{"id":5519,"date":"2025-08-11T21:44:18","date_gmt":"2025-08-11T20:44:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wedigitek.com\/?p=5519"},"modified":"2025-12-30T13:40:14","modified_gmt":"2025-12-30T13:40:14","slug":"youre-using-nps-the-wrong-way","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wedigitek.com\/en\/blog-en\/youre-using-nps-the-wrong-way\/","title":{"rendered":"You\u2019re using NPS the wrong way"},"content":{"rendered":"

We\u2019ve all come across (or used in some way) the Net Promoter Score (NPS)<\/strong> to measure consumer loyalty to a specific organization, in a way that has changed little since the publication of the 2003 Harvard Business Review<\/em> article \u201cThe One Number You Need To Grow\u201d<\/strong><\/a> by Frederick F. Reichheld, which popularized the famous line: \u201cOn a scale from 0 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our company to a friend?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n\"NPS.png\"<\/picture>\n

The Scope of NPS<\/h2>\n

In the book The Ultimate Question<\/em>, released three years after the original article, Reichheld offers an interesting view through practical NPS use cases. Adapting one of his examples, let\u2019s suppose an end consumer wants to buy an iPhone on a major e-commerce website, and while entering payment information, the site runs into issues. Right on that payment page, a flashing green pop-up appears asking for a 1-to-10 rating on whether the user would recommend the product to a friend.<\/p>\n

Even in this single scenario, it\u2019s possible to identify several improvement opportunities:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. \n

    The NPS survey should be shown after the user\u2019s experience<\/strong> to measure loyalty, not during the purchase process.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  2. \n

    It must be clear who the NPS is evaluating<\/strong>: in this example, is it the e-commerce site itself, or Apple? The context of the question is extremely important.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  3. \n

    Colors and icons can unintentionally suggest a \u201cright\u201d score<\/strong> (for instance, green being associated with something positive, and red with something negative, if colors are also tied to the scores). Remaining impartial is crucial to obtain honest feedback from the customer\/user.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n

  4. \n

    Satisfaction should not be confused with loyalty<\/strong>: let\u2019s assume the user had a bad experience while entering payment details, but when the iPhone arrived, they were extremely satisfied, so much so that they later bought more Apple products. Even if part of the journey was frustrating, that may not prevent their loyalty from remaining intact.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Satisfaction \u2260 Loyalty<\/h2>\n

    Let\u2019s go deeper into that last point: there is a crucial difference between satisfaction<\/strong>\u2014the contentment that comes from having expectations met, and loyalty<\/strong>, which can be defined as fidelity to commitments made.<\/p>\n

    A consumer who gives a 9 or 10<\/strong> after purchasing a service or product shows they are willing to recommend it to friends and acquaintances\u2014meaning they can indirectly help attract new customers and expand share with their own network. It\u2019s a way to \u201cevangelize\u201d customers through a direct action with one of them.<\/p>\n

    Of course, a user who rates a product positively via NPS is very likely satisfied with it. But using NPS to measure satisfaction itself is like asking \u201cDo you love me?\u201d<\/em> after a first date with someone who\u2019s still just a crush: it\u2019s a great question, but the timing could be better.<\/p>\n

    To measure satisfaction specifically, there are other approaches designed for that purpose:<\/p>\n

    Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)<\/h2>\n

    CSAT<\/strong>, for example, is a metric used to measure customer satisfaction with a company at different stages of the same journey. This model also prioritizes simplicity, making it easier for users to respond and generating important insights that help improve processes. Some practical examples include:<\/p>\n