Net Promoter Score (NPS): What It Is and How to Measure It

Celia Cerdeira at Talkdesk explores “What is Net Promoter Score?” and breaks down how to measure it, how to calculate it, and how businesses can optimise their customer experience for a higher score.

Customer satisfaction is the foundation of customer loyalty. A satisfied customer may enjoy a product or service, but a loyal customer keeps coming back, spends more, and ultimately drives sustainable growth. Net Promoter Score (NPS) is one of the most effective ways to measure both.

Over the past decade, customer acquisition costs have skyrocketed by 222%, with brands now losing an average of $29 for every new customer acquired – up from $19 ten years ago.

Meanwhile, retained customers spend 67% more than new ones, making customer loyalty not just an outcome but a revenue-driving force.

What Is Net Promoter Score (NPS)?

Net Promoter Score is a key performance indicator (KPI) that measures how likely a customer is to recommend a company’s product or service to others.

Tracking Net Promoter Score over time gives companies a clear picture of customer sentiment, helps predict retention trends, and highlights areas for improvement.

Since Net Promoter Score measures both short-term satisfaction and long-term loyalty, it’s also a powerful tool for customer relationship management (CRM).

Companies can use these insights to strengthen customer experience programs and build a brand that keeps customers coming back.

How to Calculate Net Promoter Score

To calculate Net Promoter Score, companies should first collect customer feedback using a survey that includes this core question:

“On a scale from 1 to 10, how likely are you to recommend our products or services to a friend, family member, or colleague?”

For businesses that haven’t conducted customer surveys before, using a pre-created survey template can simplify the process.

Many customer experience (CX) platforms offer ready-made templates to help companies launch surveys quickly and efficiently.

Once responses are collected, customers are grouped into three categories based on their ratings:

• Promoters (9-10) – Loyal customers who actively recommend the brand.
• Passives (7-8) – Neutral customers who are satisfied but not enthusiastic enough to promote the company.
• Detractors (0-6) – Unhappy customers who may discourage others from engaging with the brand.

After categorising responses, companies can calculate their Net Promoter Score using this formula:

Percentage of promoters – Percentage of detractors

For example, if 60% of respondents are promoters, 20% are detractors, and the remaining 20% are passives, the NPS would be 40.

What Is a Good Net Promoter Score?

Since Net Promoter Score ranges from -100 to +100, any score above 0 is considered good, as it means a company has more promoters than detractors. However, the definition of a “good” NPS depends on industry benchmarks and customer expectations.

Here’s a general guide to interpreting NPS scores:

• A positive NPS (above 0) indicates more promoters than detractors, meaning customer sentiment is trending in the right direction.
• An NPS of 50 or higher is typically considered strong, showing that a company has a loyal and engaged customer base.
• An NPS of 70 or more is considered world-class, often seen in industry leaders with exceptional customer relationships.

Some industries naturally have lower NPS averages due to factors such as pricing sensitivity or customer expectations. Even the biggest brands don’t always hit sky-high Net Promoter Scores.

For instance, in 2018, Amazon had an NPS of 54, Google 53, and Apple 49 – proving that a solid NPS doesn’t always have to be above 70.

Instead of focusing solely on the score itself, companies should track changes over time and benchmark against competitors to assess performance.

How to Improve Net Promoter Score

Improving Net Promoter Score starts with understanding customer expectations and proactively enhancing the customer experience.

By benchmarking Net Promoter Scores, leveraging multiple communication channels, and optimising support interactions, businesses can boost customer loyalty.

1. Benchmark NPS Score for Context

A Net Promoter Score is only meaningful when evaluated within the right context. Scores vary by industry, so what might be considered strong in one sector could be average or even weak in another.

For example, industries with frequent, high-touch customer interactions – such as hospitality – tend to have higher NPS averages, while industries like telecommunications or financial services often see lower scores due to customer frustration with service complexity.

To get an accurate assessment of performance, companies should compare their scores to industry benchmarks from reliable, non-biased sources. This ensures that results are evaluated realistically, rather than against an arbitrary standard.

