Most firms focus on the 20% of clients who leave feedback. Mortgage Seeker took a different approach by engaging those who don’t.
The firm also drove impressive growth by proactively asking for recommendations from all clients- doubling referrals in 12 months.
Oliver Dack leads Mortgage Seeker Ltd, a 26-adviser firm trading as Mortgage Advice Bureau across Norfolk and Suffolk. With 12 operations staff supporting both mortgage and protection advice, they’ve built something special: a business that grows by genuinely listening to what clients need.
The firm also won the 2025 Client Care Award for mortgage advice. “Winning the Client Care Award recognises what our operations team do to support clients as well as advisers,” Oliver reflects. “Our operations team are the front of house for clients and client servicing in the future.”
The 80/20 insight that changed everything
While most firms celebrate the clients who leave glowing reviews, Oliver spotted an opportunity everyone else was missing.
“About 20% of clients spend their time giving feedback,” he explains. “But it’s the other 80% of people that aren’t completing feedback that we focus on more. There’s maybe a little bit more love that we need to be doing.”
This insight transformed their approach. Instead of just collecting praise, they started using feedback data to identify clients who needed more attention – and recognised that not every client is ready to transact immediately.
The firm uses feedback data to perfect their nurture journey, ensuring clients return when they’re ready to move forward.
“We use Elevation data to pinpoint the best times to contact them and hopefully turn them into business,” Oliver explains. “When they are ready to transact, we’re the people they come back to.”
This approach recognises that mortgage advice isn’t always about the immediate transaction, it’s about building relationships that deliver value over time.
Building a learning culture
Mortgage Seeker Ltd’s approach aligns with the Consumer Duty (“We shouldn’t be scared of regulation at all,” Oliver says. “It’s there to protect clients and protect us as advisers.”), but it’s deliberately understated.
They don’t force reviews or make a big song and dance about the process.
“We want it to be independent,” Oliver explains. “We don’t want to be salespeople, we’re advisers. The clients filling it in are doing it because they want to fill it in.”
This softly-softly approach means the feedback they receive is genuine – and genuinely useful for improving their service.
“Everyone is brought into the ethos that we’re all learning, evolving, and developing on a daily basis,” Oliver explains. “Having metrics we can track and put improvements in place makes our life that little bit easier.”
This culture of learning extends beyond individual performance to shape how the entire business operates and evolves.
The simple tweak that doubled referrals
Sometimes the biggest changes come from the smallest adjustments. For Mortgage Seeker Ltd, the revelation was simple.
“Some advisers just weren’t tooting their own trumpet,” Oliver admits. “Actually, sometimes we do need to ask for something to be able to get something back.”
The Elevation data showed them that referrals were healthy but could be better. The solution? Train advisers to actively ask satisfied clients for recommendations.
The result? Referrals doubled in 12 months.
“There’s no better client than when they’ve been recommended,” Oliver notes. “They’ve been told to speak to us because somebody else has vouched for us.”
The bottom line
Oliver’s advice to other firms is refreshingly direct: “There’s no point going in one direction if clients think they should be going in a completely different direction.”
The key insight? It’s better to know something you can act upon than not know about it.
For Mortgage Seeker Ltd, systematic client feedback isn’t just about collecting compliments – it’s about understanding the full picture of client experience and using that understanding to drive sustainable growth.
Their success shows that paying attention to the silent majority can be just as valuable as celebrating the vocal minority. Sometimes the clients who don’t leave reviews are the ones with the most to teach you.
By focusing on the 80% who don’t naturally give feedback, asking for referrals more systematically, and building genuine nurture journeys, they’ve created a business that grows organically while delivering exceptional client care.
The Client Care Award is just the beginning. As Oliver puts it: “We’re putting an arm around our clients and that’s exactly what these tools help us do.”
