Examples of net promoter score (NPS) questions

80% of customers consider customer experience to be a key differentiator when choosing one brand over another. With so many businesses vying for customers’ attention, those that can provide a superior customer experience stand out from the crowd.

Investing in customer experience brings several other benefits, including increased loyalty and reduced churn. Providing a great customer experience can also boost customer spend. According to Deloitte, customers who have positive experiences are likely to spend 140% more than those who have negative experiences.

But how can a company know whether it’s providing an excellent customer experience? How can it tell whether its customers are satisfied with its services?

Well, there are several customer feedback tools that companies can use for this purpose. Net promoter score (NPS) surveys are among the most popular.

This article outlines the NPS survey process and offers great examples of NPS questions that can help you understand the extent to which your business meets your customers’ needs.

An NPS survey is a type of customer satisfaction survey that measures customer loyalty and satisfaction with a company’s products or services. It helps companies understand how customers currently feel about their products, services, and overall experience. 

The NPS survey is generally a two-part survey consisting of both quantitative and qualitative feedback. Based on the responses, you can divide customers into three categories: promoters, passives, and detractors.

The quantitative part consists of a single question that seeks to determine how customers rate a company on a scale. The qualitative part consists of follow-up questions that will reveal the reason behind the customers’ scores and ratings.

The quantitative part of the NPS survey consists of one simple question: how likely are you to recommend our company to others? Respondents will select a score between 0 (not at all likely) and 10 (extremely likely).

Alternatively, you can provide the following five options for the respondents to choose from:

• Very unlikely

• Unlikely

• Neutral

• Likely

• Very likely

The five-point scale is ideal for respondents on mobile because it’s convenient and requires less space.

The objective of asking customers this NPS survey question is to gauge their satisfaction and loyalty. When customers are highly likely to recommend your company to others, you can assume that they are satisfied with your company. In contrast, there may be areas that need improving if your customer is unlikely to recommend your company to others.

Note that you can replace the word “company” with “product” or “service” on the NPS survey question. You can also replace “others” with your target audience.

After the main NPS survey question, you can ask several follow-up multiple-choice or open-ended questions to determine the reasons for the respondents’ scores or ratings.

What’s the main reason why you would (or wouldn’t) recommend us?

Asking customers why they would or wouldn’t recommend your business services allows you to understand which factors drive their satisfaction or displeasure. You can use the information to make changes that improve customer experience.

This question also shows that you are interested in feedback from customers and willing to make changes based on their input.

What category should we improve on to serve you better?

• Product delivery

• Customer support

• Support response time

• Complaint resolution

• Others (please specify) 

The objective of this NPS survey question is to identify major problems early on and take steps to address them.

What problem did you intend to solve with our product?

Asking this question is a great way to understand your customers’ needs and wants. It can reveal their motivations for using your product, as well as how you can improve it to better meet their needs.

You can also use this information to create more effective marketing campaigns and product updates that will help ensure customer satisfaction and client loyalty.

Ultimately, asking customers what problems they intend to solve with your product is an invaluable tool for gaining deeper insights into the customer journey and improving your business’s overall success.

Why did you choose our product over similar products?

• Higher quality

• Lower price

• Better features

• Unique offering

• Others (please specify)

Asking customers why they chose your business over others can be a great way to get feedback on what you’re doing well and what needs improvement. It can also help you understand what your customers value most about your business.

Which features of our product do you use most? 

Understanding what product features your customers use most can reveal what they consider most important. This information can help you improve your product or service.

Which features of our product do you like best?

This question can reveal which part of your offering your customers value most. This information can help you create targeted marketing campaigns that focus on your happy customers’ favorite features.

Which features of our product do you like least?

Asking this question can help you identify areas of your product or service that need improvement. It can also help you understand why customers don’t rate your product or service as highly as you would like.

Understanding the root cause of customer dissatisfaction enables you to make changes that improve the overall customer experience.

What challenges do you face when using our product?

The answers you get to this question allow you to identify areas where your product falls short and make the necessary changes to better meet your customers’ needs.

