Highlights from our Latest IT Services Industry Benchmark Study

Read on for the latest NPS® benchmarks for the IT Services industry. IT service providers, much like other B2B service firms, place significant reliance on client satisfaction and service quality to both retain their clientele and stand out in a competitive landscape. Particularly during economic downturns and industry challenges, the significance of service quality and client satisfaction becomes even more pronounced in determining business success. This partially explains the widespread prioritization of customer experience (CX) by business leaders across various sectors in 2023.To gain a comprehensive understanding of your service's performance year after year, it is imperative to employ a feedback tool that not only collects valuable insights but also simplifies tracking. Moreover, you need a metric that facilitates straightforward comparison with your competitors' performance. This is where the Net Promoter Score® (NPS®) comes into play—a metric that gauges service quality and customer satisfaction. It stands as a leading indicator of revenue retention, growth prospects, and brand distinctiveness.

What is NPS?

Your NPS starts with a single survey question that asks clients how likely they are to recommend your firm to a friend or colleague. The most forward-thinking firms are also asking their employees, hoping to boost their employee experience (EX) too. Responses land on a scale of 0–10, ten being extremely likely and zero being not at all likely. From there, people have the option to offer more specific feedback.To calculate NPS, we subtract the % of detractors (those who respond with a 6 or lower) from the % of promoters (those who respond with 9 or 10).

Why is NPS Uniquely Useful?

NPS offers a standardized measurement to track and report on client satisfaction and service quality—one that can be applied across every level, from the industry as a whole to the brand-level. Each company can also drill down within their organization, including by lines of business, department or account manager. This means that you can compare your firm to others while also pinpointing the shining stars and any areas to improve within your organization. Learn more about how NPS can help drive business growth.

IT Services NPS in 2023

ClearlyRated’s Annual Survey Benchmark Study includes an industry focus on IT Services NPS. In 2023, the IT Services industry reported an NPS score of 42%, a decrease of 2 points from 2022 but the same NPS as 2021. The NPS was at an all-time high for the IT Services industry in 2022 since ClearlyRated first measured industry satisfaction in 2011. Many drivers of IT Services client satisfaction, such as thoroughly understanding client needs and taking a proactive approach to service, are also at record highs in the industry.

IT Services Client Satisfaction – measured as NPS

Year-Over-Year IT Services Industry NPS

Insights on 2023 Ratings

Although the IT Services industry decreased their NPS in 2023, it is still one of the highest NPSs this industry has seen since 2011. When ClearlyRated first measured NPS, the IT services industry was at 13% and even decreased 2 points the next year. The industry saw a major increase in 2020 at 38% and has now been over 40%. For reference those wider NPS standards only classify organizations as excellent once they’ve earned a 50% NPS. A 70% NPS would classify them as world-class. What does it look like to have a 70%+ NPS? Consider Starbucks and USAA, recognizable service leaders with an NPS of 77% and 75%, respectively. Then compare them to Comcast, a notorious service laggard, whose clients give them a -25% NPS. As firms achieve better service levels, clients’ expectations will rightfully get higher, meaning any firms that don’t keep up are likely to flounder. Click here to learn more about the NPS methodology.This presents a major opportunity for the IT services industry that capitalizes on their NPS momentum (with the exception of their minor decrease this year), continuing to improve their customer satisfaction and service. Firms that manage to deliver an outstanding CX and earn a high NPS as a result will more easily outshine their competition. Get tips on how to improve your CX based on customer feedback.

How does your service stack up?

The extent to which your firm feels the effects of a slowing economy may depend on the quality of your CX. An NPS survey program can help you measure, track and improve both.If you’re not already leveraging NPS at your firm, we hope you consider this article a call-to-action. Not only do client satisfaction and service quality represent opportunities to differentiate in an increasingly commodified service industry, they are fuel for firm growth. Remember the adage: “You can’t manage what you don’t measure” – and you certainly won’t be able to improve it either. Up against a reluctant firm culture? Get some tips on how to overcome common objections to survey programs to help build buy-in and get started.

Next steps

• Ready to get started with NPS? Contact the ClearlyRated team for insights, best practices, and a tour of our survey platform (designed specifically to support professional services firms).

Given today's digital landscape, a great customer experience (CX) has become so vital for IT Service providers that it's virtually a make-or-break requirement. By being committed to managing CX effectively, these firms can steer a strategic path towards success, trust, credibility, and growth.

The Stakes Are High

The game of delivering impeccable IT services is rapidly changing. The customer experience (CX) used to be a "nice to have”, but it's shifted to a mission-critical component of the whole operations landscape. Ensuring that a strategic roadmap includes CX at its core isn't a matter of choice for IT firms – it's an absolute necessity.

Amplifying Your CX and Reaping the Rewards

Bringing this to life looks like fully tuning into CX management — and it means making certain that you're excellent at capturing customer experience successes at every possible interaction. This includes crafting useful content, managing feedback, and, most importantly, infusing customer insights into operations.Facing up to the complexity of total CX management might feel like a tall order, but its value far outweighs the challenge. A standout CX equates to building customer loyalty and garnering positive referrals. And remember, while 16% of customers might not tell you about their service issue, 74% will complain about it to others.

A Customer Service Experience report by Gartner confirms that enhancing service experiences drives retention and growth. In fact, 86% of customers are likely to spend more money after receiving value-enhanced services, and a striking 97% will share their experience.

Why Should Your Firm Invest in CX in 2024?

