You may believe you know what your clients think. Very few businesses actually ask, though, and fewer still ask in a way that gives them something they can use. That gap is quietly expensive: a business running on assumptions is deciding on service, pricing and process from what it hopes is true. Client feedback replaces the guesswork, and it is one of the cheapest sources of advantage a business has.
But feedback only earns its keep when it is collected well and acted on. A survey nobody answers, or a score nobody reads, is just admin. Here is how we approach it, and what our own results show.
What feedback actually tells you
Good feedback does three things: it shows what is working, what to fix, and which clients are drifting before they leave quietly. It also gives an early read on loyalty. The Net Promoter Score, introduced by Fred Reichheld of Bain & Company in a 2003 Harvard Business Review article, captures that in a single question, how likely a client is to recommend you. Its value is that recommendation tracks real loyalty and referrals, not just a good mood on the day.
Building a survey program people actually answer
A good program is a habit, not a one off, and a few principles separate a survey that works from one that gathers dust.
Ask at the right moment, while the experience is fresh. For us that point is settlement, and asking then gives feedback that is specific rather than vague.
Keep it short and stable. Every question should map to a decision you are willing to act on, and a consistent question set keeps results comparable over time.
Make responding effortless, and decide who owns it. Response rates are a design choice, not luck: the easier you make it, and the more reliably someone owns sending, chasing and collating, the more you hear back. It shows in ours. In FY26 we heard back from 63 per cent of clients surveyed, with Finance and Legal returning 90 and 79 per cent. Where a fifth to a third is typical for client surveys, those are strong figures.
Reading the results
Collecting responses is the easy part; the value is in the reading. Look across them for the recurring theme worth acting on, rather than the single loudest comment. One frustrated client is a data point; the same issue from a dozen is a signal.
Watch the trend, too, not just a single snapshot. A score means most when you can see whether it is moving, which is why we track the same measures each year, so an improvement or a slip shows up in time to act.
Putting your score in context
A Net Promoter Score on its own tells you little. Is 40 good? Is 70 exceptional? The number only means something held against a reference point, so the real work is choosing the right one.
A rough starting point is the general scale, where above zero is good, above 50 is strong, and above 70 is world class. Useful as a sense check, but blunt, since a score that looks strong in one industry can be middling in another.
The sharper comparison is against your own sector, where expectations are broadly similar. We hold each brand against the industry it competes in, and here is how FY26 looks.
| Brand | Our NPS (FY26) | Industry benchmark |
| AP Group Sales | 86.5 | Real estate, roughly 30 to 34 |
| AP Finance | 86.0 | Finance and mortgage broking, around 34 |
| AP Legal | 77.6 | Law firms, close to 37 |
Each brand sits at more than double its industry average, with a combined 83.3 across the group.
Treat any benchmark as a direction of travel, not a precise target. Published figures use different methods, samples and regions, so compare like with like and do not over-read a point or two. Used well, a good benchmark turns a score from a vanity number into a real measure of how well you are serving clients.
The habit that compounds
The businesses that pull ahead are not the ones that survey once and frame the score. They ask, act, and ask again. Feedback is not a report card; it is how a business stays close to the people it serves. Ask properly, and your clients will tell you exactly how to get better.
Sources:
- Net Promoter Score origin and method: Fred Reichheld, “The One Number You Need to Grow,” Harvard Business Review, 2003. https://hbr.org/2003/12/the-one-number-you-need-to-grow
- Interpretation scale (good, excellent, world class): Bain & Company, Net Promoter System. https://www.netpromotersystem.com/about/
- Legal industry benchmark (around 37): ClearlyRated, Legal Industry NPS Benchmark. https://www.clearlyrated.com/industry-benchmark/nps-benchmarks-for-the-legal-industry
- Real estate benchmark (around 30 globally; about 34 for Australian real estate services): SurveySparrow NPS benchmark guide; Evolved Thinking, Australian B2B NPS industry benchmarks. https://surveysparrow.com/blog/guide-to-benchmark-nps-score/ https://evolvedthinking.com/blog/australian-b2b-nps-industry-benchmarks-how-does-your-organisation-compare
- Finance and mortgage broking benchmark (around 34): reported industry average, Australian Broker News, FY2025; Evolved Thinking Australian B2B study (finance broker services +28). https://www.brokernews.com.au/news/breaking-news/loan-market-brokers-maintain-top-customer-service-scores-287917.aspx https://evolvedthinking.com/blog/australian-b2b-nps-industry-benchmarks-how-does-your-organisation-compare
Note on comparison: industry benchmarks are drawn from different studies with different methodologies, sample bases and regions, so they are best read as directional rather than exact. Our own figures are AP Group’s FY26 survey results.
Written by Aaron Whelan, Settlements Manager – AP Group
AP Group are the leading pharmacy experts in Australia and specialise in helping first time buyers find the right pharmacy and secure the finance to support their purchase.
We connect existing owners with over 5000 ready and eager investors via our cutting-edge online Data Room. Our Data Room keeps confidential listing data secure and allows buyers to make informed decisions on each of our pharmacies for sale.
AP Group have built connections with all the major banks and a host of smaller lenders, ensuring that first time pharmacy buyers find a better deal.
About the Author:
Aaron was voted the nicest guy in the office! He is the team PT and encourages us all to get out and exercise at lunch time. With a career that’s seen him coaching at Australia’s top swimming club and swimming through the tech-savvy waters of Apple, Aaron brings a unique blend of precision and efficiency to our team.
He’s our go-to guru for all things during a settlement process and is seriously good at making sure milestones are being achieved and projects are delivered on time.
Aaron has a knack for building relationships that outlast the latest iPhone, and he’s all about optimising operations with the meticulousness of an architect planning his next masterpiece.
Not only does Aaron hold a degree from RMIT, but he’s also had the honour of learning from the big shots in the pharmacy world.
Outside of his professional prowess, Aaron’s a fanatical admirer of architecture, a fitness fanatic, and a sports enthusiast. Whether he’s diving into swimming, racing through Formula 1 stats, or tackling the NFL, he’s always in the game. Plus, he’s got an eye on the ever-changing world of tech – the gadgets and gizmos that make the future look pretty darn cool.