As a founder, measuring customer satisfaction is crucial for improving your product and demonstrating value to investors. However, industry benchmarks considered the gold standard, such as Press Ganey, are often beyond the budget of early-stage companies. It can be difficult to know where to start, especially when investors want proof points.

Here are a few ways you can integrate satisfaction metrics into your customer experience journey.

1. Start with the CSAT

One of the simplest and most cost-effective ways to measure satisfaction is through the Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT). CSAT surveys typically ask customers, “How satisfied were you with [product/service]?” with responses ranging from very unsatisfied to very satisfied, typically on a scale of 1 to 5.

Start by embedding CSAT surveys at key interaction points, such as after a physician uses your software or a patient completes a telehealth session. Add the number of positive responses (4s and 5s), divide by the total number of responses, and multiply by 100 to get the satisfaction percentage.

2. Identify friction points by scoring effort

For health tech companies, measuring how easy it is for customers to achieve their desired actions with your product is also essential. This is where the Customer Effort Score (CES) comes into play. CES asks, “How easy was it for you to [complete a specific action]?” with responses on a scale from very difficult to very easy.

CES is ideal for beta users in particular, who expect to be queried along the way. Use CES surveys after key actions, such as setting up an account, navigating the interface, or completing an appointment. Similar to CSAT, average the effort ratings and track changes over time to identify and address pain points.

3. Factor in Loyalty

Another valuable metric is the Net Promoter Score (NPS), a standard used across various industries to measure customer loyalty and satisfaction. NPS asks customers, “How likely are you to recommend [product/service] to a friend or colleague?” with responses on a scale from 0 (not at all likely) to 10 (extremely likely).

To calculate NPS, subtract the percentage of detractors (scores of 0-6) from the percentage of promoters (scores of 9-10). This score helps you understand overall customer sentiment and identify potential advocates and detractors.

Use NPS to benchmark against similar products or categories where such data is available, or to demonstrate improvement over time. These improvements can help support a compelling narrative to investors, as research has found that, across industries, an average NPS increase by seven points correlates with a 1% growth in revenue.

4. Leverage B2B customers and channel partners

While metrics like NPS are useful, aligning with industry standards like Press Ganey helps early-stage companies demonstrate credibility and relevance in healthcare. Press Ganey scores are widely used in healthcare for measuring patient satisfaction across various dimensions of care, from communication to overall experience. However, as with any gold-standard solution, there are steep costs associated with implementing Press Ganey.
For healthcare startups, particularly those working with health systems and physician groups, improving Press Ganey scores can be a significant value proposition to partners and proof point for investors.

Consider a scenario where a startup develops a patient engagement platform to improve communication between patients and physicians. As part of their beta rollout, they partner with a physician group struggling with low Press Ganey scores, particularly in communication and discharge instructions. Before implementing the new software, the startup captures the current Press Ganey scores for a designated period, such as three months, to establish a baseline. After onboarding the new technology, they can then measure the change in Press Ganey scores over the following three months.

Ultimately, if they can demonstrate a significant improvement in these scores, the startup will not only validate its solution effectiveness but also provide quantitative validation to investors and potential clients.

Interested in more insights for founders? Subscribe to Health2047’s newsletter.