In-depth Understanding of Low Customer Satisfaction Ratings

Client

A large service-oriented enterprise with a well-established internal customer feedback system

Objective

The client approached us to explore qualitative insights into low NPS scores. While feedback data was being collected regularly, the depth and quality of verbatim responses were lacking, limiting the brand’s ability to make informed improvements. The brand needed to dig deeper into the root causes of dissatisfaction directly from detractors to inform course-corrective actions through focused CX root cause research.

The study was designed with the following key goals:

• Investigate why customers gave low satisfaction scores despite existing CX interventions, using a low scorer profiling approach
• Capture granular feedback directly from detractors, allowing the organization to understand emotional, operational, and communication-driven frustrations through qualitative NPS feedback
• Uncover internal process gaps or experience breakdowns that aren’t visible in quantitative dashboards via a service breakdown mapping process
• Provide actionable insight to help the client enhance retention, loyalty, and relationship repair strategies

Methodology

Research Approach & Technique:
• Telephonic qualitative in-depth interviews (IDIs), enabling feedback-rich interviews and unfiltered feedback mining

Target Audience:
• Customers who had previously given a low NPS rating, as shared through the client’s internal database - ideal for behavioral response tracking

Locations Covered:
• Pan India

Sample Size:
• Around 40 interviews, conducted exclusively with dissatisfied customers
• Focus was placed on probing for detailed reasons behind their rating, contextual pain points, and perceived brand/service gaps - key for user disappointment analysis and customer concern mapping

Interview Focus Areas:
• Communication issues
• Expectation vs delivery gaps - analyzed through expectation misalignment analysis
• Touchpoint-level dissatisfaction (product, support, TAT, etc.) - via service touchpoint review
• Process inefficiencies and moments of frustration - a basis for frustration trend analysis

Key Findings

1. Breakdown in Communication
   • Many customers felt uninformed about timelines or resolutions, which contributed significantly to negative perception, revealing clear trust deficit insights
   • Several grievances could have been proactively addressed through better notification systems or follow-ups, prompting a need for proactive service alerting

2. Controllable Service Gaps
   • A portion of complaints were tied to factors well within the client’s control (e.g., slow resolution, vague responses, lack of ownership)
   • Customers expected more empathy and accountability at critical support moments, emphasizing the value of support empathy modeling and call center empathy training

3. Process Loopholes
   • Multiple interviews uncovered systemic inefficiencies not visible through data reports, flagging urgent failure point identification
   • Examples included repetitive documentation, unclear escalation paths, and technical glitches that were left unresolved, highlighting the need for a support escalation study

4. Frustration from Unmet Expectations
   • Many detractors had initially high expectations, and their dissatisfaction stemmed from a perceived fall from promise, rather than an absolute failure - an area suitable for experience shortfall exploration
   • This emotional dissonance served as a strong negative experience trigger in brand perception

Business Implications

1. CX Communication Overhaul
   • Establish automated, transparent communication flows at each service stage using voice-led customer insights
   • Equip support teams to deliver clear timelines and proactive updates to reduce customer distress signals

2. Process Improvement Loop
   • Use insights to audit backend systems for redundancies or pain points with a friction identification framework
   • Implement CX checkpoints in workflows to catch and resolve friction early, informed by a qualitative response audit

3. Internal Training & Sensitization
   • Train support reps on soft skills, empathy, and clear communication for sensitive interactions - leveraging communication empathy mapping
   • Use excerpts from IDIs to build real-world empathy maps and coach frontline staff as part of a loyalty restoration plan

4. Strategic NPS Action Framework
   • Build a real-time feedback resolution mechanism specifically for low scorers, forming a customer rescue strategy
   • Set up monthly review cadences to discuss qualitative trends and emerging pain areas - feeding into a sustainable loyalty erosion driver response plan

Conclusion

This focused qualitative study empowered the client to uncover critical experience gaps behind low NPS scores that their internal system had failed to surface. With clear, voice-of-customer narratives, the brand could now:

• Prioritize service recovery interventions based on support interaction audit and trust-building insights
• Patch hidden process flaws that contributed to negative sentiment via service touchpoint review and support empathy modelling.
• Rebuild trust among dissatisfied customers by addressing what truly mattered to them, guided by a tailored customer retention interview strategy.

Want to transform your NPS program from reactive to strategic? Market Xcel specializes in turning vague dissatisfaction into sharp insight through qualitative NPS feedback, customer distress signal detection, and experience recovery roadmaps - contact us to build loyalty where it matters most.