
Getting the most out of rating scalesĮach of these methods has its advantages and disadvantages. Frequently referred to as the satisfaction scale due to its suitability in measuring satisfaction, these scales ask a question like “how happy were you with our service?” and offer a scale from “very happy” to “very unhappy” with a scale of three, five or seven points used. The Likert scale is another type of survey scale. So supplementing it with a comment box that allows open-ended feedback tends to produce more useful and representative data. These feast or famine distributions tend not to be a reliable representation of customer sentiment. One noted issue with the 5-star review is the tendency of users’ responses to cluster around either 1 or 5. Again, these are arranged with 1-star being the worst, and 5-star being the best. The 5-star rating will be familiar to most due to its ubiquity on Netflix, Amazon, iTunes, Uber, etc. This can be related to dispute resolution, purchasing or returning items, and requests or questions.Ī CES question may use a scale of “very difficult” to “very easy,” giving researchers, for example, an idea of problem areas that need to be addressed. The Customer Effort Score or CES is a single-item metric that is used to evaluate how much effort a customer expends when engaging with a company. The survey can be triggered automatically right after the query is resolved. You can get this functionality in-built within your customer support email software. This is then assigned a worst-to-best scale like 1-5 or 1-10. It measures customers’ happiness with a service, product, or experience by using one direct question like: The Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT) is a straightforward piece of customer satisfaction methodology. To calculate NPS, the percentage of Detractors is subtracted from the percentage of Promoters.įor example: If 70% of respondents scored your business between 9-10, and 10% scored between 0-6, that is 70 – 10, which equals an NPS of 60. “How likely, on a scale of 0-10, are you to recommend to your friends, family, or co-workers?”Ĭustomers are then assigned a category based on their score a score of 0-6 are Detractors, 7-8 are Neutrals, with 9-10 being Promoters. Its key is in its simplicity, using just a single question that asks a customer: Also used to gauge their brand loyalty, this scale looks to find the net percentage of customers who are likely to promote or engage with a service. The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is often used as a representation of a customer’s loyalty for a business, product, or service. How to Use Rating Scales When Measuring Customer Experience Net Promoter Score Comparative Rating ScaleĪ comparative rating scale is used when a researcher employs a point of comparison, like McDonald’s, to compare with a different fast food restaurant like Burger King.įor example: Rate Burger King in comparison to McDonald’s.Ī comparative rating scale allows the researcher to interpret the resulting data in relation to another company or product. The descriptive rating scale does not require numbers, instead offering responders the choice of descriptive statements.įor example, the question “How happy were you with our service?” could be answered by either Unhappy, Neutral, or Happy. Image source: © EgudinKa/Getty Images Descriptive Rating Scale Typically depicted in a table or matrix, the responder can select either a number (e.g., 1-3, 1-5) or a worded response (Very satisfied – Very unsatisfied) along the top of the matrix or table that corresponds to a list of items being asked. The Likert scale is a familiar example of a graphic rating scale. When conducting a survey, there are four types of rating scales that can be used effectively: These intervals are equal, which differentiates it from the ordinal scale above. Here, the difference between somewhat satisfied and very satisfied is mirrored by the intervals between somewhat unsatisfied and very unsatisfied. The question’s answers also follow an innate order, but they contain an equal and meaningful value between the intervals. Interval ScaleĪn interval scale has similarities to an ordinal scale. Therefore, we can say these are not fixed or exact intervals. The time it may take an individual to go from Intermediate to Advanced is unlikely to be equal to the time it would take an individual to go from Zero to Novice. It follows a clear hierarchy however, the difference between advanced and intermediate, or novice and zero are not fixed measures. What is your experience level with computers? The scale is presented in the natural order, but the intervals between the scale are not fixed. Ordinal ScaleĪn ordinal scale is a variable measurement scale that presents the answers in an ordered manner. You can roughly divide rating scales into two categories: ordinal scale and interval scale.
