Customer Effort Spikes

Customer Effort Spikes

Customer Effort Spikes are exactly what they sound like: sharp, noticeable moments in a conversation where the burden shifts unfairly onto the customer. They happen when a caller has to repeat their account number. Or when they’re bounced between agents. Or when they sit in silence waiting for an answer that should have been instant.

These moments aren’t just annoyances. They’re conversion killers. Churn triggers. Brand reputation sinkholes.

Why It Matters

We like to think satisfaction drives loyalty. But research shows effort is more predictive of whether a customer comes back or leaves.
In fact, according to CEB/Gartner’s foundational study, 96% of customers who experience high effort become disloyal — even if they ultimately get what they needed.

The pain isn’t always loud. Customers don’t say “this was too hard.” But their behavior changes. They stop calling. Or worse — they start tweeting.

This is why Vitalogy treats effort not as a fuzzy emotional score, but as a tangible, observable metric — one that can be tracked, reduced, and acted on in real-time.

What Causes an Effort Spike?

An effort spike is not the same as a bad call. It’s a moment inside a call — often invisible to traditional QA — that signals friction. Common triggers include:

  • Repetition: The customer says, “I already told the last person…”
  • Silence: Long pauses while the agent digs for answers.
  • Transfers: Especially without context carry-over.
  • Authentication loops: “Can you verify again?”
  • Channel switching: “You’ll have to email billing.”
  • Script rigidity: The customer’s issue doesn’t fit the form, and now they’re stuck.

How to Measure It

There’s no perfect out-of-the-box formula, but you can construct a Customer Effort Spike Score by detecting known indicators of friction. Here’s one example approach:

🧮 Simple Detection Model

Effort Spike Score =
(Repeats × 1.5) +
(Transfers × 2.0) +
(Silence Events > 5s × 1.2) +
(Channel Switch Events × 2.5)

You can normalize this per conversation, and set thresholds to flag interactions with High Effort Moments.

Better yet: tie these spikes to outcomes. Did this call lead to escalation? Did the CSAT drop? Did the customer call back within 48 hours?

Self-Check: Are You Tracking It?

Here’s the hard truth: most teams aren’t. They track resolution and AHT. But they miss when the customer started to struggle.

Ask yourself:

  • Do we know the top 3 causes of repetition in our conversations?
  • Can we see how often agents ask for info the customer already gave?
  • Do we flag conversations with >2 transfers or long silences?

If the answer is “not yet,” it’s time to start. Because you can’t reduce what you don’t observe.

Vital Principle in Action

This is Principle #2: Everything is a Signal.
Repetition isn’t a nuisance — it’s a signal. A callback isn’t random — it’s a system flaw in disguise. Customer Effort Spikes aren’t noise. They’re your roadmap to better.

Further Reading

  • Gartner / CEB: Stop Trying to Delight Your Customers – Harvard Business Review
  • Qualtrics XM Institute: Customer Effort Score (CES) Benchmarks
  • Forrester Research: Why Reducing Customer Effort Drives Loyalty