We’ll get to that…
I have just returned from the 2008 Net Promoter Score Conference with many thoughts buzzing. It was fascinating to see the breadth and depth of attendees, NPS evangelists and practitioners, from B2B and B2C and B2B/B2C companies, business insurance providers to makers of kids toys, research wonks to CEOs, global Fortune 500 brand names to American middle-market manufacturers…
Speaking of global… companies who have employed NPS around the world put forth an interesting insight. And this finding impacts and informs all global marketing research, customer satisfaction and CRM efforts: Beware of making cross-cultural, international comparisons.
If AON Insurance, Symantec or GE finds they have lower NPS scores in Japan or Germany compared to the rest of the world, this doesn’t necessarily mean these regional units are underperforming. Why? Based on reams of NPS data collected by NPS methodologist Satmetrix (and just the common sense of anyone who has been involved in focus groups or studies conduced internationally), we know that customers in different countries respond differently to uniform NPS and brand perception questions, based on local cultural norms.
The big body of data says that Japanese respondents are less likely to recommend a company than their Chinese counterparts (and they tend to be more reticent in focus group settings). Other Asian respondents are more inclined than Western subjects to offer positive feedback on brands in surveys. Europeans, especially Germans, tend to rate brands they use less favorably than Americans. Latin Americans give he highest Net Promoter Scores globally.
So the big takeaway here: Use NPS to measure your company brand within a region or country, over time, vs. competitors, but not to compare your sales or customer service unit performance by geographic area. Each country and region has its own unique environment which impacts NPS performance. Actions taken based on NPS feedback need to be localized. Also, pitting country against country within a company, score vs. score, ala World Cup soccer, is not the best way to build a powerful, unified global brand, inside and out.
So when developing an NPS strategy around the world… “think globally, act locally”—a famous comment that has been attributed to many including John Lennon, a strong Net Promoter of World Peace, as well as Buckminster Fuller, renowned visionary, designer, architect, poet, author and inventor. (Remember though that NPS is a proven, effective business tool not a utopian vision).
Author: Kevin Randall, Director of Brand Strategy & Research
