Customers expect fast, accurate, and personalized support. Quality assurance (QA) forms give customer service teams a structured, consistent way to evaluate interactions, coach agents, and improve outcomes.
This guide explains what QA forms are, why they matter, and how to create and implement them effectively, with best practices and a simple example to help you put QA into action.
What is a quality assurance form?
In customer service, a quality assurance (QA) form—also called a scorecard—is a rubric used to assess customer interactions across channels such as phone, email, chat, and social. It typically covers communication, problem-solving, adherence to policies, and professionalism, combining numeric scores with qualitative comments to guide coaching and process improvements.
Why quality assurance forms matter in customer service
Ensuring consistency across interactions
QA forms provide a standardized framework to evaluate support conversations. By holding every interaction to the same criteria, you reinforce company standards and deliver a predictable, high-quality experience.
Identifying areas for improvement
Evaluating interactions against clear criteria makes strengths and gaps visible. This enables targeted coaching, skill development, and process updates where they’ll have the most impact.
Enhancing customer satisfaction
Consistent, high-quality interactions drive higher CSAT and loyalty. QA forms help teams meet expectations reliably, turning satisfied customers into advocates.
Enabling data-driven decisions
QA forms generate structured data and qualitative insights on performance, trends, and recurring issues. Use these insights to prioritize training, refine processes, and improve tooling.
How to create an effective quality assurance form
A systematic approach will help you build a form that fits your organization and customers.
1. Define your objectives and standards
Clarify what excellent support looks like for your business. Align criteria to your support vision, customer expectations, and compliance needs. For a practical primer on building a QA process, see Help Scout’s guide to creating a customer service QA process.
2. Identify key performance indicators (KPIs)
Select KPIs that reflect quality and are measurable:
- First response time (FRT): How quickly the first reply is sent to the customer.
- Resolution rate: The percentage of issues resolved.
- Customer satisfaction score (CSAT): How customers rate their experience.
- Net Promoter Score (NPS): Willingness to recommend your brand.
- Policy and compliance adherence: Alignment with internal procedures and regulatory requirements.
3. Structure the form
Design a clear, user-friendly layout so evaluators can assess consistently and agents can act on feedback.
Sections and criteria
Break the form into sections that mirror the flow of a conversation. For example:
- Greeting and introduction: Did the agent greet appropriately and verify the customer as needed?
- Communication skills: Was language clear, empathetic, and professional?
- Problem-solving: Did the agent identify root cause and provide an accurate, complete solution?
- Policy adherence: Did the agent follow procedures, compliance, and security protocols?
- Closing: Did the agent confirm resolution, set expectations, and close positively?
Scoring system
Choose an approach that fits your needs: Yes/No checklist, numerical scale (e.g., 1-5), or weighted scoring for high-impact behaviors. Define what each score means and include examples to reduce ambiguity. Document any critical errors (e.g., privacy, security, discrimination) that trigger an automatic fail regardless of other scores.
Comments and feedback
Include space for qualitative notes, examples, and links to relevant resources or macros. Specific, behavior-based feedback accelerates improvement.
Agent acknowledgment
Give agents a space to acknowledge the review and comment. This promotes two-way dialogue and shared ownership of growth.
4. Utilize templates and examples
Avoid starting from scratch. Adapt proven structures and terminology to your environment. A helpful starting point: Customer Service Quality Assurance Checklist (+ Template).
5. Collaborate with your team
Co-create the form with input from support agents, team leads, and QA specialists. This ensures practicality, increases adoption, and surfaces real-world scenarios you need to evaluate.
Implementing quality assurance forms effectively
A well-designed form only works when supported by a consistent, coaching-focused program.
1. Train your staff
Explain how evaluations work, why they matter, and what “good” looks like. For training tips, read our article on Quality Assurance in Customer Service Training: Building a High-Performing Support Team.
2. Conduct regular evaluations
Set a predictable cadence (weekly, biweekly, or monthly) and ensure consistent coverage across agents and channels. Run calibration sessions to align scoring and standards.
3. Provide constructive feedback
Share results promptly and focus on observable behaviors. Highlight what went well and where to improve, then invite questions to ensure understanding.
4. Set actionable goals
Translate feedback into specific, time-bound goals and track progress. Revisit goals during 1:1s and performance reviews.
5. Use technology tools
Leverage software to streamline sampling, scoring, storage, and reporting. Tools like Quality Agent can automate evaluations, centralize data securely, and provide real-time insights that inform coaching and process changes.
Best practices for quality assurance forms
1. Keep forms up to date
Review regularly to reflect new products, policies, and customer expectations. Retire criteria that no longer matter and add those that do.
2. Align with customer feedback
Use CSAT/NPS comments and survey data to refine criteria and prioritize what customers value most.
3. Avoid bias in evaluations
Define scoring guidelines, run calibration sessions, and sample a mix of easy and complex interactions to reduce subjectivity.
4. Foster a positive culture
Position QA as coaching, not policing. Recognize improvements and make learning continuous.
5. Recognize and reward excellence
Celebrate consistently strong performance with shout-outs, incentives, or growth opportunities. Reinforcing the right behaviors raises the bar for the whole team.
Example: Implementing QA forms successfully
The challenge
ABC Software Solutions saw inconsistent support quality across channels, resulting in uneven CSAT.
The solution
The team created a QA form aligned to company values and customer expectations, with clear criteria and weighted scoring. They involved agents and team leads to ensure practicality.
The implementation
After training and calibration, they scheduled weekly evaluations using Quality Agent, shared timely feedback, and set individual improvement goals.
The results
Within three months, CSAT improved, coaching became more targeted, and agents reported greater confidence. QA data also surfaced process issues that were fixed to prevent repeat contacts.
Conclusion
QA forms provide a consistent framework to evaluate interactions, coach effectively, and improve customer outcomes. Success requires a clear rubric, collaborative rollout, regular calibration, and actionable feedback—supported by the right tools.
With a thoughtful approach and a platform like Quality Agent, you can build a scalable QA program that elevates your team and your customer experience.
