Putting the customer first is a vital part of Grupo Santander’s strategy. But how do our 166 million customers worldwide rate us? We measure their experience through several tools and metrics, including the net promoter score (NPS). 

At Santander we’re undergoing a global transformation to become a “digital bank with branches”, offer the best experience, and be our customer’s bank of choice. 

With one of the biggest customer bases of any bank in the world, which continues to grow, our transformation seeks to increase customer loyalty and satisfaction. In fact, Think Customer is one of the strategic principles of Santander’s new phase of growth and profitability, which puts the customer at the heart of everything we do. 

How we measure customer experience

Customer centricity is part of our business model, where our multichannel proposition covers all our customers’ financial needs. Our aim is to save them time, make their lives easier, and simplify our products. Boosting their loyalty every day is a large part of what we do. 

Customer feedback is a key source of finding out how satisfied they are and making sure that we give them a positive experience.  The bank measures its position in customer experience (products, services and reputation) using the CX Benchmark, which includes over 20 metrics. 

Among those is the net promoter score. Known widely by its abbreviation NPS, it’s the bank’s general customer satisfaction metric. The NPS enables us to compare our customer satisfaction with fellow banks’ and other companies’.

We also use transactional NPS metrics that measure customers’ views on our main customer service channels and key products and processes. This enables us to spot strengths and opportunities at each point of contact. 

We are currently in the top 3 for NPS in seven of the core markets where we operate, based on over nine million customers surveyed in 2023.  

How we’re building a digital bank with branches

We want our customers to have access to all our products and services online and through our apps, while keeping our branch network as a potent sales and advisory service channel. And we put the customer at the heart of all that. 

How we made things better for our customers in 2023

• Under our global Retail business, we reduced the number of mortgages we offer in Mexico from 17 to 3. As a result, we’re granting four times more mortgages per 100 applied for than before, with the same effort.
• In our global Payments business, Santander Key in Spain enables over four million customers to authorize transactions at the click of a button. These authorizations use biometrics to ensure security.
• Our fully online account opening in Mexico, Chile and Spain enables customers to sign up in less than 10 minutes.