Nowadays, customers’ expectations are higher. With effective customer success strategies, you can reduce churn rates and increase customer life value. In our recent CS Snack breakfast event in Copenhagen, over 90 Customer Success (CS) professionals gathered to share practical insights for customer success. 

Retaining existing customers is crucial, given that the likelihood of selling to them can reach up to 70%, compared to the mere 20% success rate when targeting new customers. There are many strategies, but defining the framework and to-do list is challenging for most. 

In April, we met with CS professionals from Copenhagen. We engaged with representatives from various companies, such as Salesforce, Trustpilot, Oracle, and TalentHub, to exchange ideas and gather strategies and actionable tips that guarantee Customer Success. We share these insights with you with the help of our moderators, Sally Stoewe, Nikki Hunt, Line Dahl Michelson, Harry Bandell, and Viktor Byström. And our host Milosh Dunjic.

This morning was filled with valuable learning opportunities for the attendees. To start the day, they had the chance to participate in one of six engaging breakout sessions, each covering a different topic. The diverse options allowed participants to tailor their learning experience to their specific interests and goals. Here are the topics in the breakout session. 

1. Scaling CS through digitalization
2. Retaining revenue in more challenging times
3. Building a customer-centric business (Leadership only)
4. Building ROI for your customer as CSM
5. Strategic/enterprise account management (100k+ ARR)
6. Influencing organizational change as a CSM

Below, we will share the learning from the first topic:

Scaling CS through digitalization

“Digitalization takes the concept of keeping customers successful to a whole new level.”

Use AI and Digital Tools that Enhance Customer Success: Leveraging AI and Digital tools such as Penbox and Jiminy drives long-term growth for the company by enhancing customer success through automation, personalization, and proactive support. Automation for smaller customers allows companies to deliver high-quality service without scaling costs. 

Here are the three main benefits of Digital Tools:

✔️ It balances engagement and personalization for smaller customers.

✔️ Segmentation through Automation eases building success plans.

✔️ It sets clear expectations on customer response times, enhancing customer satisfaction.

Three steps to use AI and digital tools for success:

1. Determine what problems you need to solve. Ask yourself which current tasks can benefit from automation.
2. Research and select the primary tools you will need for automation. Always consider pricing to ensure you maximize the budget for digitalization.
3. Rewrite SOPs and re-evaluate current processes to incorporate the use of digital tools. 

Remember that customers’ evolving preferences require personalization and a more strategic approach, even with AI and digital tools in place. These tools help analyze user data and behaviour, helping predict preferences, but they don’t guarantee a one-size-fits-all solution. 

As Customer Success Professionals, it’s essential to consider different personalization strategies. One is mapping the customer journey to analyze which stage the product was most effective or where and when it needed improvement. 

Retaining revenue in more challenging times

Retaining revenue in B2B SaaS in today’s landscape is more essential than ever. Net retention impacts the valuation of companies, making it more critical for B2B SaaS companies to focus on customer retention and expansion strategies. A high net retention rate indicates that a company is keeping its existing customers and growing its revenue. 

“Be transparent and establish good customer relationships.”

Instil consistency and confidence with your clients: With the rapidly evolving market, demonstrating value in your products and services becomes even more challenging. Customers need to feel confident in the company when things change more frequently. 

Here are the three main benefits of building confidence with your clients:

1.  It engages decision-makers and stakeholders. With tangible metrics, there is a more compelling case for customers to continue using the product. 
2. Customers who believe in your values and know what to expect are likelier to stay, enhancing client retention rate.
3. Demonstrating the value of your products builds a more robust foundation for customer relationships. 

Three ways how to instil confidence:

1. Define value moments and celebrate milestones with customers. 
2. Engage in regular communication with customers through different channels.
3. Share success plans with customers and demonstrate accountability by involving clients. 

I am building a customer-centric business. 

During this breakout topic, leaders are encouraged to provide their perspectives and insights on customer centricity. Together, we aim to precisely identify the essential components of what it means to be truly customer-centric.

“Customer centricity needs to be a company-wide agreed philosophy and not “owned” by one department or team.”

Align customer-centricity with the Marketing, Sales, and Product Departments. While each department has a separate focus, customer centricity should be part of every department’s goal. 

Three ways on how to align customer centricity:

1. Share KPI across the entire team. 
2. Try to understand a customer from their touchpoint and replicate such an experience differently.
3. Utilize data to shape conversations from subjective to objective. 

Building ROI for your customer as CSM

Discussing about the ROI for customers as a CSM is crucial in demonstrating the value of the SaaS product. In this discussion, we have learned about the different strategies companies can implement. 

“Sales is dating; Customer Success is marriage.”

Use value drivers. Remembering your clients’ reasons for choosing your product is essential to bridging the past, present, and future gaps. 

Five ways on how to create value drivers:

1. Build Strong business cases.
2. Schedule regular review meetings with the team. 
3. Share accountability with clients and engage them in achieving desired outcomes.
4. Use premium services strategically and use these to demonstrate enhanced ROI. 
5. Understand your audience’s focus and tailor conversations accordingly. 

Strategic account management (100k+ ARR)

Often, high-value accounts have complex needs and expectations. Our exchange on this topic reiterated how strong a Customer Success Professional’s role is in managing strategic and enterprise accounts. 

“CS getting involved during the sales cycle is a good way to build relationships and understand use cases early.”

Involve the CS early. Positioning the Customer Success Manager (CSM) as a trusted advisor is beneficial.

Four ways on how to keep the CS involved:

1. Enhancing internal collaboration and fostering strong collaboration between teams.
2. Improve the handover process by setting clear protocols.
3. Set up clear communication channels between teams so the CS gets informed on the progress and different cases.
4. Encourage proactive participation during the sales process.

Influencing organizational change as a CSM

Changes in an organization are inevitable. We have proven this year over year. And we understand that while this may be the reality, it is often challenging. This difficulty goes both ways for executives and their employees. In the session, Customer Success Professionals emphasized how vital communication is and what roles they need to play.

“As a CSM, your job is to guide them through these shifts, ensuring they not only get the hang of the changes but also get the most out of them.”

Be a great communicator. As the CSM, you need to be the person with whom everyone can communicate and trust as they embrace change. 

Four tips on how to be a great communicator:

1. Help customers understand the need for change. Give a heads-up to the internal and external departments.
2. Map out the customer journey to prepare them mentally for the change. 
3. Set and align expectations for more transparent communication.
4. Find a way to keep customers involved by aligning with their needs and goals. 

Did you enjoy what we’ve written out here? Join our events for more insights on the Customer Success Landscape and trade conversations with European CS Professionals. 

Related posts

Breaking the Mold: Fresh Perspectives on Customer Success from Ghent

Maturing a Customer Success Mindset, the Status of Customer Success in Europe: Takeaways from the Amsterdam CS Snack Breakfast 

The Shift from Reactive to Proactive Customer Success: Takeaways from the Copenhagen CS Snack Breakfast 

Evolving Forces Driving the CSM Landscape:  Learnings from the CS Snack Breakfast Event in Zurich

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