W.B. Mason chose Adience to transform its long-running NPS program into a strategic decision-making tool, helping the business navigate changing customer expectations, increasing digital competition, and a rapidly evolving market.
W.B. Mason is a privately owned workplace products and services company operating in the US. The business had historically managed its own annual Net Promoter Score (NPS) program internally. The disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, together with wider changes across the business and market, created an opportunity to reassess its approach to customer insight and bring in a third-party research partner.
Simultaneously, the market was changing rapidly. Customer expectations were evolving, e-commerce adoption had accelerated, and competitors were reshaping purchasing behavior. W.B. Mason wanted an independent view of customer needs, loyalty, and decision-making, together with practical recommendations to help the business navigate a changing landscape.
Following a competitive pitch involving research agencies of all sizes, W.B. Mason selected Adience for its ability to serve as a strategic partner rather than a research executor, combining robust analysis with practical guidance and activation.
Adience redesigned W.B. Mason’s annual NPS program, retaining trend comparability while expanding the scope of the research to reflect changing customer expectations and market conditions.
The revised program combined traditional NPS measurement with broader customer experience and competitive insight. The survey was designed to identify gaps, opportunities, and broader market influences, helping W.B. Mason understand not only how customers rated the business, but also why they made purchasing decisions and how competitive pressures were evolving.
The analysis incorporated historical and external data points to provide valuable context for the findings. The resulting reporting framework provided practical guidance, with clear signposting on priority areas for improvement and support for decision-making across the organization.
“When we selected Adience, we believed they would operate as a partner rather than simply a research supplier, and that is exactly how the relationship has evolved. While the initial objective was to reinvigorate our NPS program, Adience has helped us broaden the scope and value of the research considerably. The team is proactive in bringing new ideas, best practices, and practical recommendations to the table, while remaining responsive to our changing needs. They understand our business, provide thoughtful guidance, and are always willing to explore opportunities. What began as a project to help us navigate a rapidly evolving post-COVID marketplace has developed into a trusted long-term partnership that continues to support decision-making across the business."
The revised program has become an important source of customer intelligence across W.B. Mason, extending well beyond its original role as an annual NPS measurement exercise.
The Executive Team, Sales leadership, and wider business functions regularly use the findings to support decision-making. Key driver analysis has helped the business better understand which customer segments benefit most from relationship-based selling, informing decisions around sales resource allocation and account management.
The research has also provided insight into changing purchasing behavior, including the impact of digital competitors. By exploring customer leakage, channel usage and the factors influencing supplier choice, Adience has helped W.B. Mason understand how to compete more effectively in an increasingly digital marketplace.
The findings are also used by IT, e-commerce and web development teams to prioritize improvements and focus investment on the issues that matter most to customers.
The program continues to evolve through ongoing collaboration, with Adience providing additional analysis, market context and strategic guidance as the business evolves.