What is Customer Satisfaction (CSAT)?
Customer satisfaction (CSAT) is a measurement of how well a business is satisfying its customers with the products, services or interactions it provides. Usually expressed as a score derived from a simple customer satisfaction survey, CSAT measures satisfaction at a given point in time (for example, upon receipt of a product the customer ordered) and as such it does not provide a “big picture” view of concepts such as customer loyalty. But it is useful for pinpointing issues or achievements with specific steps along the customer journey.
CSAT information is typically gathered through customer surveys. However, unlike Net Promoter Scores® (NPS), a standard way to structure customer satisfaction surveys does not exist. A typical CSAT survey asks customers to rate their experiences through scaled questions, such as "On a 5-point scale, how satisfied are you with the [product, service, support] you received?" Flexibility exists with the scale that is used and the subject of the measurement. For example, a company could get very narrow with what they're measuring, such as "On a 5-point scale, how satisfied are you with how quickly your order was delivered?" An approach such as this could be used to identify best practices or isolate problem areas.
Customer satisfaction scores are typically expressed as a percentage of satisfied customers. On a 5-point scale, that usually means customers that responded with a 4 or 5 rating are regarded as “satisfied.” The CSAT percentage is calculated by dividing number of satisfied customers by the total number of customers who responded to the survey, then multiplying that result by 100. The closer that number approaches 100%, the better.
Customer satisfaction in the contact center
Customer satisfaction is frequently measured following interactions with customer service. Software tools are available that automate the collection and analysis of customer satisfaction data. For example, customers can automatically be presented with a CSAT survey at the conclusion of a chat session with a service agent. Then, analytics tools can calculate the score at the agent level and make it available on the agent dashboard. Customer satisfaction scores are useful as barometers that indicate whether contact centers are satisfying customers. However, CSAT scores should be used with other measurements to get a holistic view of service performance.
How NICE can help
NICE CXone is the market leading call center software in use by thousands of customers of all sizes around the world to help them consistently deliver exceptional customer experiences. We provide tools that make measuring customer satisfaction effortless. CXone is a cloud native, unified suite of applications designed to help a company holistically run its call (or contact) center operations. CXone includes:
Omnichannel Routing – routing and interaction management that empowers agents to positively and productively interact with customers in digital and voice channels. These solutions include an automatic call distributor (ACD), interactive voice response (IVR), interaction channel support and proactive outbound dialer.
Workforce Optimization – unlocks the potential of your team by inspiring employees' self-improvement, amplifying quality management efforts to enhance customer experience and reducing labor waste. These solutions include workforce management (WFM), quality management (QM), recording and performance management (PM).
Analytics – turns insights into results by making data relevant, easy to consume and actionable to drive measurable improvements and understand the omnichannel experience customers receive. These solutions include interaction analytics, customer surveys, reporting and performance management.
CXone also includes pre-defined CRM integrations and UCaaS integrations with most leading solutions on the market. These integrations provide a holistic call center software solution capable of elevating customer experiences for companies of all sizes.
