Salesforce Dictionary - Free Salesforce GlossarySalesforce Dictionary
Full Customer Satisfaction Score entry
How-to guide

How to set up a CSAT program in Salesforce

Setting up CSAT in Salesforce takes a few steps: configure a survey tool, build a Flow to trigger sends, store responses on the Case, and build dashboards. The data pipeline is straightforward; the operational discipline of acting on results is harder.

By Dipojjal Chakrabarti · Founder & Editor, Salesforce DictionaryLast updated May 20, 2026

Setting up CSAT in Salesforce takes a few steps: configure a survey tool, build a Flow to trigger sends, store responses on the Case, and build dashboards. The data pipeline is straightforward; the operational discipline of acting on results is harder.

  1. Pick a survey tool

    Salesforce Surveys (native, lower cost) or a third-party tool (Qualtrics, SurveyMonkey, Medallia, Delighted). Pick based on existing tooling, feature requirements, and budget.

  2. Design the CSAT survey

    One question on a clear scale. Resist the temptation to add five more questions; longer surveys kill response rates. The single question should map directly to CSAT (How would you rate your experience).

  3. Build the trigger Flow

    Create a record-triggered Flow on Case that fires when Status changes to Closed. The Flow sends the survey through the chosen tool. Add a delay of 1 to 24 hours after close to let the customer reflect.

  4. Store responses on the Case

    Configure the survey tool to write back to a Case custom field (CSAT_Rating__c) and the survey response object. This is what dashboards aggregate.

  5. Build CSAT dashboards

    Service Cloud Service Analytics has pre-built CSAT dashboards. Customize for your team. At minimum: overall CSAT, CSAT by agent, CSAT by Case Reason, CSAT time series.

  6. Operationalize the responses

    Build a Flow that flags low-CSAT cases for manager review. Train managers to follow up with both the agent and the customer. CSAT data is only useful if someone acts on it.

Gotchas
  • Response rates of 5 to 20 percent are normal. Self-selection bias is real; do not draw conclusions from small samples.
  • Mid-program scale changes (1-5 to 1-10, or text to emoji) break time-series. Pick a scale up front and stick with it.
  • Tying CSAT to compensation without normalizing for case complexity is unfair to agents handling harder cases.
  • Survey fatigue affects response rates. If a customer files 10 cases in a month and gets 10 surveys, they ignore all of them. Cap survey frequency per customer.
  • CSAT data has a delay (24 hours to weeks). Real-time dashboards on CSAT lag the source events; account for the lag when interpreting trends.

See the full Customer Satisfaction Score entry

Customer Satisfaction Score includes the definition, worked example, deep dive, related terms, and a quiz.