How high is your AQ?

Increasing Loyalty, Referrals and Sales.

Introducing AQ: The Advocacy Quotient™

Have you ever wondered what AQ stands for? Well, it stands for Advocacy Quotient™, a powerful scale we utilize to determine the likelihood of someone recommending our product or service to others.

Now, you might be thinking, isn’t that what NPS (Net Promoter Score) does? While NPS does measure customer experience and serves as a valuable metric for managing customer satisfaction, we believe AQ offers a unique perspective.

According to Fortune Magazine, NPS was used by two-thirds of the Fortune 1000 in 2020. However, we acknowledge that NPS has its challenges. Now, let me be transparent here – I have friends in the industry who adore NPS, mainly because it provides a simple benchmark. After all, who wouldn’t appreciate a straightforward tool?

But here’s where AQ comes in. It goes beyond the simplicity of NPS and provides a more comprehensive understanding of customer advocacy. With AQ, we delve deeper into the factors that drive customers to recommend our offerings, allowing us to enhance our customer experience management program.

So, if you’re seeking a more nuanced approach to measuring customer advocacy, look no further than AQ – the Advocacy Quotient™.

The Limitations of NPS and the Advantages of AQ

While NPS (Net Promoter Score) serves as a solid starting point for measuring customer advocacy, it does have its limitations. One of the main challenges is that NPS revolves around a single question: “How likely would you be to recommend us to your friend or colleague?” While this question provides a basic understanding, it lacks statistical and empirical validity.

To address this, AQ takes a more comprehensive approach by incorporating follow-up questions. For example, we ask if customers have ever referred a friend to us and if that referral actually joined us. These additional questions provide a more nuanced and accurate assessment of customer advocacy.

Scholars in the Harvard Review have also pointed out the lack of depth in NPS and have suggested two additional questions: “Have you recommended this brand?” (similar to the original NPS question) and “Have you ever discouraged anyone from choosing this brand?” These questions offer valuable insights into both positive and negative advocacy behaviors.

Furthermore, NPS is often criticized for being one-dimensional, merely serving as a benchmark without providing actionable items to improve brand awareness. In contrast, AQ goes beyond a simple score and offers actionable insights to enhance your brand’s reputation and customer experience.

Another point of confusion with NPS is the scale itself. While some argue that it is an 11-point scale, including zero, others consider it a 10-point scale. This discrepancy can lead to misunderstandings and misinterpretations. With AQ, we provide a clear and unambiguous scale, eliminating any confusion about score selection.

In summary, while NPS has its merits, AQ offers a more comprehensive and actionable approach to measuring customer advocacy. By addressing the limitations of NPS and incorporating additional questions, AQ provides a deeper understanding of customer behavior and empowers businesses to improve their brand awareness effectively.

The Flaw in Scale Perception: School-Based and Median Bias

One of the flaws in scales like the 0-10 scale used in NPS is that it can introduce biases based on school grading systems and median perceptions.

In school grading, a score of 10 is often associated with 100%, equivalent to an A+. This can lead people to perceive a score of 10 as the highest possible rating, indicating complete satisfaction or advocacy.

On the other hand, a score of seven on a 0-10 scale is often seen as 70%, which is considered a C or satisfactory in school grading terms. This creates a perception that seven is a mid-point or an average score.

However, the issue arises when we consider the interpretation of a score of five. Some individuals view five as the middle ground or a satisfactory rating. In school grading terms, this would be equivalent to a C. However, others perceive a score of five as a poor score or even a failure (F).

This discrepancy in perception can lead to confusion and misinterpretation of scores. While some see five as average or satisfactory, others view it as a poor rating. This introduces a bias in scale perception, making it challenging to accurately gauge customer sentiment.

To address this flaw, AQ utilizes a clear and unambiguous scale that avoids the pitfalls of school-based and median biases. By providing a scale with explicit descriptors and eliminating the confusion surrounding the interpretation of scores, AQ ensures a more accurate representation of customer advocacy levels.