It also shows unhappy customers that you care about their experiences and are committed to making improvements.

If you could change anything about our product/services, what would it be?

Asking customers what they would change in your product gives you the knowledge you need to make improvements and keep your customers happy. It shows that you care about their feedback and want to make improvements based on their suggestions.

It can also reveal problems with your product that you may not have been aware of and help you find ways to improve the customer experience.

Your business can benefit from conducting NPS surveys in several ways.

The first obvious benefit is that NPS surveys help you gain valuable insights into your customers’ experiences. This allows you to make informed decisions to improve your product /service and customer experience.

NPS surveys can also help you understand your customers’ needs so that you can boost customer retention and revenue while lowering costs.

Additionally, NPS surveys make it easy to track progress over time and compare performance across different markets or regions. You can then identify areas for improvement and ensure that you provide the best possible customer experience.

NPS surveys have a number of potential limitations that you should consider when using them.

Perhaps the most significant disadvantage is that NPS surveys are a poor predictor of actual customer behavior. They merely measure the customer’s attitude toward your business; just because they say they would recommend your company doesn’t mean they actually will. Your customer referral rate (CRR) would be more accurate here.

These surveys also tend to be biased toward more vocal customers. Those who are more satisfied with a product or experience may be more likely to respond to a survey, skewing the results and leaving you with data that inaccurately reflects your customer experience.

Another disadvantage is that NPS surveys may be subject to response bias, as respondents may not be honest about their true feelings. This occurs when respondents provide answers they consider socially popular rather than truthful. For example, a respondent might say they are highly likely to recommend a product to a friend, even if they wouldn’t.

Choosing a reputable survey provider to craft clear and unbiased questions can help you avoid these problems.

You’ll need to take the following three steps to create an effective NPS survey:

Segment your audience

To truly understand your customers, you need to segment your target audience and tailor your NPS survey accordingly. This involves dividing your audience into different groups and personalizing each email or message to increase the likelihood of a response.

For example, if you want to target customers who are unhappy with your product, you can send them a survey that specifically asks about their experience with your product.

Next, you’ll need to select the platform where each group is most likely to see and respond to your NPS survey. You can then send your survey to each customer segment. Be sure to compare the results from each customer segment to see what’s working and what needs improvement.

Keep it simple

The survey should be a quick and easy way for customers to give feedback. They may become overwhelmed if you ask them complex questions and give up before finishing the survey.

Simple questions also lead to higher survey response rates, so it’s best to keep your wording simple and to the point.

Keep it short

The average consumer attention span is a mere eight seconds, according to Microsoft, so keeping your questions short is essential.

If you ask too many questions, your respondents may get frustrated and give up before finishing the survey. Plus, the more questions you ask, the more likely it is that your respondents will skip some. This can lead to inaccurate results since you won’t have all of the necessary data.

So, the rule of thumb when creating your NPS survey is to keep your questions short and simple, an approach that will increase the likelihood of obtaining accurate and complete responses.

The answer to this question depends on your business and customer base. Consider when and where your customers are most likely to be engaged with your brand and ask your NPS questions at the right time and in the right place.

For example, if you run a brick-and-mortar store, you could ask your NPS questions at the register after customers have made a purchase. Or, if you have an e-commerce store, you could ask your NPS questions in the confirmation email after a customer has completed a purchase.

You should also consider how frequently you want to send out your NPS surveys. If you send them too often, you risk annoying your customers and getting low response rates. However, not sending them often enough will prevent you from getting an accurate gauge of customer satisfaction.

The bottom line is that you should tailor your NPS surveys to your business and your enthusiastic customers. By doing so, you’ll be able to get the most accurate and valuable feedback possible and use it to improve your business.

Any company that wants to thrive in a competitive business world should pay attention to customer experience. Businesses that provide a great customer experience can differentiate themselves from their competitors and turn first-time customers into loyal enthusiasts, improving retention rates in the process.

NPS surveys are an effective, simple, and valuable tool for obtaining these insights and enabling you to improve your products and services.