
Frameworks, core principles and top case studies for SaaS pricing, learnt and refined over 28+ years of SaaS-monetization experience.
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Join companies like Zoom, DocuSign, and Twilio using our systematic pricing approach to increase revenue by 12-40% year-over-year.
In today's competitive SaaS landscape, delivering exceptional customer experiences has become a critical differentiator. While metrics like Net Promoter Score (NPS) and Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) have long been staples in measuring customer sentiment, Customer Effort Score (CES) has emerged as a powerful predictor of customer loyalty. According to research by Gartner, CES outperforms both NPS and CSAT in predicting customer retention, with 96% of customers reporting high-effort experiences becoming more disloyal compared to just 9% who have effortless experiences.
For SaaS executives, understanding how to effectively calculate and leverage CES can provide invaluable insights into friction points in the customer journey and opportunities for service improvement. This article breaks down the process of calculating CES and implementing it as a strategic tool for your organization.
Customer Effort Score measures how much effort a customer must expend to accomplish a task, resolve an issue, or get a question answered when interacting with your company. The fundamental premise is straightforward: the easier you make it for customers to do business with you, the more likely they are to continue their relationship with your company.
CES was originally developed by the Corporate Executive Board (now Gartner) in 2010 and has evolved through several iterations since then.
The first step in calculating CES is collecting the right data through a well-designed survey. A typical CES survey asks customers to rate their agreement with a statement like:
"[Company name] made it easy for me to handle my issue."
Or alternatively:
"How easy was it to [specific action] with our company today?"
CES typically uses either a 5-point or 7-point Likert scale:
5-point scale:
7-point scale:
Many SaaS companies are now using a simpler 1-7 numerical scale where 1 represents "Very difficult" and 7 represents "Very easy."
The basic CES calculation is the average of all customer responses:
CES = Sum of all customer effort scores / Number of respondents
For example, if you received 100 responses with a cumulative score of 570 on a 7-point scale, your CES would be:
570 ÷ 100 = 5.7
On a 7-point scale where higher scores indicate lower effort:
Similar to Net Promoter Score methodology, some organizations calculate a "Net CES" by subtracting the percentage of detractors (low scores) from promoters (high scores):
Net CES = % of Easy scores (6-7) - % of Difficult scores (1-3)
This approach highlights the difference between positive and negative experiences, resulting in a score ranging from -100 to +100.
Rather than focusing solely on the average score, examining the distribution of responses can provide richer insights:
This analysis helps identify the proportion of customers experiencing extremely high or low effort.
The timing of CES measurement is crucial for accurate results. The most effective moments include:
According to Forrester Research, measuring CES at multiple touchpoints provides a more comprehensive view of the overall customer experience than single-point measurements.
CES should be part of a holistic measurement framework alongside metrics like:
Research by the XM Institute found that companies using complementary metrics like CES, NPS, and CSAT together see 3x greater year-over-year improvement in customer retention than those using single metrics in isolation.
Zendesk, a leading customer service software provider, implemented CES measurement across their customer support operations. By focusing specifically on reducing effort in their knowledge base and self-service systems, they:
The result was a 25% reduction in support tickets and a CES improvement from 5.2 to 6.3 on a 7-point scale. According to Zendesk's VP of Customer Experience, "CES became our North Star metric for measuring the effectiveness of our self-service strategy."
As SaaS markets become increasingly competitive, customer retention has emerged as a critical growth factor. Customer Effort Score provides executives with a powerful tool to identify friction points in the customer experience and prioritize improvements that directly impact loyalty and retention.
By implementing a rigorous CES calculation methodology, integrating it with complementary metrics, and establishing processes to act on the insights generated, SaaS leaders can create truly effortless experiences that drive sustainable growth.
Remember that CES is not just a measurement exercise—it represents a fundamental shift toward customer-centered product and service design. The organizations that excel at reducing customer effort don't just measure differently; they operate differently, with a relentless focus on simplifying the customer journey at every touchpoint.
Join companies like Zoom, DocuSign, and Twilio using our systematic pricing approach to increase revenue by 12-40% year-over-year.