The Net Promoter Score (NPS) is one of the most widely used client feedback metrics in the world. You’ve probably seen it: a question on a survey asking, “How likely are you to recommend us?” scored on a scale from 0 to 10.
But despite its popularity, especially among large organisations, there’s an ongoing debate: Is NPS worth measuring? Is NPS still relevant? Is NPS outdated in professional services?
Fred Reichheld, a Bain & Company Fellow and author, first introduced NPS in 2003. He claimed it was the one number you need to grow. Since then, both practitioners and researchers have questioned that claim – especially in industries such as professional services where loyalty and recommendation behaviours work differently to consumer goods.
In this article, we’ll explore the merits and limitations of the NPS formula for professional services firms. This should give you a clearer sense of whether NPS is worth your firm’s time, and how to use it most effectively.
Does the NPS formula add value over other measures of loyalty?
What is the NPS formula?
For a full explanation for how and why NPS is calculated, see Beaton’s NPS guide. In short, it’s a measure of client loyalty that splits respondents into three groups: promoters (9–10), neutrals (7–8), and detractors (0–6) based on a survey of how likely they are to recommend your services to others. The score is calculated by subtracting the percentage of detractors from the percentage of promoters.
NPS is simple and easy to communicate: the higher the score, the better your referral rate and client loyalty. One headline number makes it easy for leadership and teams to track over time. It also relies on a single primary question via survey – so is easy for your clients to respond and contribute to your score.
“Reichheld’s arguments for the NPS formula are that it provides a simple and intuitive way to cluster clients,” explains Grant Hollings, Research Lead at Beaton.
“It enables firms to understand the relative size of the clients who are showing a suite of financially advantageous behaviours, such as higher rates of repurchase and referral.”
This simplicity is touted as the major benefit of NPS. But simplicity also has its limitations.
Key advantages of NPS
- Simple and easy to communicate
- Quick to implement, with single primary survey question
- Supports trend tracking over time
- Benchmarkable across firms and industries
- Identifies detractors/potential threats to reputation
- Widely recognised
NPS is simple and easy to communicate: the higher the score, the better your referral rate and client loyalty.
Is NPS better than a simple satisfaction score?
While popular, NPS is controversial in some B2B contexts. Critics ask: why do people hate NPS, and what are the flaws of NPS? Is it statistically valid, or is NPS oversimplified for complex professional services relationships? Can NPS be manipulated?
Some critics suggest that calculating promoters minus detractors adds little value over a mean satisfaction score. That is, collapsing data into the different groups isn’t inherently superior to simpler aggregation approaches like simply calculating the average score. Bob Hayes, a recognised expert in customer experience management (CXM) who has written extensively on the flaws of NPS, challenged assertions about it being the best metric. In his view, NPS’s popularity outpaced rigorous evidence about its performance, particularly when organisations treat it as a magic KPI rather than one input among many.
Research from Arizona State University’s Center for Services Leadership backed up Hayes’ theory. It found the difference between mean satisfaction and NPS in predicting customer retention was not statistically significant. The study emphasised that the most powerful insights come from combining multiple client loyalty metrics, rather than relying on a single indicator alone.
However, the study did not take into account the popularity and widespread use of NPS – particularly in professional services. Its widespread use makes it valuable for benchmarking and comparison between firms.
Key disadvantages of NPS
- Simplifies complex client sentiment
- Sensitive to small changes in scores
- One of many methods to predict future customer loyalty
- May not capture specific drivers of client loyalty in B2B firms
NPS is easy to calculate and provides a simple and intuitive way to cluster clients.
Is the ‘recommend’ question the best predictor of loyalty?
The simple “Would you recommend us?” question correlates strongly with loyalty in consumer contexts. In a B2B context, Reichheld’s thinking was that clients willing to recommend a firm are demonstrating “intense loyalty” – effectively putting their own reputation on the line. But in professional services, where contracts are long-term and trust is critical, it’s fair to say recommendation behaviour doesn’t always translate into revenue growth.
For firms like consultancies, law and accounting practices, recommendation behaviour can be shaped by a range of factors that differ from B2C purchases. These include brand and professional reputation, networks, and long‑term relationships with key personnel. Clients might recommend a firm based on personal relationships rather than service experience alone.
The ‘recommend’ question in consumer industries vs professional services
In consumer markets, recommending a product like a soft drink, streaming service, or clothing brand carries relatively low personal risk. If the recommendation turns out poorly, the consequences are minor. The cost is small. The reputational impact is limited. Therefore, it may be easier and more common for a consumer to score a product in the “promoter” range of NPS scores (9-10 out of 10).
But recommending an accounting firm, law firm, consulting firm, or engineering firm is very different.
“A person who recommends an accounting firm to another is putting a good deal more reputation on the line than a person who recommends a brand of soft drink,” says Hollings.
“This is because when recommending an accountant, there is more at stake for the person receiving the recommendation if it is a poor one. Which in turn can have more of an impact on the relationship between the two people involved.”
As you can see, the classification of NPS promoters, and the NPS, is not universal in what it represents in different industries.
Does NPS predict growth?
Reichheld’s early studies showed a correlation between higher NPS and revenue growth in certain industries. This positioned NPS as a powerful KPI and led many organisations to adopt it as a primary measure of customer loyalty.
The idea was simple: if clients are willing to recommend you, they are loyal. If they are loyal, they stay longer and bring in new business. Therefore, NPS predicts growth.
Reicheld’s logic is appealing, but growth in B2B professional services firms is often driven by multiple factors. These include the ability of the firm to maintain long-term contracts, relationship depth, cross-selling and retention. Growth can often depend more on expanding work with existing client relationships than on external referrals.