2. Create an NPS Improvement Action Plan

Raising Net Promoter Score requires a targeted approach – one that focuses on improving the customer experience across key demographics.

To do this, companies should develop an improvement action plan that identifies problem areas, sets clear objectives, and outlines specific initiatives to boost customer satisfaction.

A strong action plan starts with analysing survey data to pinpoint trends among customer segments. Are certain demographics – such as new customers, long-time users, or specific geographic regions – reporting lower scores?

By identifying these patterns, businesses can tailor their strategies to address pain points and enhance the customer experience where it matters most.

From there, companies should implement focused initiatives such as streamlining customer support, improving self-service options, or offering loyalty incentives.

3. Connect With Dissatisfied Customers

Unhappy customers don’t just leave; they share their negative experiences with others, potentially harming a company’s reputation.

Following up with detractors (those who rate a company 0-6) is a critical step in improving Net Promoter Score and, more importantly, rebuilding trust.

A proactive personalised outreach, especially when conducted by a real person rather than an automated response, can turn dissatisfaction into loyalty.

By acknowledging concerns, actively listening, and offering solutions, companies can often win back customer support.

Even if an immediate fix isn’t possible, showing customers that their feedback is valued goes a long way in improving sentiment and preventing further dissatisfaction.

4. Get the Company Involved

Improving Net Promoter Score isn’t just the responsibility of the customer service team—it requires a company-wide effort.

Every department plays a role in shaping the customer experience, and a collective focus on Net Promoter Scores can lead to stronger customer relationships and higher retention rates. Consider these examples:

Marketing

By setting accurate expectations in campaigns and customer communications, marketing can help make sure customers receive the experience they were promised. They can also leverage Net Promoter Score data to showcase positive testimonials and build brand trust.

Sales

Use Net Promoter Score insights to identify and engage with promoters. Encourage them to share referrals, provide testimonials, and highlight their positive experiences to build trust and credibility in sales conversations.

Product Development

Direct customer feedback from Net Promoter Score surveys can guide product teams in improving features, fixing common pain points, and aligning offerings with customer needs.

5. Train Contact Centre Agents

Frontline interactions can make or break a customer’s experience, which is why well-trained contact centre agents are essential for improving Net Promoter Scores.

By analysing survey responses, companies can identify specific areas for agent training so teams are equipped to handle customer concerns.

For example, if detractors frequently mention long wait times, training can focus on first-call resolution (FCR).

If passives indicate that interactions feel impersonal, contact centre agents can be coached on active listening and personalised engagement to create more meaningful connections.

Promoter feedback can also be leveraged to reinforce best practices and highlight behaviours that lead to positive experiences.

By using real customer feedback to inform training programs, companies can help agents refine their communication skills, resolve issues proactively, and deliver the kind of service that turns satisfied customers into loyal brand advocates.

6. Address Passive Scores

Customers who score a 7 or 8 on the Net Promoter Score scale, classified as passives, may not be actively dissatisfied, but they also aren’t enthusiastic enough to promote the company. Their loyalty is fragile, meaning they could just as easily become detractors as they could be converted into promoters.

Companies shouldn’t overlook passives. Instead, they can take proactive steps to understand their lukewarm sentiment and uncover what’s holding them back from becoming loyal advocates. This can include:

• Conducting follow-up surveys or market studies to identify common concerns and areas for improvement.
• Offering personalised outreach to better understand their experience and provide solutions or incentives.
• Analysing feedback trends to spot recurring themes – whether it’s pricing concerns, product features, or service quality – that could be improved to enhance customer satisfaction.

Benefits to Improving Net Promoter Scores

Improving NPS has far-reaching benefits for company success, customer experience, and employee performance.

More specifically, high Net Promoter Scores can lead to benefits, such as:

Identifying Loyal Customer Segments

Calculating Net Promoter Score helps companies pinpoint their most loyal customers, allowing for targeted marketing efforts and retention strategies.

At the same time, it highlights less loyal customer segments, enabling businesses to tailor outreach and prevent churn.

Improving ROI

Businesses with a high Net Promoter Score tend to see higher revenue growth compared to their competitors. Happy customers spend more, stay longer, and refer others improving return on investment across the board.

