Unlock better customer experiences with CSAT and NPS benchmarks

Customer feedback benchmarks show how you stack up against other MSPs.

They equip you to spot growth opportunities, inject your marketing with social proof and deliver better customer experiences.

In this article, you’ll learn more about benchmarking’s key advantages, how to access customer feedback data from over 1,500 MSPs and where to apply the data for optimal performance benefits.

Table of contents

• How MSPs can boost buyer engagement with customer feedback benchmarks
• How to access CSAT and NPS benchmark data from over 1,500 MSPs
• 4 ways to make better business decisions with customer feedback benchmarks
• How to collaborate on benchmark data and achieve your objectives faster
• Wrapping up

How MSPs can boost buyer engagement with customer feedback benchmarks

Many MSPs base strategic decisions on customer feedback data, striving only to improve on their latest CSAT and NPS scores.

That data is undoubtedly helpful. But when you ignore how your competitors are performing, you miss opportunities to improve satisfaction and retention.

Here are three ways that customer feedback benchmarks boost performance and your bottom line.

1. Improve your service delivery

By comparing your customer feedback scores with industry standards and competitors’ performance, you’ll see where your MSP falls short.

It allows you to pinpoint specific areas for improvement, so you can enhance service quality and customer loyalty sooner.

For example, if your business consistently receives lower customer satisfaction scores for technical support compared to industry benchmarks, it points to an area that needs attention.

Analyzing the root causes of lower scores – such as long response times or unresolved issues – helps you implement targeted improvements to boost customer happiness.

2. Set realistic targets and measure progress toward them

Customer feedback benchmarks are valuable performance milestones, perfect for ensuring your company keeps pace with its industry.

They help you set and track progress toward realistic targets, eliminating the guesswork from your growth strategy.

For example, if industry benchmarks show that top-performing MSPs achieve an average CSAT score of 90, you can use this as your own long-term customer satisfaction goal.

From there, set incremental goals to keep your team on track. And tweak your objectives as benchmarks change.

3. Differentiate your business

By highlighting areas where you outperform industry benchmarks, you can differentiate your MSP to attract new clients and keep existing ones.

It’s a tangible way of showing your commitment to providing superior customer experiences – and a form of easily digestible social proof, which is something most buyers crave.

The alternative is to make unfounded claims in sales conversations and marketing content, hoping buyers believe what you say. This popular but flawed approach is a surefire way to burn customer trust before you’ve earned it.

However, let’s say you break into the top 10% performers in your industry for NPS results. Publicizing this on your website shows visitors you have a happy customer base getting value from your service.

How to access CSAT and NPS benchmark data from over 1,500 MSPs

In many industries, competitive benchmarking means laboriously trawling through industry reports for reliable data. And even when you find that data, you still have to make sense of it.

MSPs have it much easier as the feedback benchmarks they need are clearly displayed in SmileBack. The data represents median score values of all active SmileBack partners from the previous 90 days.

Follow these steps to see how your CSAT and NPS results stack up to more than 1,500 MSPs.

Accessing CSAT benchmarks

From your SmileBack Dashboard, select CSAT Reviews in the menu on the left.

Below your Net CSAT Score, in the dark blue boxes, you’ll see benchmarks for All Companies and the Top 10% (i.e., the top performers).

Next to those are comparisons for your brand – i.e., whether your Net CSAT score is higher (green) or lower (red) than the average for each category, and by how much.

To the right of your Net CSAT score, there’s the equivalent benchmarking data for your Response Rate:

Accessing NPS benchmarks

From your Dashboard (or the CSAT Reviews page if you’re heading straight there), select NPS Responses in the menu on the left.

You’ll see the same benchmark data for both your NPS Score and NPS Response Rate:

If you’d prefer not to see Benchmarks in SmileBack, simply toggle the Benchmarks switch above your data on either the CSAT Score or NPS Responses screen:

The screen will revert to showing only your scores and response rates:

4 ways to make better business decisions with customer feedback benchmarks

You’ve found your benchmark data. Now what?

The numbers may look easy to interpret, but it’s what you do with them that matters.

