Kundenzufriedenheit steigern: Die 7 wichtigsten Tipps für treue Kundschaft
Monday, 24 April 2023
Latori GmbH

Increase customer satisfaction: The 7 most important tips for loyal customers

Satisfied customers are one of the most important factors for the success of a company. If you succeed in making the clientele happy, you will ensure that they come back and recommend you to others.

However, if dwindling customer satisfaction becomes a general problem, you urgently need to change something. It is important to always measure and keep an eye on customer satisfaction.

In this article, we'll show you how the Net Promoter Score (NPS) can help you do this and which 7 tips you should follow for high customer satisfaction.

Do you need support to increase customer satisfaction in your store? As Shopify experts, we are happy to assist you. Contact us.

Definition: What is customer satisfaction?

Customer satisfaction expresses how well you as a provider meet the needs and expectations of your customers. This refers to all interactions before, during and after a purchase. If customers' expectations are met, they are satisfied. If expectations are even exceeded, you have ultimately turned satisfied customers into loyal customers.

Customer satisfaction is therefore crucial for survival in the market. To achieve an increase in satisfaction, direct feedback from customers and the measurement of customer satisfaction are enormously important.

The goals of the analysis vary depending on the company, the industry and the type of customer. However, generally applicable goals can be defined, such as increasing customer satisfaction, strengthening customer loyalty and retention, and increasing the company's success.

two women touching clothes in a clothing store

Why is it so important to increase customer satisfaction?

Let's face it, we all know why satisfied customers are important: They play into our brand's reputation.

Probably the most crucial reason for increasing customer satisfaction is that satisfied customers buy and, more importantly, come back. That may be more important to some online retailers than others. So happy customers not only generate more sales, they also save on expenses: Because attracting new customers (e.g., through advertising) is much more expensive than keeping existing ones. At the same time, satisfied customers are more willing to tolerate mistakes and accept price increases.

In addition, high customer satisfaction ensures that you stand out from the competition. Satisfied customers are the best advertisers for your product. A good recommendation is still one of the most important marketing levers. Every satisfied customer has friends, family or acquaintances and can thus become a micro-influencer for your products. The trust advantage is high here!

On the other hand, hardly anything gets around faster than a lack of satisfaction. Many customers quickly change their mind when a good acquaintance tells them about a bad experience they had with a product or a company.

From the point of view of companies, customer satisfaction should therefore be classified as very important and everything should be done to increase it.

Reading tip: Find out how you can succeed in winning back customers in the linked article.

Net Promoter Score: Measuring Customer Satisfaction

To increase customer satisfaction, the right measures are the first and also the most important step. However, the degree of customer satisfaction in companies should also be statistically verifiable. Various measurement tools have been established to determine the success of individual measures.

One of the most important ways of determining this is the Net Promoter Score (NPS). Here, customers take part in a short survey. The answers are then fed into a formula that calculates a single key figure.

Reading tip: The store design is also a decisive point for customers. You can find tips for a good design in this article.

What is the Net Promoter Score?

The NPS score is a method of measuring customer satisfaction based on a two-minute survey. It provides insight into customer loyalty by determining a customer's willingness to recommend a company to friends or acquaintances.

The Net Promoter Score differs from other benchmarks because it captures a person's general attitude toward a brand, rather than their opinion on, for example, a specific purchase.

It is also a reference standard used by companies around the world to help you make a meaningful assessment of performance compared to the competition.

How to calculate the Net Promoter Score?

1. Determination of the number of promoters, indifferents and detractors

"How likely is it (on a scale of 1 to 10) that you will recommend us to your friends, colleagues or business partners?"

All NPS calculations are based on this simple question (in slightly modified formulations). However, in most cases, survey participants are asked to give a rating on a scale of 1 to 10. Depending on the number chosen, they are then placed in one of the following three categories:

PromotersIndifferentsDetractors
People who give a rating of 9 or 10 are classified as promoters. They are likely to buy more, stay loyal to a brand, or recruit new customers.People who give a rating of 7 or 8 are classified as indifferents. They may remain loyal to a brand, but if conditions are favorable to them, they are also prepared to switch to the competitor. This group will not make a special effort to attract new customers.People who give a rating of 0 to 6 are classified as detractors. These are mainly acutely dissatisfied customers who can damage the reputation of your brand through negative ratings, for example.

To calculate the Net Promoter Score, the percentage of detractors is simply subtracted from that of promoters.

The theoretically worst value is -100 (i.e. all customers would be detractors). The theoretical best value is 100 (i.e. all customers are promoters). However, both values are quite unlikely in reality.

The indifferents are taken into account in the total number of participants, so that the percentage of detractors and promoters decreases equally. This results in a value that tends towards 0.

2. Example calculation for the Net Promoter Score

Suppose a company asks 400 of its customers the standard NPS question. After counting all responses, 300 are classified as promoters, 65 as indifferences and 35 as detractors.

The first step is to translate these numbers into percentages:

Promoters:

400 - (65 + 35) x 100 = 75 %
400

Indifferent:

400 - (300 + 35) x 100 = 16 %
400

Detractors:

400 - (300 + 65) x 100 = 9 %
400

Now the percentages are inserted into the NPS score formula:

NPS = Promoters in % - Detractors in %.

