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5 examples of Customer Success metrics and KPIs

What are Customer Success metrics?

Crafting the perfect Customer Success metrics can feel overwhelming, particularly when you're juggling daily responsibilities. That's why we've put together a collection of examples to spark your inspiration.

Transfer these examples to your app of choice, or opt for Tability to help keep you on track.

Find Customer Success metrics with AI

While we have some examples available, it's likely that you'll have specific scenarios that aren't covered here. You can use our free AI metrics generator below to generate your own strategies.

Examples of Customer Success metrics and KPIs

Metrics for User Satisfaction Improvement

  • 1. Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)

    Measures customer happiness with a product or service, usually on a scale of 1-5.

    What good looks like for this metric: 80-85%

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Gather customer feedback regularly
    • Address complaints promptly
    • Enhance product features based on user feedback
    • Train customer support staff adequately
    • Implement a loyalty program
  • 2. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

    Assesses customer loyalty by asking them to rate the likelihood of recommending the product to others on a scale of 0-10.

    What good looks like for this metric: 30-50

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Cultivate strong customer relationships
    • Resolve issues swiftly and efficiently
    • Encourage customers to share testimonials
    • Offer incentives for referrals
    • Improve the overall customer experience
  • 3. Customer Effort Score (CES)

    Evaluates the ease of service usage by asking customers to rate their effort level in completing a task.

    What good looks like for this metric: 5 or lower

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Simplify processes
    • Improve website usability
    • Enhance user interface design
    • Provide clear instructions and guidance
    • Reduce waiting times in service
  • 4. Churn Rate

    Indicates the percentage of customers who stop using a product or service within a particular time frame.

    What good looks like for this metric: 5-7%

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Identify reasons causing customer churn
    • Enhance customer retention strategies
    • Offer personalised experiences
    • Develop an attentive onboarding process
    • Continuously engage with customers
  • 5. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

    A prediction of the net profit attributed to the entire future relationship with a customer.

    What good looks like for this metric: 3 times the acquisition cost

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Increase customer satisfaction initiatives
    • Track customer purchasing patterns
    • Improve customer segmentation
    • Enhance cross-selling initiatives
    • Increase quality of customer support

Metrics for Referral Marketing

  • 1. Referral Rate

    The percentage of your customers who refer others to your business. This is calculated by dividing the number of referred customers by the total number of customers

    What good looks like for this metric: 10-30%

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Enhance referral incentives
    • Simplify the referral process
    • Promote the referral program frequently
    • Provide excellent customer service
    • Recognise and reward top referrers
  • 2. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

    The cost associated with convincing a consumer to buy your product or service, including all marketing and sales expenses. This is calculated by dividing the total costs of acquisition by the number of new customers

    What good looks like for this metric: $7-$15 per customer

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Optimise marketing spend
    • Increase organic reach
    • Leverage social proof
    • Enhance referral incentives
    • Use cost-effective advertising channels
  • 3. Lifetime Value (LTV)

    The predicted net profit attributed to the entire future relationship with a customer. This is calculated by multiplying the average purchase value, purchase frequency, and customer lifespan

    What good looks like for this metric: $400-$500

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Improve customer retention strategies
    • Enhance product/service quality
    • Upsell and cross-sell effectively
    • Provide excellent customer service
    • Offer loyalty programs
  • 4. Referral Conversion Rate

    The percentage of referred leads who become paying customers. This is calculated by dividing the number of referred customers who make a purchase by the total number of referred customers

    What good looks like for this metric: 10-20%

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Streamline referral onboarding
    • Offer time-limited incentives
    • Provide clear value proposition
    • Enhance user experience on landing pages
    • Engage referrals with follow-up communications
  • 5. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

    A measure of customer loyalty and satisfaction, calculated by asking customers how likely they are to recommend your business to others on a scale of 0-10 and subtracting the percentage of detractors from promoters

    What good looks like for this metric: 30-50

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Regularly solicit and act on customer feedback
    • Improve product quality
    • Provide exceptional customer service
    • Engage with customers on social media
    • Implement loyalty and reward programmes

Metrics for Word-of-Mouth Marketing

  • 1. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

    Measures customer loyalty and satisfaction by asking how likely customers are to recommend your product or service to others

    What good looks like for this metric: 50 or above is considered excellent

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Improve customer service
    • Enhance product quality
    • Request feedback and act on it
    • Offer referral incentives
    • Build a strong customer community
  • 2. Customer Referrals

    Tracks the number of new customers acquired through referrals from existing customers

