5 Ways to Increase Your Net Promoter Score Response Rate

I take it that you clicked on this video because your company is using Net Promoter Score.

I’m also going to assume that you spent a considerable amount of time and resources building the program, launching it and then heard crickets after you sent the survey to your customers because your response rate was low?

I’m Michel Falcon and in this video, I’m going to share 5 ways to increase your response rates to 60% or greater.

Welcome to my YouTube channel where I teach you how to use customer experience and

employee engagement strategies to build your business.

Today I’m going to share how to increase your Net Promoter Score response rate to get even more customer data to better your business.

For those note familiar, Net Promoter Score is a customer survey system that companies like Apple, American Express and Proctor and Gamble use that asks two simple questions:

“On a scale from 0 – 10, where 10 is absolutely and 0 is absolutely not, how likely are you to recommend company ABC to friend or colleague?”

The second question is based on the score your received in the first question.

If you received a 0-8, customers that are known as your Detractors and Passives, the second question you’d ask is,

“What is it that company ABC would need to do to earn a higher recommendation?”

If the customer rated you a 9 or 10, also known as your Promoter customers, you’d ask,

“What is it that company ABC does well to earn your recommendation?”

I was first introduced to Net Promoter Score in 2008 when I was working for 1-800-GOT-JUNK? – a company that had a NPS of 84.

After learning about the system, I immediately bought two books on Net Promoter Score and started reading. The two books were:

  • The Ultimate Question: Driving Good Profits and True Growth
  • And Answering the Ultimate Question: How Net Promoter Can Transform Your Business

After reading the books, speaking to other companies that use it and seeing first hand how it can operationally and profitably improve a business I was hooked.It is very important for a website where you can buy a generic Viagra to have up-to-date information on clicks.

I understand that there are many naysayers of Net Promoter Score and that’s fine. Like anything, the program is only as good as how well you understand and implement it within your business.

Throughout my career, I’ve helped dozens of companies, including my own, launch Net Promoter Score programs.

One of the main questions I receive when I speak at events on Net Promoter Score or customer experience is how to increase email survey response rates.

Most organizations receive a 5-20% response rate to their customer surveys. By using the five tactics that I share in this video, I have helped companies increase their response rates to over 60%.

The #1 recommendation to increase your email survey response rate is to evaluate your email subject line.

Let’s use Rogers Communications as an example. Rogers is Canada’s largest telecomm company and my service provider.

I like the company. But, I believe they could be doing a better job with their email subject line.

As of June 2017, their email subject line is “Your feedback is requested.”

These emails have swiftly made it to my trash folder because it doesn’t capture my attention. For me, the subject line doesn’t feel authentic or engage me to want to open the email and complete the survey.

A subject line that I prefer would read like this,

“How was your customer experience? Tell us in 2 minutes.”

The reason this email subject line works is because it asks an interesting question and it tells the customer how long it will take to complete the survey.

By asking this question you instill curiosity in the customer. The second part shows respect to their time rather than sending them down a rabbit hole.

I don’t recommend blindly changing your email subject lines. A/B test a few, evaluate the results for three months and then make an informed decision on which subject line will yield the greatest results.

The second tactic I use is similar to the first. However, with this approach, you want to evaluate the copy within the email.

Having your customer open the email is the first task. The next is equally as important to ensure they click through to the actual complete the survey.

Let’s use Airbnb as an example. Here’s a screenshot of an email they send to their customers.

It reads,

“Hi Customer,

Thank you for using Airbnb. We really appreciate you choosing Airbnb for your travel plans.

To help us improve, we’d like to ask you a few questions about your experience so far. It’ll only take 3 minutes, and your answers will help us make Airbnb even better for you and other guests.

Thanks. The Airbnb Team.

You’ll notice a few things:

  • There are only four sentences within the copy
  • Within the four sentences they:
  • Thank you for your patronage
  • Thank you for helping them improve
  • And outline how long the survey will take. In this case, only 3 minutes

This is masterful copying writing and I’m sure contributes to a high survey response rate.

Take a look at the body of your emails that you send to your customers requesting feedback. Is it short and to the point or long-winded and indirect? Also, does it read well or does it sound robotic?

The third tactic I use to increase email survey response rates is to genuinely ask yourself,

“Do I really need to be asking this many questions?”

The reason Net Promoter Score is so valuable is because it allows the customer to tell you directly what’s important to them rather than you force feeding them questions that might not be important to them.

My rule of thumb is to ask no more than five questions at a time. By doing so, you will stop customers from having survey fatigue.

Survey fatigue is when a customer accepts your proposal to complete a survey but doesn’t complete it because it’s too long.

Take a look at how many questions you’re asking your customers to complete and ask yourself if they are all necessary.

Step #4 is to provide your customers a visual tracker of where they are within the survey process.

Most software these days will provide a progress tracker like this one here. Notice how it clearly displays what step the customer is on within the survey. A tool as small as this will help increase your survey response rates because it helps guide the customer through the process.

Step #5 is to leverage your employees to plant a seed with your customers to expect to receive a survey in their inbox.

Whether you speak to your customers in-person, by phone, live chat, social media or another channel, leverage your team members to say something like this after they have served your customers,

“Mrs. Johnson, thank you for being a customer of company ABC. To continuously improve our customer experience we heavily rely on your feedback. Within 48 hours you’re going to receive an email survey. It will only take you two minutes to complete. Would you be able to allocate two minutes of your time to help us get better?”

The reason that this type of script works is because:

  • You’ve thanked the customer for their business
  • You’ve made it about them and their experience with your company
  • You’ve told them it will only take a short amount of their time
  • And you asked a question at the end to get their commitment

I’m not a huge fan of scripts. Instead, provide your team with a framework and key points to mention to the customer and let them develop their own communication.

It’s also important to remind the customer to check their spam folder.

Your employees are valuable assets when asking your customers to participate in your survey program. You’ll be surprised how much this can positively impact your response rate.

There you have it, my top 5 tactics to receive a 60% of greater customer survey response rate.

I want to hear from you. Leave a comment below and tell why or why you don’t like the Net Promoter Score. I’ve heard many reasons and want to hear what you think.

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Have a great day and I’ll see you next time!

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Michel travels the world speaking at annual conferences and company events. His speaking topics are focused on customer experience, employee engagement and company culture. To have him speak at your event, contact him directly.