Why Investing In Customer Onboarding Matters More Than You Think
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There is no denying that the SaaS industry in 2022 saw new levels of innovation and growth.
How do you thrive in a competitive environment?
Sustaining your business is no longer simply about customer acquisition. Of course, it’s a huge aspect of it, but if customer acquisition is the only focus you're missing out.
In today’s highly competitive SaaS industry, it is imperative for any SaaS company to focus on customer success and retention as much as possible.
How are you driving value back to your customers? Are you living up to the promises you made?
Many B2B SaaS reports on?customer churn?statistics have shown that a customer’s decision to renew your services is determined during the?onboarding process. So is investing in customer onboarding the key to success for your SaaS business?
Let’s start with the basics first…
What is customer onboarding?
For starters, customer onboarding involves all the tasks and activities done to get the customer integrated, trained, and launched with your product.
If your customer churns during this phase it’s usually for two reasons:
A flawless onboarding experience is one that ensures a positive user experience and fulfills the promises made by your Sales team and Marketing efforts. The onboarding experience you design WILL set the tone for your customer’s journey as they use your product.
However, given the importance of this step, not much attention has been paid to making the onboarding process a cakewalk.
Several SaaS companies have now started to realize the importance of customer onboarding and how it helps them reduce their?churn rate.
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Why should you invest in customer onboarding?
Let’s look at some reasons why customer onboarding is important for any SaaS organization.
1. Reduced risk of churn
A customer’s first interaction with your product is either love at first sight or bye, never talking to you again. By providing an efficient and tailored onboarding experience, the customer:
And if they do that, chances of them running away to your competitors or churning are minimal.
2. Leave a lasting impression
Proactively helping your customers in getting started with your product can be a great element. Maintaining the same level of assistance not only makes customers feel valued but can make them feel at ease while using your product. If done right, you certainly have the power to leave a lasting impression in your customer’s mind. The trust factor automatically goes up.
During our conversation with Ziv Peled, CCO of AppsFlyer, he highlighted the crucial role that customer onboarding plays in creating an experience that goes beyond just features and price.
"I think in the first years, you need to be very focused on the onboarding experience. This is by Maya Angelou: Everyone will remember how you made them feel, not what you told them, not what you promised them, not what you did for them. And this is why I think, the focus of the onboarding is a lot about a set of expectations and delivering on that set of expectations. I think the best thing a customer success manager can do is to understand the focus of the customer, and deliver on that. For example, I say in two weeks, we will be able to do the first scenario and in eight weeks, we will be able to do the second scenario, and we deliver on that, then nothing else matters. It doesn’t matter if we were more expensive than the other vendor, it doesn’t matter if we had one feature that the vendor didn’t have or vice versa. It’s how we made them feel."
3. Increased opportunity for customer advocacy
Customers who have a positive onboarding experience are more likely to see value faster, which empowers them to become advocates for the company. When you turn your customers into raving fans, your customers are now spreading the word about you (aka Word-of-Mouth Marketing). They may also leave positive reviews or ratings online, which can help attract new customers and improve the company's reputation. Therefore, it is important for businesses to invest in customer onboarding to ensure that their customers have a positive experience and are more likely to become advocates for the company.
Conclusion: As the SaaS industry continues to grow and evolve, investing in customer onboarding is the key to standing out and achieving long-term success. Executing a flawless onboarding experience sets the foundation for a long-term relationship between the customer and the company, resulting in reduced churn rates and increased customer satisfaction.
Remember, a great onboarding experience isn't just a nice-to-have, it's a necessity for any SaaS company looking to thrive in today's market.