NPS
Also: NPS, Net Promoter Score, Net Promoter, Score Net de Recommandation, taux de recommandation net
Net Promoter Score: a loyalty metric asking how likely customers are to recommend you (0 to 10). NPS = % Promoters minus % Detractors.
What it is
Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty and satisfaction metric based on a single question: *"How likely are you to recommend [company/product] to a colleague or friend?"* Respondents answer on a 0 to 10 scale.
Responses are grouped into three segments:
- Promoters (9 to 10): loyal enthusiasts likely to refer others and repurchase.
- Passives (7 to 8): satisfied but unenthusiastic, vulnerable to competitors.
- Detractors (0 to 6): unhappy customers who can damage your brand through negative word of mouth.
The score is calculated as:
NPS = % Promoters minus % Detractors
Passives are counted in the total base but excluded from the subtraction. The result ranges from -100 to +100. Note that NPS is a whole number, not a percentage, despite being derived from percentages.
Why it matters
NPS is popular because it is simple, comparable across time and (with caution) across peers, and correlates in many industries with retention and growth. It gives executives a single directional signal that is easy to communicate to boards and teams.
Its limitations matter too: it is a lagging indicator, sensitive to survey timing and sample bias, and a raw score reveals little without the follow-up "why?" question that surfaces root causes.
How it is used in practice
- Relationship NPS: measured periodically (quarterly) to track overall brand loyalty.
- Transactional NPS: triggered after a specific interaction (purchase, support ticket) to diagnose touchpoints.
- Benchmarking: compared against your own trend line first, then against industry norms.
- Driver analysis: verbatim comments are coded (increasingly with LLMs) to explain the number.
Worked example
You survey 200 customers and receive 150 responses:
- 90 Promoters (9 to 10) = 60%
- 30 Passives (7 to 8) = 20%
- 30 Detractors (0 to 6) = 20%
Calculation:
NPS = 60% minus 20% = +40
A score of +40 is strong in most sectors. If next quarter Detractors rise to 40% and Promoters fall to 45%, NPS drops to +5, signaling an urgent problem to investigate through the verbatim feedback.
Cautions
- Always pair the score with the open-ended "why" question.
- Report the response rate and sample size alongside the score.
- Avoid gaming (staff nudging customers toward 10) which corrupts the signal.