The Pitfalls of Being Preactive

So in my series about being PREactive, let's walk the talk here and get out ahead of some potential pitfalls that can happen with being preactive - namely, that it can sometimes work so well that some clients can't really tell it's working at all.

We've all seen a superhero movie where there's a character in headphones walking along, in their own world, as the superhero runs along behind them. The superhero may be keeping buildings from falling on the character or keeping cars from crashing into them, but the character keeps walking on, oblivious to the fact that they are seconds away from danger.

That's kind of what it feels like as a preactive CSM. You're putting in a ton of effort, but it's effort that is very purposefully not noticeable to the client and who thus may not appreciate the levels to which you are going to or have a high opinion of your work.

The solution may seem simple at first - why not just tell your client what you've been doing for them? And that's ultimately the answer, but with some MAJOR caveats.

1) If the problem you've nipped in the bud is a problem or oversight that was caused by yourself, your product, or your company, often the LAST thing you want to do is inform the client of it. Saying "Just so you know, we had a terrible issue but I managed to solve it before you noticed!" is not a great way to build trust in your product or relationship.

Sometimes discretion IS the better part of valor here, and staying mum is the right thing to do. But oftentimes, there are some great ways to bring attention your effort while doing some necessary proactive follow up at the same time. Give it a few days and try reaching out with a question like:

"Hi there - just checking in on how X is working out for you guys. I spent a little extra time with our team internally this week making a few tweaks that should optimize it for your business model specifically, so let me know if you have tried it yet or if there's any feedback!"

It illustrates the important aspects of being preactive- namely that you have been putting effort in for them and that you know their business model well - but in a way that focuses on the positive, not the negative.

2) If the problem was caused by an industry issue or change, then this IS the time to shout it on out without hesitation. Showing the client that your team is hyper aware of the industry, has adapted or has a plan to adapt to the changes, and is prepared for questions and concerns is absolutely key here. This type of info sharing is great both on a one to one level with your clients and is something that your team should ideally be publishing blog entries, newsletters, etc about. No client in any industry likes hearing that a change is coming, but the absolute best way any client can hear about it is by having a trusted partner knowledgeably inform them of the issue AND their solution at the same time.

3) QBRs - one of the stats I like to include in my reviews is always issue resolution and issue volume. You may not want to tell the client of every time there was a near miss or an averted bug, but sharing the info on a macro level and being able to show them a low or decreased amount of issues and high resolution still shows that effort in an indirect way. A quarterly or yearly review that focuses on how healthy and strong the forest is, without needing to do a post mortem on each tree, is a great way to keep satisfaction high and churn low.