NPS = 75 % - 9 % = 66 %

Which Net Promoter Score is good is not so easy to answer. There is no such thing as the "one true" NPS value. As a rule, the results are highly dependent on the industry.

In principle, it can be said that any value above 0 is good - it shows that you have more promoters than detractors. By global NPS standards, a value above 50 is good and above 70 is excellent. However, both are rare.

If your score indicates that your customer satisfaction is better than your competitors, there is every indication that you will retain your customers.The Net Promoter Score ScaleThe NPS score in practice

Our customer Asphaltgold also knows that customer satisfaction should always come first. The sneaker retailer decided to relaunch its own online store in July 2021, with the Latori team actively involved in the implementation of a store with a mobile-first focus. Customers have since been offered a unique shopping experience - which also paid off on the Net Promoter Score:

"We have an NPS score of 88, previously we were at around 70. The comments were almost universally positive, and there were compliments on the design, but also on the functionality." - Larissa Dien, Head of UX & Tech Operations at Asphaltgold.

For further insights into the successful cooperation between Alsphaltgold and Latori, please read our case study.

7 tips to increase customer satisfaction

To turn your customers into kings, there are of course a variety of measures you can implement. In this section, we have summarized the 7 most important ones for you.

a digital image of a woman browsing the Wear app as a symbol of increasing customer satisfaction

#1 Focus on high quality of your products and services

This first and probably most important point should actually be self-explanatory: Your products and services should be of high quality and at least meet the expectations of your clientele. If you manage to even exceed these expectations, customers will feel like kings!

Reading tip: A/B tests are a good way to find the cause of dissatisfied customers. We show you how you can carry them out.

#2 Make it as easy as possible for your customers

Easy contact, fast response times, intuitive usability or an advanced ordering process - you should take all of these into account to offer your customers the most pleasant shopping experience possible.

The rule is: the simpler and faster the processes, the more satisfied the customers.

Chat function in the B.O.C. online store as one of the ways to increase customer satisfaction

Latori customer B.O.C knows the importance of quick contact and therefore offers customers the possibility to contact customer service via a chat function. This not only ensures a short response time, but also better accessibility.

#3 Be honest and transparent

Empty promises quickly (and rightly so) cause dissatisfaction, bad reviews and complaints. Therefore, you should only offer your customers what you or your products can really deliver. Honesty and transparency also apply when mistakes happen or problems arise, e.g. in the event of delivery delays. An apology e-mail with further information and a small voucher can have a calming effect here.

#4 Use customer feedback as an opportunity

If you ask your customers specifically what their wishes are and where they see potential for improvement, you can respond to them and implement these suggestions. Customer feedback should therefore be seen as an important tool for improving the satisfaction of your clientele.

Evaluation area in the Sheko online store as one of the ways to increase customer satisfaction

Customer feedback is also important for Latori customer Sheko - moreover, they also focus on transparency here and show customer reviews directly on the homepage.

#5 Rely on a convincing online presence

Today, you reach most customers via the Internet. Therefore, a convincing online store is an important pillar to increase customer satisfaction.

Your online presence should be clear, intuitive to use and attractively designed. In addition, the store should function trouble-free and contain the information and options your customers need.

Reading tip: We give you 13 tips for online store optimization.

#6 Satisfied employees mean satisfied customers

Imagine your employees are annoyed, stressed or unmotivated - the connection between satisfied customers and employees cannot be underestimated!

Employees who do not feel well or are overwhelmed with their work will also make this clear in the execution of services and in their dealings with customers. Especially in customer communication or customer service, unhappy employees can become a real problem.

Therefore, you should not only have an open ear for your customers, but also respond to what feedback your employees have.

#7 Improve your customer service

a digital image of a woman working in customer service

In addition to all these tips, one measure in particular contributes to higher customer satisfaction: Good customer service!

Customers want motivated, qualified, friendly and competent support staff who solve problems and inquiries quickly and take enough time. Therefore, train your customer support continuously and regularly evaluate your customers' satisfaction with the support.

Conclusion: Satisfied customers are the backbone of a successful company

A loyal clientele makes up a significant part of the turnover of companies. But only those who know their customers and can respond to their wishes and needs will be successful on the market in the long term.

Negative experiences spread extremely quickly, especially through social media. Therefore, make sure that you regularly measure the satisfaction of your clientele in order to be able to directly address problem points.

Use our 7 tips for more satisfied customers who are sure to recommend your company to others. If you need help with this, we'll be happy to offer advice and support. Contact us.

Frequently asked questions about increasing customer satisfaction

How can I increase customer satisfaction?

To increase customer satisfaction, there are various measures that you can implement in your company. Starting with qualitative products that meet customer expectations, to a user-friendly online store and customer support, a wide variety of factors play a role. We present 7 measures that you can implement directly.

How do I make a customer happy?

Customers expect companies to respond to their wishes and concerns. That's why it's important to always gather customer feedback and also see it as an opportunity to further improve customer satisfaction.

What does customer satisfaction include?

Customer satisfaction refers to how well a company meets the needs and expectations of its customers. This applies to all interactions before and after the purchase as well as during it.

What methods are there for determining customer satisfaction?

In order to keep the level of satisfaction high at all times, it is essential to measure the current status. Surveys, for example, are a good way to do this. Another popular method is the Net Promoter Score (NPS), which primarily measures customer loyalty. Customers are asked how likely they are to recommend your company to others.

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