In conclusion, the introduction of biases based on school grading systems and median perceptions can distort the understanding of scores on a 0-10 scale. AQ aims to overcome this flaw by employing a clear and unbiased scale, enabling businesses to accurately assess customer sentiment and make informed decisions based on reliable data

Unlocking Actionable Insights with AQ: Elevating Brand Advocacy

While NPS continues to hold its place in business and customer experience analysis, we recognize its simplicity and its ability to establish a benchmark. However, when it comes to driving advocacy and fostering brand loyalty, we believe that an Advocacy Quotient™ Survey (AQ) can provide even better guidance for your business.

With AQ, we go beyond the basic categorization of promoters and detractors. Instead, we sort Advocates into three distinct groups, with a fourth group by default:

  1. Advocates willing to promote your brand.
  2. Advocates who have actively referred your brand.
  3. Advocates who have successfully persuaded a new customer to choose your brand (the Golden Ticket).
  4. Customers who are not willing to promote or refer your brand.

By identifying these true loyalists based on their actual and potential actions, we can now tailor our strategies to strengthen their loyalty through recognition and rewards programs. Additionally, we can motivate others to become Brand Advocates or even Brand Ambassadors, depending on the level of recognition you desire.

The simplicity of our Advocacy Quotient™ lies in its ability to set a benchmark, just like NPS. However, AQ goes a step further by providing a deeper understanding of customer sentiment. We start with a 5-point scale to minimize bias and ensure clarity. This allows for a clear median, making the survey more reliable and objective.

To enhance objectivity and empirical validity, we introduce follow-up questions that require a simple “yes” or “no” response. This further strengthens the reliability of the data collected, enabling you to make informed decisions based on concrete insights.

In summary, AQ empowers businesses to unlock actionable insights by identifying and nurturing true brand advocates. By utilizing a comprehensive approach and incorporating objective measures, AQ elevates the understanding of customer advocacy and provides a solid foundation for driving brand loyalty and growth.

Enhancing Survey Questions for Deeper Insights

To gather more comprehensive and actionable insights, we can improve the survey questions. While the following examples can be adjusted based on your industry, they provide a framework for capturing a deeper understanding of customer sentiment:

 

  • On a scale of 0-10, how likely are you to recommend our brand/service/product to a friend or colleague?
  • How satisfied have you been with the reservation process? (Scale: Very satisfied, satisfied, neutral, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied)
  • How satisfied have you been with the quality of our product? (Scale: Very satisfied, satisfied, neutral, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied)
  • How satisfied have you been with your overall experience using our product? (Scale: Very satisfied, satisfied, neutral, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied)
  • How satisfied have you been with the timeliness of our services? (Scale: Very satisfied, satisfied, neutral, dissatisfied, very dissatisfied)
  • Have you recommended our brand/service/product to a friend or colleague? (Yes/No)
  • Has a friend or colleague become part of our program as a result of your recommendation? (Yes/No)

These last two YES/NO questions will be your most empirical data.

Additionally, to gain further insights and understand the reasoning behind the scores, we can include a Voice of the Customer (VOC) question:

Conclusion: Unlocking the Upside with the AQ System

In conclusion, the AQ system offers a significant advantage over traditional surveys that merely provide benchmarks. It enables better modeling and subsequent actions, allowing you to harness the full potential of customer advocacy.

By leveraging the AQ data, you can create a model that identifies the characteristics of your best advocates and influencers. This modeling approach becomes particularly valuable when your next strategic goal is acquiring more prospective leads. Armed with insights into what makes these advocates effective, you can equip them with the necessary tools and resources to refer more prospects. This targeted approach maximizes their impact and drives higher-quality leads for your business.

Furthermore, the AQ system allows you to apply the same modeling approach to your brand ambassadors who have successfully referred actual purchasers. By analyzing their behaviors and patterns, you can identify the key factors that contribute to their success. With this knowledge, you can streamline and simplify the referral process for ambassadors, making it even easier for them to bring in new customers.

In summary, the AQ system goes beyond providing benchmarks. It empowers you to take proactive steps based on data-driven modeling, unlocking the potential of your advocates and ambassadors. By leveraging their strengths, you can optimize your referral strategies, acquire high-quality leads, and streamline the path to purchase. With the AQ system, you can achieve greater success in driving brand advocacy and achieving your business goals.

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