In these environments, recommendation behaviour does not always translate directly into measurable revenue growth. This means NPS in professional services should not be relied on as the standalone predictor of growth. It should be part of the broader growth dashboard combined with other metrics.
Limitations for predicting growth in law, accounting, and consulting firms
- Clients may recommend your firm out of obligation, not enthusiasm
- Repeat business often depends on relationship quality, not just recommendation
- Reputation in niche markets can skew results
When comparing Net Promoter Score (NPS) to other client feedback metrics, it’s important to understand the differences.
NPS vs CSAT or CES
When comparing Net Promoter Score (NPS) to other client feedback metrics, it’s important to understand what each measure captures and how it is used.
What are CES and CSAT?
Customer Satisfaction (CSAT) measures how happy a client is with a specific interaction or service experience. For example, a client might be asked, “How satisfied were you with the advice provided in this engagement?” Responses are typically rated on a numerical scale, and the average or top-box score provides a clear view of satisfaction.
- CSAT measures satisfaction with a specific interaction
Customer Effort Score (CES), on the other hand, measures how easy it was for a client to achieve a desired outcome with your firm, such as completing a project, resolving an issue, or receiving advice. High CES scores are often strong predictors of client loyalty, particularly in B2B firms, because ease of doing business directly impacts whether clients continue to engage your services or recommend you to others.
- CES measures ease of getting a task done – often a strong predictor of loyalty in B2B settings.
Why choose NPS over others?
NPS works best as part of a broader client feedback system. Benchmark your NPS scores against peer firms, via an industry-wide study like Beaton Benchmarks. Learning how to benchmark NPS can give context to raw scores and highlight opportunities for improvement. Add qualitative research with open-ended questions into your surveys that allow for more detailed feedback. Set up your key account management system to ensure regular check-ins with high-value clients and meet regularly with them to proactively seek ways to improve the relationship.
Together, these metrics give a 360-degree view of client experience, allowing professional services firms to pinpoint issues, improve loyalty, and make decisions that can influence revenue.
Best practices for implementing NPS successfully
Firms that are just beginning to use NPS should start with our Guide to Client Feedback Surveys. This can help you decide whether you are measuring transactional versus relationship NPS. Segment clients by service line, industry, or size to get meaningful insights. Ensure surveys are easy to complete, clearly explain why feedback matters, and are timed appropriately – for example, shortly after delivering advice or completing a project.
Integrating NPS into broader client feedback systems
Net Promoter Score (NPS) remains one of the most widely used client feedback metrics in the world – more popular in professional services than CSAT or CES. That popularity is a strength: because so many professional services firms, including law firms, accounting firms, consulting firms, and engineering firms, measure NPS, it can be benchmarked against industry averages and peer organisations. This makes it useful for tracking relative performance over time and spotting trends in client advocacy.
However, relying on a single metric – whether NPS, CSAT, or CES – is rarely sufficient to fully understand client experience or predict growth. A single number cannot capture the nuances of complex relationships, especially in B2B and professional services where trust, reputation, and high-stakes outcomes matter.
As Hollings says: “a single question/metric by itself can be misleading”.
“The NPS is sold by its creators as the ‘only’ number you need to know … In my view, it is the marketing surrounding the NPS that is what is wrong, not the NPS itself.”
For this reason, Beaton believes the most effective approach is to combine NPS with detailed and varied client feedback. This includes both qualitative insights from surveys and in-person feedback from key client interactions. Collecting feedback regularly allows firms to pinpoint specific issues, understand the drivers of satisfaction and loyalty, and act quickly to improve the client experience.
The NPS is sold by its creators as the ‘only’ number you need to know … In my view, it is the marketing surrounding the NPS that is what is wrong, not the NPS itself.
How to improve NPS score
Increasing your NPS score requires acting on the feedback you receive. While NPS itself may not directly increase revenue, acting on NPS insights and feedback to improve client experience can have a measurable impact on retention, referrals, and long-term growth. By systematically acting on survey insights, firms can improve client experience and see tangible changes in NPS scores over time.
To improve your NPS score:
- Address pain points identified in surveys: If multiple clients highlight the same issue (for example, delays in communication or unclear advice) take targeted action to resolve it.
- Reward and replicate positive client experiences: Identify what drives high scores and ensure best practices are shared across the firm.
- Train staff to focus on client outcomes, not just scores: Empower your team with skills to have client-centric conversations and mindset. Consider training like Beaton’s business development training.
How to act on NPS feedback strategically
A common question is “what to do with NPS results?” Simply reporting a number is not enough. To create positive change, you’ll need to overcome some of the common challenges firms face when implementing feedback recommendations. This article discusses how to do that on a practical level.
Strategically, you should be using NPS results to:
- Turn insights into actionable plans for teams or service lines
- Share feedback internally to create accountability and alignment
- Track NPS at regular intervals to see improvements over time and evaluate the impact of initiatives.
When feedback is integrated into decision-making, NPS becomes a tool for continuous improvement, rather than a static KPI.
Conclusion: Is NPS worth measuring?
So, is NPS worth measuring? The short answer is yes – but with some important caveats.
NPS provides a high-level view of client loyalty and advocacy, and its widespread use in law firms, accounting firms, consulting firms, and engineering firms, makes it valuable for benchmarking and tracking trends over time. It can highlight potential risks from detractors and shine a light on overall client sentiment.
However, no single metric is enough to fully understand client experience or predict growth. Professional services firms should treat NPS as one input among many, integrating it with qualitative feedback, benchmarking, key account management and in-person client conversations.
The most successful firms are those that not only measure NPS but know how to act on NPS feedback, address pain points, replicate positive experiences, and embed these insights into decision-making and staff training. While NPS itself may not directly increase revenue, using it strategically can improve client retention, loyalty, and referrals, which drives long-term growth.
Achieving high NPS just became a whole lot easier
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