Customer service metrics are like a compass for your customer experience.
They track how quickly you resolve issues, if customers are satisfied, and how many interactions it takes to resolve those customer issues. This data helps you identify areas to improve, ultimately steering you towards smoother sailing and happier customers.
In this article, we’ll discuss the 10 most crucial customer service metrics and how to measure them.
10 Crucial Customer Success Metrics
Here are the important metrics you can track for better customer experience and greater customer satisfaction.
1. Response Time Metrics
Average Response Time (ART)
Average response time is the average time it takes to respond to any customer inquiry across all channels (phone, email, chat, etc.).
Formula:
Example: If your team responds to 100 inquiries in a day with a total response time of 1200 minutes, your ART is 12 minutes (1200 minutes / 100 inquiries).
First Response Time (FRT)
First response time is the time it takes to respond to a customer inquiry for the first time, regardless of channel.
Formula:
Example: If your team takes an average of 2 minutes to respond initially to 50 inquiries, your FRT is 2 minutes.
Resolution Time
Resolution time is the total time it takes to completely resolve a customer’s issue from first contact to final resolution.
Formula:
Example: If it takes an average of 10 minutes to resolve 20 customer issues, your resolution time is 10 minutes.
2. Customer Satisfaction Metrics
Net Promoter Score (NPS)
NPS measures customer loyalty and willingness to recommend your company.
Formula:
Example: If 30% of your customers are Promoters (score 9-10), 10% are Detractors (score 0-6), your NPS is 20% (30% – 10%).
Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)
CSAT measures customer satisfaction with a specific interaction. It can vary depending on the scale used (e.g., average rating on a 1-5 scale).
Example: If customers rate their satisfaction with a recent interaction on a 1-5 scale, and the average score is 4.2, your CSAT is 4.2.
Customer Effort Score (CES)
Customer effort score measures how easy it is for customers to resolve their issues. CES can vary depending on the scale used.
Example: If customers rate how easy it was to resolve an issue on a 1-7 scale (1 = Very Easy, 7 = Very Difficult), and the average score is 3, your CES is 3.
3. Service Level Metrics
Service Level Agreement (SLA) Compliance
SLA compliance measures the percentage of contacts handled within the agreed-upon timeframe as outlined in the SLA.
Formula:
Example: If your SLA states you answer calls within 60 seconds, and you achieve this for 80% of calls, your SLA compliance is 80%.
Abandoned Call Rate
Abandoned call rate is the percentage of calls that are abandoned by the customer before reaching a representative.
Formula:
Example: If 10 out of 100 calls are abandoned, your abandoned call rate is 10%.
Average Speed of Answer (ASA)
Average speed of answer is the average time it takes to answer a phone call after it is placed.
Formula:
Example: If the total wait time for 20 answered calls is 40 minutes, your ASA is 2 minutes (40 minutes / 20 calls).
4. Quality Metrics
Call Quality Score
Call quality score measures the quality of phone interactions based on pre-defined criteria (e.g., politeness, clarity). It can vary depending on scoring system used.
Example: Evaluators score calls on a 1-10 scale, with an average score of 8 for 50 calls, resulting in a call quality score of 8.
First Contact Resolution (FCR)
First contact resolution measures the percentage of customer issues resolved during the first interaction (call, email, chat, etc.).
Formula:
Example: If your team resolves 60% of 100 customer issues on the first contact, your FCR is 60%.
Error Rate
Error rate is the percentage of times a mistake is made during customer service interactions.
Formula:
Example: If there are 5 errors in 100 customer interactions, your error rate is 5%.
5. Customer Retention Metrics
Churn Rate
Churn rate is the percentage of customers who stop doing business with you within a given period.
Formula:
Example: If you lose 10 customers out of 100 in a month, your churn rate is 10%.
Repeat Purchase Rate
Repeat purchase rate is the percentage of customers who make a purchase again after their initial purchase.
Formula:
Example: If 40 out of 100 customers make a repeat purchase, your repeat purchase rate is 40%.
Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)
CLV is the calculation of total revenue a customer is expected to generate throughout their relationship with your company.
Formula:
Example: If average customer spends $100 per purchase; Makes 2 purchases a year; Retains business for 5 years), then their CLV would be $1,000.
Note: CLV calculations can involve more complex formulas depending on the specific industry and data available.
6. Channel Specific Metrics
Email Response Time
Email response time is the average time it takes to respond to a customer email inquiry.
Formula:
Example: If your team takes an average of 4 hours to respond to 50 emails, your email response time is 4 hours.
Live Chat Response Time
Live chat response time is the average time it takes to respond to a customer inquiry on a live chat platform.
Formula:
Example: If it takes an average of 30 seconds to respond to 20 live chats, your live chat response time is 30 seconds.
Social Media Response Rate
Social media response rate is the percentage of social media mentions (comments, messages) from customers that receive a response within a set timeframe.