Supporting Future Growth

Tracking Net Promoter Score today lays the foundation for long-term success. A strong focus on NPS fosters a customer-first culture, ensuring that companies continuously refine their products, services, and support strategies to align with customer expectations.

Contacting Low NPS Responders

Collecting Net Promoter Score data enables quick follow-ups with dissatisfied customers (detractors), providing valuable insights into service gaps, product issues, or unmet expectations.

Elevating Parallel Customer Experience KPIs

A strong Net Promoter Score doesn’t happen in isolation. Companies that prioritise NPS often see improvements in other key customer experience metrics like customer satisfaction score (CSAT) and customer effort score (CES).

When customers feel valued and supported, their overall experience improves across the board.

Reducing Customer Service Escalations

When companies listen to customer feedback and make improvements based on Net Promoter Score insights, fewer issues escalate to frustrated support calls, complaints, or service cancellations. A more seamless customer journey leads to happier customers and less burden on support teams.

Creating a Stronger Brand Reputation

A high Net Promoter Score signals positive word-of-mouth marketing. Satisfied customers become brand advocates, helping attract new business through organic referrals and glowing reviews.

Overall, Net Promoter Score is one of the best early indicators of customer sentiment. By tracking it regularly, companies can quickly detect shifts in customer perception and respond before issues escalate.

Regular measurement also helps businesses understand how customers feel about new product launches, pricing adjustments, policy changes, or service updates.

To stay ahead of customer expectations, companies should recalculate Net Promoter Score after any major change, so every decision aligns with the goal of delivering a better, more customer-centric experience.

NPS vs CSAT vs CES: What’s the Difference?

Alongside Net Promoter Score, customer satisfaction score (CSAT) and customer effort score (CES) help companies understand how customers feel about their brand.

While each of these metrics provides valuable insights, they measure different aspects of the customer experience.

• Net Promoter Score – Measures customer loyalty and advocacy by asking how likely a customer is to recommend a business. It’s a long-term indicator of customer sentiment.
• Customer Satisfaction Score – Measures customer satisfaction with a specific product, service, or interaction. It’s a short-term metric that captures immediate feedback.
• Customer Effort Score – Measures how easy or difficult it is for a customer to complete a task, such as resolving an issue or making a purchase. The lower the effort, the better the experience.

Using only one key performance indicator (KPI) can lead to an incomplete understanding of the customer experience. For example:

• A company with a high CSAT score may still have a low NPS if customers enjoy individual interactions but don’t feel strong long-term loyalty.
• A high CES score (indicating a seamless experience) might not translate into a high CSAT or NPS if the product itself doesn’t meet customer expectations.

For deeper insights, businesses should use these KPIs together. By analysing all three, companies can identify trends, pain points, and opportunities for improvement ensuring they deliver a well-rounded customer experience.

Why Net Promoter Score Matters Across Industries

While the core question remains the same, Net Promoter Score’s impact and application vary depending on industry-specific challenges. Let’s explore some specific examples of Net Promoter Score and how it impacts different sectors.

Retail & Ecommerce

In retail and ecommerce, long checkout times, poor return policies, or confusing website navigation can frustrate customers, making them less likely to recommend a brand.

A strong Net Promoter Score helps retailers identify pain points – whether it’s slow customer support or a clunky mobile experience – allowing them to optimise shopping journeys with streamlined checkouts, self-service returns, and personalized engagement strategies.

Finance

In financial services, customer trust is everything. Whether navigating loan applications, managing investments, or resolving billing disputes, customers expect clear, seamless experiences.

A low Net Promoter Score can signal pain points like overly complex processes or slow response times, allowing financial institutions to improve self-service tools, enhance digital banking experiences, and offer more proactive customer support.

Healthcare

For healthcare providers, patient loyalty depends on trust, accessibility, and ease of service. Complicated appointment scheduling and complex patient portals create friction that discourages engagement.

Tracking Net Promoter Scores allows healthcare organisations to pinpoint these obstacles and implement solutions like simplified online scheduling, omnichannel engagement, and more.

Reviewed by: Rachael Trickey