Losing customers feels a lot like a bad break-up—it stings because often, it could’ve been avoided. We get that.
In our case, we’re a product-led company, and we spend our days knee-deep in data from the moment someone clicks onto our site, to each customer call, down to every issue raised to the point they make payments and everything after as well. We see patterns and we've come up with a plan to keep our customers around, not just by reacting to problems, but by being proactive when it comes to retention.
Think about how your customers use your product. The ones logging in daily, using all the key features? They're not just users; your product is a core part of their operations. A hiccup could throw a wrench in their day-to-day—something we aim to avoid at all costs.
We’re vigilant about tracking every ticket that comes in. It’s not just about counting them—it’s about understanding the urgency. Tickets that have been unresolved for too long set off alarm bells. These are potential crisis points that could escalate into customer departures if not addressed promptly.
Here's where ticket severity comes in. A high-priority ticket is a red flag, indicating a big problem that needs to be addressed immediately.
Every ticket is more than an issue; it's a window into the customer's experience. By linking each ticket directly to a customer profile, we can see patterns emerging:
This linkage helps us diagnose systemic issues that might be affecting multiple customers or pinpoint specific areas where a customer might need more guidance.
Understanding the financial weight of each ticket changes how we prioritize. A high-revenue customer facing critical issues isn't just a support ticket; it's a priority that could impact our bottom line.
Mapping number of tickets and revenue impact by customers
This helps us make calculated decisions on where to allocate our resources most effectively to mitigate risks.
The activation score is a pivotal metric, derived from product usage or behavior. It quantifies how deeply integrated our service is into each customer's daily operations. A high activation score means a customer isn't just using our product; they're relying on it heavily.
Understanding which customers are highly active, have more tickets, and have high revenue at risk.
A high score indicates high dependency, which, paired with unresolved issues, could spell trouble. This measure helps us preemptively intensify support for our most reliant users, aiming to resolve issues before they even become aware of them.
Tracking our Customer Success Managers (CSMs) gives insights into their workload and efficiency. If a CSM is managing a high volume of high-risk tickets, it might indicate they need more support or resources.
On the surface, it might seem that CSM A is more burdened, but CSM B’s tickets represent a higher potential revenue loss.
Understanding which CSMs have higher revenue at risk along with ticket volumes.
This ensures balanced workloads among CSMs, preventing burnout and ensuring high-quality service.
Every customer is important, but in a growing startup with constrained resources, we need to prioritize support efforts.
| Usage | Revenue | Severity | Priority |
|---|---|---|---|
| High | High | High | 🚨 Immediate action |
| High | Low | High | ⚠️ Crucial support |
| Low | High | High | 📌 Keep them happy |
| Low | Low | High | ✅ Address as needed |
Priority List - High Usage, High Severity, High Revenue Customers
Retention isn’t just a Customer Success or Support issue; it’s on the whole business.
Every piece of the puzzle—from how often someone uses our product, to the revenue they bring in, and how we handle their problems—tells a part of the story.
It’s not just about solving issues as they pop up; it’s about understanding and integrating every interaction they have with our product into a broader strategy.
We track how our users engage, how much value they get from us, and how effectively we solve their issues. And we make it everyone’s business to know these numbers. Because when one of us wins, we all win.
We have made this template ready for you to use. You can try it out here.
