How to measure customer satisfaction after a call: the CSAT question, the maths and low scores
Sado AI team · · 4 min read
In short
CSAT shows how satisfied a customer is with this particular call. At the end of the conversation, or in a short call the same day, ask one question: “Please rate today’s conversation from 1 to 5”. CSAT = customers who gave 4 or 5 ÷ all answers × 100: for example, if 120 of 150 answers are 4–5, that’s 80%. Look at the number separately for each call reason, and call back anyone who gave 1–2 the same day.
CSAT and NPS: the difference
| Difference | CSAT | NPS |
|---|---|---|
| What it measures | Satisfaction with one call or service | How the customer feels about the company |
| Question | “Rate today’s conversation from 1 to 5” | “How likely are you to recommend us, 0 to 10?” |
| When it’s asked | At the end of the call or the same day | A week or two after the purchase |
| Useful for | Operators and the support team | Management and marketing |
One doesn’t replace the other. CSAT moves fast and points to a specific call; NPS moves slowly and shows the overall picture. On NPS: NPS survey by phone.
When and how to ask
- At the end of the call: once the question is solved, before the goodbye. It’s the easiest way, because the customer is still on the line.
- In a call the same day: after a technician’s visit, a delivery or a fix. The customer rates the result.
- One question and one follow-up: after a low score, “What didn’t you like?”. A long survey at the end of a call annoys people.
- Explain the scale the same way every time: “1 means you didn’t like it at all, 5 means you liked it a lot”. Otherwise some people think 1 is the top score.
- Record every answer with the reason for the call: payment, delivery, technical problem, price question.
Example: the question at the end of a call
Sado: Could you open any page now? Is the internet working?
Caller: Yes, it loads now.
Sado: Great. One last question: would you rate today’s conversation from 1 to 5? Five means you liked it a lot.
Caller: Four.
Sado: Thank you! What was missing for a five?
Caller: It’s all fine, I just called this morning too and nobody answered.
Sado: I see, I’ve noted that. Thank you for choosing TezNet, have a good day!
The question came after the problem was solved. Asked while the internet was still down, the score would have been about the outage, not the conversation.
How to calculate and break down CSAT
CSAT = number of 4 and 5 scores ÷ all answers × 100. For example, 150 answers in a week, 120 of them fours and fives: 120 ÷ 150 = 80%. These numbers are only an example. The breakdowns tell you more than one overall number:
- By call reason: if “payment” scores 90% and “technical problem” 65%, the issue may be the technical work, not the operator.
- By time: are scores lower in the evening and at weekends?
- By low scores: every week, listen to every call that got a 1 or 2.
- Non-responses: leave them out of the formula, but track their share separately.
What to do when a customer gives 1 or 2
A low score means the problem probably isn’t solved yet. Have the person in charge call the same day, apologise and say what will be done and when: “A technician will come tomorrow before ten”. Once it’s fixed, make one more short call.
Don’t mark such a customer as “closed”. If they call again, the employee should see the last conversation and pick up where it left off.
Handing the CSAT question to an AI operator
Sado’s AI operator for incoming calls asks the question you set at the end of the conversation. The score and comment land in the portal as separate fields for each call.
A survey after a technician’s visit or a delivery runs through auto-calls: you upload the list, and the operator talks with each customer in Uzbek or Russian. You download the results to Excel and work out CSAT yourself. Try it live or call 78 778 01 23.
Questions
What is a normal CSAT score?
There is no single norm for everyone. Track your own number by week and month, and if it drops sharply, look at the call reasons and recordings from those days.
A 1–5 scale or a yes/no question?
“Was your question solved, yes or no?” is simpler and works too. A 1–5 scale shows the level of satisfaction more precisely. Whichever you pick, don’t change it later.
Should you ask for a score after every call?
No, customers get tired of it. For example, ask the same customer no more than once a month, or only after certain types of calls.