Formula:
Example: If you respond to 80% of 100 customer mentions on social media within 24 hours, your social media response rate is 80%.
7. Agent Performance Metrics
Average Handling Time (AHT)
Average handling time is the average time a customer service representative spends handling a customer inquiry (call, email, chat, etc.) from start to finish.
Formula:
Example: If your team spends a total of 100 hours handling 50 customer inquiries, your AHT is 2 hours (100 hours / 50 inquiries).
Occupancy Rate
Occupancy rate is the percentage of time customer service representatives are actively engaged with customers compared to their total work time.
Formula:
Example: If your team spends a total of 40 hours handling inquiries out of a 50-hour workweek, your occupancy rate is 80% (40 hours / 50 hours).
Customer Satisfaction with Agent
Customer satisfaction with an agent measures customer satisfaction specifically with the service representative who handled their inquiry. It can vary depending on the scale used (e.g., average rating on a 1-5 scale).
Example: If customers rate their satisfaction with the agent on a 1-5 scale, with an average score of 4.5 for 20 interactions, the average customer satisfaction with the agent is 4.5.
8. Self-service Metrics
Self-Service Usage Rate
Self-service usage rate is the percentage of customers who choose to use self-service options (FAQs, knowledge base articles, chatbots, etc.) to resolve their inquiries instead of contacting a live agent.
Formula:
Example: If 30 out of 100 customer inquiries are resolved through self-service options, your self-service usage rate is 30%.
Self-Service Success Rate
Self-service success rate is the percentage of customer inquiries that are successfully resolved through self-service options without requiring assistance from a live agent.
Formula:
Example: If 20 out of 30 self-service interactions result in successful resolution, your self-service success rate is 66.7% (20 / 30 x 100).
Self-Service Deflection Rate
Self-service deflection rate is the percentage of customer inquiries that are directed away from live agents and towards self-service options.
Formula:
Example: If 25 out of 100 customer inquiries are deflected to self-service options, your self-service deflection rate is 25%.
9. Customer Feedback Metrics
Customer Complaint Resolution Time
Customer compliant resolution time is the average time it takes to resolve a customer complaint from the time it is received until a final resolution is reached.
Formula:
Example: If it takes an average of 3 days to resolve 20 customer complaints, your customer complaint resolution time is 3 days.
Customer Feedback Response Rate
Customer feedback response rate is the percentage of customer feedback (surveys, reviews, emails) that receives a response from the company within a set timeframe.
Formula:
Example: If you respond to 70% of 100 pieces of customer feedback within 48 hours, your customer feedback response rate is 70%.
Customer Feedback Sentiment Analysis
Customer feedback sentiment analysis is the process of analyzing customer feedback to understand the overall sentiment (positive, negative, neutral) expressed by customers.
There isn’t a specific formula for sentiment analysis, but it often involves using automated tools or manual coding to categorize feedback based on sentiment.
Example: Sentiment analysis software might identify that 60% of recent customer feedback is positive, 20% is neutral, and 20% is negative.
10. Cost Metrics
Cost per Contact
Cost per contact is the average cost of handling a single customer inquiry across all channels (phone, email, chat, etc.).
Formula:
Example: If it costs your company $5 to handle all aspects of 100 customer inquiries (agent time, technology costs, etc.), your cost per contact is $0.05 ($5 / 100).
Cost per Resolution
Cost per resolution is the average cost of completely resolving a customer inquiry from first contact to final resolution.
Formula:
Example: If it costs $10 to resolve 20 customer complaints, your cost per resolution is $0.50 ($10 / 20).
The Importance of Regularly Monitoring and Analysing Customer Service Metrics
Regularly monitoring customer service metrics is like checking the compass on a customer experience journey.
By tracking response times, resolution rates, and satisfaction scores, you can identify areas where your team excels and spots that need improvement. Analyzing this data helps you understand what resonates with customers and what frustrates them.
This continuous feedback loop allows you to refine processes, train agents, and implement new solutions, ultimately steering your customer service towards smoother sailing and happier customers.
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More in this series:
- What is Customer Service? A Complete Guide with Examples
- Understanding the Difference between Customer Service and Customer Support
- The Power of Customer Service Automation: Benefits and Examples
- Omnichannel Customer Service: Why Is It the Need of The Hour
- Omnichannel Support: Definition, Popular Channels, and Best Practices
- Empathy in Customer Service: How to Build Genuine Connections
- 15 Empathy-driven Customer Service Email Templates
- 10 Best Customer Service Software in India for Great Support
- How to Write Effective Customer Service Emails
- 15 Customer Service Email Templates
- 15 Highly Effective Customer Service Scripts to Practice
- Everything You Need to Know About Customer Service Analytics
- 10 Best Customer Service Dashboard Examples and How to Use Them in Your Organization
