Building the Business Case for a Customer Happiness Feature
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Not every feature we build will have a direct line to revenue. But that doesn't mean it doesn't create value.
As product managers, we often advocate for enhancements that improve the customer experience—things like simplifying workflows, improving performance, or refining the UI. We know these investments matter.
But when we pitch them to the execs, we're often asked: "What's the ROI?"
Convincing stakeholders to invest in these ideas when they don't come with obvious money signs attached can be a challenge.
An argument of "users will like it" just isn't going to fly. (Side note: UI/UX design teams struggle with this all the time.)
Here's how we can answer that question—with a clear, economic case that ties customer satisfaction to business outcomes.
Start With a Proxy for Customer Happiness
If our feature doesn't directly generate revenue, we can start by anchoring our case in a measure of satisfaction. That might be:
- NPS (Net Promoter Score)
- CSAT (Customer Satisfaction Score)
- CES (Customer Effort Score)
- Qualitative feedback from research or support tickets
Pick the metric most relevant to the experience our feature improves.
If there's an official customer satisfaction measure your company tracks, definitely start with that.
Estimate the Impact of the Feature
This part requires some judgment, but we can lean on data if we have it. For example:
- Has a similar feature improved scores in the past?
- Do support tickets or feedback repeatedly mention this issue?
- Can we run a quick survey or user test to gauge potential impact?
We're not trying to be perfect—just grounded.
Then we ask ourselves:
- How will this feature change the experience?
- How many users will it reach?
- What portion of users will see a meaningful improvement?
Be conservative. It's better to underestimate and over-deliver than promise sky-high returns we can't support.
Link to Business Outcomes
Here's where the economics come in.
Connect the dots between happier customers and revenue.
For example, how much does a 1-point increase in NPS /C-Sat affect churn or retention in our business?
Here are three possible paths to estimate the business impact:
-
Increased Retention:
- Happier users stay longer.
- What's the average revenue (ARPU) or lifetime value (LTV) per retained customer?
- Estimate how many users we might retain thanks to the feature.
- Multiply the number of users with the ARPU or LTV to estimate the impact.
-
Word of Mouth and Referrals
- NPS is a strong predictor of organic growth.
- Estimate how many Promoters the feature might create.
- Multiply that by the average customer value and referral rate.
-
Expansion Revenue
- Satisfied customers are more likely to upgrade or buy more.
- Model the potential increase in upsell or cross-sell conversions.
Even conservative assumptions can paint a compelling picture.
For example, let's say:
- Our average customer is worth $2,000/year
- We have 5,000 customers
- A proposed feature could raise NPS by 3 points
- Historically, a 1-point NPS lift leads to 0.5% better retention
We might estimate:
- 3 points × 0.5% = 1.5% improvement in retention
- 1.5% of 5,000 = 75 customers retained
- 75 × $2,000 = $150,000 in preserved revenue
That's a much stronger case than "users will like it."
It doesn't need to be perfect. It needs to be directionally accurate and grounded in logic.
Look at Customer Distribution
Instead of calculating an overall value based on our NPS score, it can be helpful to calculate each category of customers individually. Because we may have very different results depending on the distribution of our high-value customers.
Consider the following two products—both with an NPS of 27.
Product 1:
NPS = 50% Promoters - 33% Detractors = NPS of 27
Total ARR = 7,180k
Combined ARR of Promoters = 180k
Combined ARR of Detractors = 7,000k
While on the surface this NPS may be considered a fairly average score, the product is actually in serious trouble, because its only Detractors are Enterprise customers with a combined ARR of $7,000,000 — 97% of the revenue base!
This is a powerful argument to prioritize customer happiness features that help retain these Enterprise customers.
Product 2:
NPS = 50% Promoters - 33% Detractors = NPS of 27
Total ARR = 7,180k
Combined ARR of Promoters = 7,100k
Combined ARR of Detractors = 70k
This product has the same NPS as the first one. However, it's in much better shape as 99% of its ARR ($7M out of $7.18M total) comes from Promoters. In this case, we need to be thoughtful about any changes we make to appease Detractors that might risk disappointing our top customers, who are currently quite happy!
Consider the Cost
Now, estimate the cost of delivering the feature:
- Design and dev time
- Opportunity cost (what else we're not building)
- Ongoing maintenance costs
Even a rough cost-benefit comparison can show decision-makers whether it's worth it.
Note: Many product managers forget to add the 2nd and 3rd bullets above to their business cases!
Add a Strategic or Brand Layer
Sometimes, customer happiness features contribute to our brand promise or long-term positioning—even if the short-term ROI is fuzzy.
If our product differentiates on usability, speed, support, or sheer brand cache, we can add the argument that these features help us stay ahead.
Wrapping It Up: Tell a Story
When you present the case:
- Start with the user problem
- Quantify the opportunity
- Show the estimated business impact
- Share the tradeoffs and risks
- Tie it back to the company or product strategy
This makes it easy for our stakeholders to say yes or at least seriously consider our proposal.
Key Takeaways
- Simply saying "users will like it" isn't good enough.
- Customer satisfaction can be tied to revenue—via retention, expansion, and referrals.
- Start by connecting the idea to a metric like NPS, CSAT, etc.
- Model how that metric links to revenue: retention, referrals, or expansion.
- Use directional estimates to paint a picture of potential impact. Even rough assumptions can help us build a credible business case.
- Cost-benefit framing turns "nice-to-have" features into strategic investments.
- Share the business case as a story, not just a spreadsheet.
What You Can Do Today
- Identify one feature you're struggling to justify.
- Apply this framework to build a simple economic case.
- Share it with a teammate or stakeholder—and see how the conversation shifts.
Better decisions start when we quantify what matters to customers.
