does your messaging resonate across touchpoints?

• Are you trustworthy?

• Are you easy to do business with?

• Do you stand behind your promises?

Then there’s the data. All. That. Data. But when it comes to customer feedback, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Data points can indicate pain points in retention, wait times, churn rates, etc. but cannot complete the holistic picture that good CX requires. That’s why it’s so important to have standardized methods of measurement (such as NPS®) and the right technology in place to keep your business up and running — and maintain a 360-degree view of the customer experience.