    What good looks like for this metric: 10% of new customers is considered good

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Introduce a referral program
    • Simplify the referral process
    • Provide incentives for referrals
    • Highlight referral successes
    • Ask for referrals at peak satisfaction points
  • 3. Social Media Mentions

    Counts the number of times your brand is mentioned on social media platforms

    What good looks like for this metric: Varies widely by industry and brand size

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Engage with users on social media
    • Create shareable content
    • Encourage user-generated content
    • Monitor social media trends
    • Collaborate with influencers
  • 4. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

    Estimates the total revenue a business can expect from a single customer account

    What good looks like for this metric: Varies widely by industry

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Enhance customer experience
    • Upsell and cross-sell products
    • Improve customer loyalty programs
    • Offer exceptional after-sales service
    • Personalise marketing efforts
  • 5. Review and Rating Volume

    Tracks the number and quality of reviews and ratings your products or services receive

    What good looks like for this metric: 4 stars or higher is considered good

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Encourage customers to leave reviews
    • Respond to all reviews
    • Address negative feedback promptly
    • Showcase positive reviews
    • Simplify the review process

Metrics for Growth for Startups

  • 1. Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

    MRR is the monthly revenue your startup can reliably anticipate based on subscriptions or recurring contracts

    What good looks like for this metric: $1,500 - $10,000 for early-stage startups

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Develop new pricing tiers
    • Upsell existing customers
    • Reduce churn rate
    • Implement referral programs
    • Expand market reach
  • 2. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

    CAC is the total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing and sales expenses

    What good looks like for this metric: Typically between $100 - $400

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Optimise marketing campaigns
    • Enhance sales team efficiency
    • Utilise cost-effective channels
    • Improve customer targeting
    • Negotiate better ad rates
  • 3. Customer Lifetime Value (CLTV)

    CLTV is the total revenue expected from a customer during their entire relationship with your company

    What good looks like for this metric: 3-5 times CAC

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Enhance customer experience
    • Implement loyalty programs
    • Increase product range
    • Upsell and cross-sell effectively
    • Provide consistent value
  • 4. User Growth Rate

    The percentage increase in the number of users or customers over a specific period

    What good looks like for this metric: 5-7% monthly for early-stage startups

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Launch marketing campaigns
    • Enhance product features
    • Engage with users on social media
    • Implement referral incentives
    • Offer limited-time promotions
  • 5. Churn Rate

    The percentage of customers who stop using your product or service over a given period

    What good looks like for this metric: 5-7% monthly is often considered standard

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Improve customer service
    • Gather feedback to understand issues
    • Regularly update and improve the product
    • Offer personalised experiences
    • Create re-engagement campaigns

Metrics for Product Engagement

  • 1. User Retention Rate

    Percentage of users who continue to use the product over a set period of time

    What good looks like for this metric: 30-40% after 90 days

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Send personalised email reminders
    • Implement user onboarding tutorials
    • Add in-app notifications for new features
    • Offer loyalty rewards or discounts
    • Conduct user feedback surveys
  • 2. Daily Active Users (DAU)

    Number of unique users who engage with the product daily

    What good looks like for this metric: 10-20% of total users

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Increase the frequency of updates
    • Incorporate gamification elements
    • Encourage social sharing
    • Optimise app load times
    • Run promotional campaigns
  • 3. Session Length

    Average duration of time a user spends on the product in a single session

    What good looks like for this metric: 5-10 minutes

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Simplify navigation within the app
    • Add value-rich content
    • Make user tasks easier to complete
    • Enable personalised experiences
    • Implement engaging design elements
  • 4. Churn Rate

    Percentage of users who stop using the product over a given period

    What good looks like for this metric: 5-7% monthly

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Identify pain points through user feedback
    • Improve customer support
    • Enhance product features based on feedback
    • Offer re-engagement incentives
    • Streamline the user experience
  • 5. Feature Adoption Rate

    Percentage of users utilising new or specific features of the product

    What good looks like for this metric: 25-30%

    Ideas to improve this metric
    • Create feature-specific tutorials
    • Promote new features through email
    • Highlight features in-app
    • Gather and act on feedback for new features
    • Incentivise users to try new features

Tracking your Customer Success metrics

Having a plan is one thing, sticking to it is another.

Don't fall into the set-and-forget trap. It is important to adopt a weekly check-in process to keep your strategy agile – otherwise this is nothing more than a reporting exercise.

A tool like Tability can also help you by combining AI and goal-setting to keep you on track.

Tability Insights DashboardTability's check-ins will save you hours and increase transparency

More metrics recently published

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Planning resources

OKRs are a great way to translate strategies into measurable goals. Here are a list of resources to help you adopt the OKR framework:

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