• Trust and Credibility | Browsing the internet has become second nature to most clients. With an impressive and well-curated online presence, your firm sends a message of professionalism and reliability that helps build a strong trust foundation with potential clients.
• Competitive Edge | In a highly competitive landscape, a robust online reputation, symbolizing quality service and positive customer experiences, can set your firm apart from others. It ensures you're the first one clients think of when they require the services you offer.
• Business Growth | An impressive online presence, coupled with rave reviews and positive testimonials, attracts more prospects leading to business expansion.
• Recurring Business | Having an excellent customer experience isn't just about flashy marketing efforts. It's about living up to the promises you make to your clients. When you consistently deliver remarkable service, they'll become loyal customers, ensuring a consistent stream of business.

Key Strategies to Enhance CX

• Understand and Set Goals with Customers | Every customer comes with unique needs and expectations. It’s important for your IT firm to not only listen and understand but also to tailor your services accordingly. Treat each customer as a partner with shared goals to build a long-lasting business relationship.
• Prioritize Security and Privacy | Given the rising concerns of data breaches, it's crucial to assure clients that their information is safe with you. Display your compliance with international security standards such as GDPR or HIPAA prominently.
• Offer Self-Service and Automation | As technology evolves, the act of empowering customers to resolve their common problems has become more accessible. By offering self-service options like FAQs, automated responses and chatbots, you not only provide instant solutions but also help in reducing the workload of your customer service team.
• Provide Proactive Education and Support | Educating your customers about how to make the most out of your solutions and services you offer, proves valuable. Regularly update your customers about new features, common issues and how to resolve them.

Why is NPS Uniquely Useful?

The Net Promoter Score® (NPS) is a great gauge of a company’s CX efforts. The NPS was at an all-time high for the IT Services industry in 2022 since ClearlyRated first measured industry satisfaction in 2011. For reference as you review the numbers, keep in mind that leading B2C companies including Starbucks and USAA, have a 77% and a 75% NPS, respectively. Although the IT industry’s NPS isn’t as strong as its B2C cousins, it has still dramatically increased since ClearlyRated first started measuring NPS in 2011.

• 2023 IT Services NPS benchmark = 42%
• -2 points YOY
• +4 since 2020
• +39 since its low in 2011

|Look into Insights on 2023 Rankings | NPS® Benchmarks for the IT Services Industry

Building on Solid CX Foundations

For IT service providers to ensure they stay on the ball, they need to boot out the manual mode and bring on proactive CX management. This shift includes using customer insights to gain an online reputation, drive new business, transition from detecting and evaluating customer experience issues, and begin refining the CX from the ground up.

CX Maturity

Managing CX effectively means understanding customer buying behavior, a factor that has grown in importance given that 73% of customers now consider CX as the ultimate decision-maker according to PwC. It involves evolving from rigid, annual surveys to continuous, real-time feedback. This evolving approach enables action in the now and allows for predicting future customer needs, ensuring satisfied customers and ongoing business. Migrating to a customer-focused management style is more than worth the effort – it's a real game-changer.Watch our On Demand webinar - Inside the Data: Highlights from our latest IT Services Industry Benchmark Study

B2B service providers rely heavily on client satisfaction and service quality to retain accounts and differentiate from the competition. As such, NPS can be a leading indicator of revenue retention, growth, and brand differentiation in a crowded (and often unruly) marketplace.

What is NPS?

Net Promoter® Score (NPS) is a client satisfaction and service quality metric based on a single survey question that asks your clients how likely they are to recommend your firm to a friend or colleague. Clients respond using a numeric scale of 0-10, ten being extremely likely and zero being not likely at all.NPS is calculated by subtracting the % of detractors (those who respond with 6 or lower) from the % of promoters (those who respond with a 9 or 10). Click here for a more detailed look at the NPS methodology.NPS is unique because it offers standardized measurement and reporting on client satisfaction and service quality that can be applied across the B2B services industry as a whole, at the company-level, within specific disciplines, and even by account owner. B2B service leaders utilize account-level NPS to supplement ticket-level reporting, allowing them to get ahead of retention risks and manage relationships at the account and team level.

NPS for B2B Service Providers in 2018

NPS for B2B service providers is a target topic for Inavero’s annual industry benchmark study, and in 2018 B2B services clients reported an NPS of 18% based on overall satisfaction with their provider (our sample focused on clients of B2B service providers in the U.S. and Canada).YOY NPS data shows that clients' experience and satisfaction with their service providers is varied. While the % of detractors have remained relatively consistent since 2014, the remaining % of promoters versus % passives have ebbed and flowed. These fluctuations may be related to the rapidly changing nature of the technologies and ecosystems IT services firms are required to support, the evolution of client expectations based on those rapidly changing environments, and even the commoditized nature (and therefore high-turnover nature) of the industry (4 out of 5 clients say they have switched IT service providers).For reference, global NPS standards classify 50% NPS as excellent and 70% NPS as world-class. And recognizable service leaders like Nordstrom have an NPS of 75% compared to Comcast, a notorious service laggard, whose clients give them a -1% NPS. Click here to learn more about the NPS methodology.At 18% NPS, the B2B services industry benchmark for client satisfaction and service quality is average (at best). Which means that B2B service providers have a unique opportunity to stand apart from the industry by investing in client satisfaction and service quality.

How does your service stack up?

If you're not already leveraging NPS at your company, we hope you consider this article a call-to-action. Not only do client satisfaction and service quality represent opportunities to differentiate in an increasingly commodified service industry, they are fuel for firm growth.And if "you can't manage what you don't measure" - then you certainly won't be able to improve it either.

Next steps

• Ready to get started with NPS? Contact the Inavero team for insights, best practices, and a tour of our survey platform (designed specifically to support professional services firms).