📈 Metrics to Measure for Customer Success: A Comprehensive Guide
As businesses grow, so does the importance of customer success. But with a relatively new field, it can be challenging to determine what metrics to measure and when. In this guide, we'll explore the key metrics to measure at various stages of customer success maturity.
🤝 Handoff from Sales to Customer Success
The first metric to measure is how long it takes for the handoff from sales to customer success. Often, an opportunity is closed, and the customer is left wondering what happens next. With technology, you can automate and start the conversation as you're assigning a customer success manager. You're able to send them a quick video, and the partnership with the customer begins. It's just the beginning of the potential lifetime value of the customer.
🚀 Key Moments During Onboarding
During onboarding, it's essential to measure how long each step takes, all the way to first value. First value means something different for every company, so you have to think about what it means for your customers. Another critical metric to measure during onboarding is asking the simple question, "What will success look like a year from now?" Being able to measure that metric over the course of the year and give updates at least on a quarterly cadence will be incredibly valuable for your customer.
📊 Metrics to Measure Once the Customer is Live
Once the customer is live, you want to make sure that you're measuring what else it's going to take to get to that live. Really looking at the metrics and sending them a survey is incredibly important. Often, a conversation will elicit different feedback than a survey from perhaps your CEO or your vice president of customer success. Ensuring that you have projects that you're able to measure success is critical. Each customer is expecting impact, whether it's reducing churn, deflecting support tickets, or increasing customer adoption. Whatever those customer metrics are, that's what you want to be measuring and reporting back to the customer.
📈 Proactive Reporting
Before you start talking about renewal and expansion, you want to ensure that you're being proactive and giving them reports. If you're a highly transactional company with your customer, you may not be able to meet with them regularly on a quarterly cadence. Start thinking about what metrics really matter to your customers and start automating reports. It doesn't have to be all good news because if you send them reports on, for example, "Hey, we've noticed you've only used 25% of the platform. Did you know that by leveraging the following platforms or aspects of it, you can expect to achieve the following?" These types of automated reports can spark conversations that lead to more meaningful usage of your product and better reporting metrics that you're able to send back to the customer once they start better adopting your platform.
🤔 FAQ
Q: What is customer success?
A: Customer success is the process of ensuring that your customers achieve their desired outcomes while using your product or service.
Q: Why is customer success important?
A: Customer success is essential because it helps to increase customer retention, reduce churn, and drive revenue growth.
Q: What are some key metrics to measure for customer success?
A: Some key metrics to measure for customer success include time to handoff from sales to customer success, key moments during onboarding, metrics to measure once the customer is live, and proactive reporting.
Q: How can I measure customer success?
A: You can measure customer success by tracking key metrics such as customer satisfaction, churn rate, and customer lifetime value.
Q: What are some best practices for customer success?
A: Some best practices for customer success include being proactive, measuring the right metrics, and focusing on the customer's desired outcomes.
In conclusion, measuring the right metrics at various stages of customer success maturity is critical to ensuring that your customers achieve their desired outcomes while using your product or service. By being proactive and measuring the right metrics, you can increase customer retention, reduce churn, and drive revenue growth. Remember, when your customer succeeds, you succeed.
