You are sitting there and scratching your head. You just got an email from your client that they will be churning. How could this be? You spoke to them last week and have had regular meetings and they never mentioned the possibility of leaving.
Unfortunately, if you are in customer success, this can happen from time to time. The relationships that you think you have with your clients aren’t as strong as you think they are. Sorry to burst that bubble.
Here are two questions that I’ve borrowed from Claire Lew that I recommend you ask yourself regularly for each client to ensure you know where you stand with your customers.
Reality Check
You first need to do a reality check. Ask yourself: “To what degree are you seeing the current reality for what it is?” You need to get real here. Consider these items:
Is the client actually achieving value from your solution?
Do you know if they would renew tomorrow if they had to?
If you can’t confidently answer these questions, you need to dive deeper. As Bob London recommends, ask your clients disruptive questions such as: “If a competitor reached out to you, would you respond?”. Keep probing until you are satisfied with the response.
Just because a customer tells you everything is ok, doesn’t mean that it is. At times, it’s easier for them to gloss over their larger issues as they may be busy. In addition, they may be fed up as they are tired rehashing ongoing issues. It also may be easier for you to shake off signs that there are problems such as a customer canceling a call or ignoring your email. Seek out the truth - even if it hurts.
Environmentally Friendly
The second item to consider is the environment you’ve created for your customer. Ask yourself: “To what degree are you creating an environment for your client to be successful?”. Consider these items:
Have I provided the client with everything they need to succeed?
Do I need to do the work for the client or are they able to do it by themselves?
Where are they struggling? Why are they struggling?
If you can’t confidently answer these questions, start by reviewing their conversations with your support team, any other voice of customer feedback such as surveys as well as their usage of your product. Look for potential issues within these areas and any past correspondence you’ve had.
Then ask them the challenging questions “how can we make things easier for you?” or “If our product went away tomorrow, how much pain would this cause you?”. Ask follow up questions to ensure that they are getting the support they need to be successful. Determine what are some of the immediate and longer-term steps that can be taken to improve their situation.
Figure out how to create a better environment for your customer and this will create an overall better customer experience.
Don’t get burned by unexpected churn. Challenge yourself with these two questions and challenge your clients.
PS. Here is a movie from 90’s that I highly recommend:
Two questions every customer success professional needs to ask