TL;DR 😊
CSAT tells you how satisfied customers are in the moment (support ticket, delivery, checkout, training, etc.).
Classic question: “On a scale from 1 to 5, how satisfied are you?” (or stars / smileys).
Formula: CSAT = (number of positive responses / total responses) × 100.
“Positive” usually means “Satisfied” or “Very satisfied.”Read CSAT over time and by segment more than as a one-off number.
Here’s how CSAT looks inside Edusign: instant feedback, actionable insights!
Why we use it (and why you should too) 💙
At Edusign, we love metrics that keep us close to customers. CSAT helps you:
Take the pulse right after a touchpoint.
Prioritize what to fix first (UX, delivery, support flow).
Measure impact of changes (new onboarding, new SLA, new copy).
Protect reputation by catching issues before they snowball. 🔎
Edusign tip: always add “Why?” as an open question to turn scores into actions.
A little origin story ✈️
The 1–5 CSAT question you know today was popularized by the airline industry in the 1970s. Airlines wanted feedback right after landing, before passengers left the plane—hence the little buttons/cards to tap as you walked out. Tech later standardized it… few people remember it started with planes!
How to calculate it (with a quick example) 🧮
Send a short survey right after the interaction.
Count positive answers (“Satisfied” + “Very satisfied,” or top boxes).
Apply the formula.
Example
1,000 responses → 300 “Very satisfied”, 400 “Satisfied”, 100 “Neutral”, 200 “Not satisfied”.
CSAT = (300 + 400) / 1,000 × 100 = 70%
What’s “good”?
> 80% = very strong
~70%+ = good
< 50% = act fast to fix the experience
(As always: context matters—track your trend and segments.)
Where and how to ask 🗺️
Channels: email, in-app, SMS, or… via the Edusign app.
Timing: as close as possible to the event for fresher memory.
Formats:
Yes/No (“Were you satisfied?”)
Likert scale (Very dissatisfied → Very satisfied)
Stars or smileys
1–3, 1–5, or 1–10 scales
Rounding: report CSAT as a whole % (and, if useful, show the average to 1 decimal).
Best practices that actually help ✅
Pair with an open “Why?” to capture the reason behind the score.
Segment before you conclude (store A vs B, new vs existing, plan type, region, device).
Keep cadence reasonable (transactional at the event; a light, periodic pulse if needed).
Sample size matters—avoid sweeping decisions off a tiny base.
Tone & UX: make it quick, human, on-brand. A 10-second survey beats a novel. ⏱️
From measurement to action (the real game) 🎯
Very dissatisfied / Dissatisfied: follow up quickly (ideally < 48h), thank them, understand, fix, and circle back.
Neutral: ask “what’s missing for this to be great?” → often small UX or comms wins.
Very satisfied: say thanks, invite reviews/referrals, or offer early access to new features.
Edusign tip: every CSAT dip opens an improvement ticket with an owner and deadline. The follow-through matters more than the number. 🚀
Counterintuitive truths about CSAT 🌀
Rising CSAT can hide churn: if demanding users leave, your average may rise while value drops.
Near-perfect CSAT is suspicious: big samples + 98–100% often signal collection bias or filtering.
Channel changes the score: email > phone; chat can score lower despite faster replies.
Timing skews results: right after a goodwill gesture → inflated; right after an incident → depressed.
Small UX gains may not move CSAT: improvements people don’t notice won’t show up.
The question frames the answer: “Are you satisfied?” yields more extremes than “How would you rate your experience?”
Mood and weather matter—seriously. 🌤️
Strengths & limits 📏
Why teams love CSAT
Simple to deploy & compute.
High response rates (short & familiar).
Versatile across touchpoints.
Actionable in near-real time.
Marketable (great scores build trust).
Keep in mind
Explains little by itself—you need comments.
Averages hide truths—segment by channel, persona, store, journey stage.
Momentary, not loyalty: use with NPS (recommendation) and CES (effort).
Reading your CSAT like a pro 🔍
Global view: share great scores; mobilize teams when < 50%.
By segment: the overall 80% might hide a 98% store and a 45% store—fix the right one.
Individual alerts: auto-flag 1/5 and 5/5 to trigger outreach or advocacy flows.
Improving CSAT—an honest playbook 🧭
Locate the problem: global vs segment? device, locale, sku, carrier, agent?
Mine internal signals: support logs, sales notes, ops incidents, product analytics.
Ask customers directly: prioritize top 1–3 fixes (budget-aware).
Ship & tell: roll out changes and communicate you listened—this alone lifts CSAT.
Re-measure and close the loop.
Ready-to-use templates 🧩
Main question
“On a scale from 1 to 5, how satisfied are you with [this experience]?”
Open question
“What’s the main reason for your score? (one or two sentences is enough)”
Thank-you (Very satisfied)
“Thanks for the 5/5! You made our day. Would you be open to leaving a quick public review or trying upcoming features in early access?” 🌟
Recovery (Dissatisfied)
“Thanks for your feedback—we want to make this right. Could you share a bit more? A team member will follow up within 24–48 hours.”
Fun facts (to shine in meetings ✨)
Airlines in the ’70s popularized CSAT’s 1–5 format with exit-row buttons/cards after landing.
Smiley UIs often boost response rate… but can bias scores upward. 🙂
Morning surveys tend to score higher than late-day ones.
Cultural norms shift top-box usage (e.g., some countries avoid the absolute max).
CSAT vs NPS vs CES 🧩
CSAT = momentary satisfaction (after this interaction).
NPS = likelihood to recommend (relationship & loyalty).
CES = effort to get something done (predicts future behavior).
Use them together for a fuller picture.
In a word 🧡
CSAT is a conversation starter. Ask it often (and fairly), read the why, act quickly, and watch your curve bend the right way. At Edusign, it’s one of our simplest compasses to stay close to you; and keep improving, again and again. 🙌