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Net Promoter Score (NPS)

What it is and why it matters

NPS SCore

One of the objectives outlined in the CMC Strategic Plan is to “Increase Net Promoter Score (NPS) among architects, designers and engineers.” But what is a Net Promoter Score?

In a nutshell, it’s the simplest way to measure customer/stakeholder loyalty and satisfaction. It revolves around a simple yet powerful question: “On a scale of 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our product or service to a friend or colleague?”

Knowing the likelihood of someone recommending your services has shown to be a better indicator of future growth and profitability than satisfaction alone.

Organizations of all walks utilize NPS surveys to measure customer perceptions and identify areas of improvement. Any entity, from government and nonprofits to e-commerce and technology companies can benefit from knowing where they stand in relation to competitors and their own past performance.

Once you’ve collected your results, respondents are classified into three categories:

  1. Promoters (score 9-10)
  2. Passives (score 7-8)
  3. Detractors (score 0-6)

Your NPS score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of Detractors from the percentage of Promoters. For example, if 25% of your customers are Detractors, 25% are Passives and 50% are Promoters, your NPS would be 25 (50-25).

Interpreting Your Score

Your score will always be between -100 and 100. The higher the score, the better.

Your score is purely a snapshot in time, not a letter grade. The metric’s creators suggest that any score above 0 is good, above 20 is great and above 50 is amazing. In the B2B sector, scores are typically between 5% to 20%.

Other benefits of NPS:

  • Ability to benchmark ourselves against past performance as well as competitors over time. NPS can help us set goals, track progress, and even serve as fodder for customer communications.
  • Ease of implementation: NPS surveys are straightforward and don't require lengthy questionnaires, which usually equates to strong response rates.
  • Asking professionals for their opinion demonstrates a commitment to customer-centricity, fostering trust and loyalty.