Here are four ways to improve decision-making and strengthen your business with CSAT and NPS benchmark data. 

1. Quarterly business reviews

Quarterly business reviews, or QBRs, are a chance to assess overall business health and plan next steps.

But these sessions are only as useful as the data you bring to them.

Analyzing CSAT and NPS benchmark data alongside other key performance indicators (KPIs) makes it easier to spot shortcomings and opportunities.

For example, you can review trends in customer satisfaction scores over time – as is helpful in any effective QBR – but also compare them to industry benchmarks for context.

If your CSAT scores are consistently lower than average, you’ll know to focus on improving service quality and customer experience (CX). That might involve researching competitors’ strategies or reassessing your clients’ expectations.

Lean more: Explore the links between data quality and QBR success in our guide: How to Leverage Customer Feedback Data to Ace QBRs. 

2. Scorecards

Most MSPs already use scorecards to ensure their performance aligns with business objectives.

Adding CSAT and NPS benchmark data to these resources makes it easier for all teams to understand and communicate progress.

It offers a convenient visual representation of how day-to-day efforts contribute to the company’s industry standing.

By painting an even clearer picture of company performance through your scorecards, you’ll also help to build team-wide accountability.

With benchmarks and targets displayed alongside your MSP’s CSAT and NPS scores, stakeholders can quickly assess performance against goals and act if performance falls below expectations.

Learn more: Find out why customer sentiment is a scorecard must-have in our guide: How to Improve Team Performance Using Customer Feedback as a Scorecard Metric.

3. Marketing

CSAT and NPS benchmarks can be valuable for improving and informing your marketing efforts.

Sharing that you have above-average or industry-leading customer feedback scores showcases your company’s commitment to service excellence.

Just like aggregated review ratings, they offer easily digestible social proof to reassure buyers into signing up or renewing.

To differentiate your MSP from the competition, shout about your sentiment successes in your:

• Home page copy
• Blog content
• Product pages
• Case studies
• Webinars
• Sales conversations

Even if your net CSAT and NPS scores aren’t where you want them, being transparent about your goals can earn trust.

In a Salesforce survey of buyers, 67% said they trust vendors to “tell the truth,” and yet only 47% of B2B customers say they trust companies in general.

With that in mind, consider communicating current scores alongside higher industry averages to existing customers, explaining what you’re doing to improve. Your honesty could set you apart from more guarded competitors.

Learn more: Inspire your audience and grow your brand with insights from our webinar: MSP Marketing Challenges and Opportunities.

4. Internal conversations

Feedback benchmarks can help inform where to allocate resources and members of your team who need guidance and training.

The sooner you spot issues, the sooner you can assign top performers to address them while ensuring the rest of your team is informed.

Say you suddenly find yourself lagging behind your competitors’ NPS ratings after a stint in the top 10%. It’s a sign your clients’ expectations are quietly evolving, so you’ll need to adapt your approach.

In response, you can task an account manager and technician with uncovering the root cause during their client interactions. Then, tweak your service accordingly to regain your position.

How to collaborate on benchmark data and achieve your objectives faster

Now they’re accessible in SmileBack, CSAT and NPS benchmarks can spark productive conversations about areas for growth and ways to improve customer satisfaction.

Ensure your team knows where to find the metrics and what they mean by:

• Announcing their availability (e.g., in a company email or intranet post)
• Sharing this guide
• Publicizing your objectives and plan of action
• Encouraging ideas and questions

Here’s an editable announcement email template to get you started:

Pro tip: Connect SmileBack with Microsoft Teams to make collaboration smoother. Learn how in our guide: How to Set Up Your Microsoft Teams Integration to Improve Collaboration.

Wrapping up

CSAT and NPS scores are already powerful performance markers. They become even more valuable with benchmark data for context.

Keeping sight of feedback benchmarks helps your business set productive targets, stay on track and gain trust from new and existing customers. 

As a result, you’ll build more profitable relationships and hit your acquisition and retention targets sooner.

Ready to talk to a team member about applying CSAT and NPS data more effectively?