Wat is de SaaS Customer Effort Score (CES)? 

A metric called the Customer Effort Score (CES) gauges how simple it is for users to navigate a product, locate the information they require, or fix a service issue. In the SaaS sector, CES is relevant because it impacts both user experience and customer service. CES was first created for customer service, but it has since grown to include the full customer experience. Because software as a service frequently necessitates continuous interactions with support, usability is crucial, which is why CES is important in SaaS.

A SaaS product or service’s Customer Effort Score (CES) gauges how simple it is for customers to interact with it. On a scale of 1 to 5, customers indicate how much effort it takes to use or interact with the product; higher ratings indicate more effort. SaaS companies implement CES to understand customer experience and identify areas for simplification in the use of their product or service.

Following certain client touchpoints, including product purchases, the use of new features, or customer care encounters, SaaS organizations ought to promptly conduct CES surveys. The surveys are a means to collect immediate responses and measure the effort associated with the specific event. 

To evaluate the support experience, CES surveys are frequently sent by email following customer service encounters. More detailed information about consumer effort can be obtained by asking targeted questions about the engagement. 

After onboarding or after a customer has used the product for a while, SaaS providers can additionally send CES surveys to gauge the overall usability of the product. To encourage completion, make sure your survey is brief and your questions are clear and succinct.

Customers’ ease of interacting with a business, whether it be through product use, customer service, or purchasing, is gauged by the Customer Effort Score (CES). Usually, a poll asking consumers to score their experience on a scale is used to measure it. This is how to figure it out:

1. Perform a survey for CES:

“How easy was it to [complete a specific action or interaction]?” is an example question to ask.

For answers, use a scale. Typical scales consist of:

• 1–5: Extremely challenging to extremely simple
• Strongly disagree to strongly agree, ranked 1–7
• Scales of numbers (e.g., 1-10)

2. Compile Reactions:

• Get the results of your customers’ surveys.

3. Determine the CES:

• Regarding numerical scales, such as 1–5 or 1–10:
• Add up each score separately. 
• Divide the sum by the total number of responses.   
• The result is your CES.   
• For Likert scales (e.g., Strongly disagree to Strongly agree):   
• Assign numerical values to each point on the scale (e.g., Strongly disagree = 1, Strongly agree = 7).
• Calculate the average score as you would with a numerical scale.

Strategies for improving Customer Effort Score (CES) could include:

• enhancing customer communication
• personalizing in-app messaging
• optimizing the onboarding experience for SaaS companies. 

Furthermore, omnichannel support and survey-based feedback collection are important tactics. To alleviate customer pain points and improve the overall experience, a cross-functional team can be formed to evaluate input and prioritize actions.

Monitor customer progress towards success milestones to understand their journey and identify areas for potential optimization. To enhance the user experience, get input from customers regarding the usability and interactivity of the product. Use the information to inform decisions about the product roadmap and ensure that it satisfies user-friendliness standards. 

For example, in response to user feedback, adjustments to the UI/UX could be explored to improve the accessibility and ease of use of specific features.