Customer Retention Marketing
Published on Nov 18, 2015
How can Marketing and Customer Success work together to increase customer loyalty? This presentation offers a framework for customer retention marketing.
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PRESENTATION OUTLINE
Customer Retention Marketing:
Creative Approaches
Photo by Sarah G...
Customer Retention + Marketing
Isn't that an oxymoron?
Too often, marketing isn't involved with customers after the initial sale. They pass off that responsibility to groups like Customer Success.
Photo by an untrained eye
Look what's in last place
This is from the Regalix Research report on the State of B2B Product Marketing.
Here's the survey question: “Which of the following activities do you carry out to achieve product marketing goals.”
In very last place on the list is "Building customer retention plans.” Only about 1 in 4 B2B marketers plan for customer retention.
If you get serious about customer retention marketing, you’ve got a real opportunity to differentiate your business from its competitors.
Here's the survey question: “Which of the following activities do you carry out to achieve product marketing goals.”
In very last place on the list is "Building customer retention plans.” Only about 1 in 4 B2B marketers plan for customer retention.
If you get serious about customer retention marketing, you’ve got a real opportunity to differentiate your business from its competitors.
Definition:
Marketing campaigns and activities that support customer success and loyalty at scale.
Let's start by defining customer retention marketing as those marketing campaigns and activities designed to support customer success and loyalty at scale.
Customer retention marketing practices and strategies may originate in Marketing or in Customer Success. Ideally, they involve the collaboration of both teams.
Customer retention marketing practices and strategies may originate in Marketing or in Customer Success. Ideally, they involve the collaboration of both teams.
Customer Retention marketing is how you do Customer Success at scale
Customer Success teams help customers find success and become loyal on a case-by-case basis.
Marketing campaigns are key to doing this at scale, without high-touch personal interactions you might otherwise reserve for most valuable customers.
Marketing campaigns are key to doing this at scale, without high-touch personal interactions you might otherwise reserve for most valuable customers.
Best Practices
Yes, there are some....
Let’s look at how customer retention marketing plays out today for those companies that are doing it.
Most of the current best practices belong in the category of helping new customers find success quickly.
Most of the current best practices belong in the category of helping new customers find success quickly.
Welcome campaigns
Customer onboarding/launch plans
Depending on the business, they might be called Customer Welcome campaigns or Customer Onboarding plans.
They might include drip email campaigns, training content, videos, and webinars.
They might include drip email campaigns, training content, videos, and webinars.
Photo by Kdt.
Comprehensive, friendly, useful welcome letter
I signed up for Haiku Deck a couple months ago, then did nothing about it because I wasn’t creating any slides at the time. When I was putting together this slide deck, I found this lovely that offered all the resources I needed to get started.
This email an example of a best practice customer welcome campaign: It’s marketing, it’s customer success, and it’s training, all in one place. It’s comprehensive, has a consistent tone and style, and helped me get started and successful quickly, and on my own terms.
Customer Values
- Promised value
- Expected value
- What do they value?
Every Customer retention marketing campaign must start with an understanding of what your customer values. You must take the customer’s perspective.
What value have you promised (the brand promise)
What do they expect (not always the same as the promise)
What do they value? What is important to them?
What value have you promised (the brand promise)
What do they expect (not always the same as the promise)
What do they value? What is important to them?
Nurture the value
Once you understand what your customers value, find ways to nurture that value – make it grow.
Here are 4 different ways that marketing and customer success teams can work together to nurture loyalty and value.
Here are 4 different ways that marketing and customer success teams can work together to nurture loyalty and value.
Photo by IITA Image Library
Nurture Customer Value
- Achieved value
Help customers achieve the value that you have promised or they expect to get from being a customer. This is where today’s best practices operate.
If you already have customer onboarding strategies, can you find ways to enlist marketing to streamline them at scale? And if you don’t have a customer welcome plan, can you come up with something creative that helps new customers find success quickly?
Customer Success teams know what problems and questions new customers have. Is there a way to proactively reach new customers with the information they need?
If you already have customer onboarding strategies, can you find ways to enlist marketing to streamline them at scale? And if you don’t have a customer welcome plan, can you come up with something creative that helps new customers find success quickly?
Customer Success teams know what problems and questions new customers have. Is there a way to proactively reach new customers with the information they need?
Untitled Slide
Video is a wonderful way to help customers at scale while keeping a sense of personal connection.
As an example, I like Zipcar “How to Zip” videos that tell you how to reserve a car, return a car, and extend a reservation
The brand promise of Zipcar is that it’s easy, convenient to use. The videos help new users by taking the mystery out of using the service- and the personable Zipcar co-pilot embodies the brand personality.
As an example, I like Zipcar “How to Zip” videos that tell you how to reserve a car, return a car, and extend a reservation
The brand promise of Zipcar is that it’s easy, convenient to use. The videos help new users by taking the mystery out of using the service- and the personable Zipcar co-pilot embodies the brand personality.
Nurture Customer Value
- Achieved value
- Perceived value
The second value nurturing strategy is to nurture the perceived value – remind customers about the value they’re achieving.
There are many ways to do this:
The easiest, fastest customer retention campaign you can run right now is to share customer stories with existing customers.
Every marketing organization sends customer stories to prospects or put them on website. But are you getting them in front of customers?
Share customer success stories with your customers. They may realize that they, too, are seeing those results. Or the story might spur them to find new ways to realize value from your solution.
Highlight and celebrate customer successes. Because you want to do this at scale, find ways to automate or semi-automate the small celebrations. It might be as simple as an email triggered by a milestone, such as “congratulations on completing your first module.”
There are many ways to do this:
The easiest, fastest customer retention campaign you can run right now is to share customer stories with existing customers.
Every marketing organization sends customer stories to prospects or put them on website. But are you getting them in front of customers?
Share customer success stories with your customers. They may realize that they, too, are seeing those results. Or the story might spur them to find new ways to realize value from your solution.
Highlight and celebrate customer successes. Because you want to do this at scale, find ways to automate or semi-automate the small celebrations. It might be as simple as an email triggered by a milestone, such as “congratulations on completing your first module.”
Celebrate success
Mailchimp does this quite effectively.
Mailchimp is an email marketing service that makes it easy to create and send email campaigns.
There’s something nerve-wracking about hitting the ‘send’ button on an email campaign – especially if you’re new to email marketing. Before I send an email campaign, Mailchimp shows me an animation of the chimp finger hovering over a big button. And once I send it, the software gives me an animated high-five image.
This small message reinforces the fact that I’ve just done something worth celebrating. Mailchimp has built the celebration of success into the solution itself.
Mailchimp is an email marketing service that makes it easy to create and send email campaigns.
There’s something nerve-wracking about hitting the ‘send’ button on an email campaign – especially if you’re new to email marketing. Before I send an email campaign, Mailchimp shows me an animation of the chimp finger hovering over a big button. And once I send it, the software gives me an animated high-five image.
This small message reinforces the fact that I’ve just done something worth celebrating. Mailchimp has built the celebration of success into the solution itself.
Do the math!
Sometimes, to make people realize success you need to do
Every business collects data about its customers. If it makes sense, and isn’t creepy, can you put it together to quantify some of the success?
This is part of an email I got from Fitbit. I wear a Fitbit because I hope it will motivate me to become more active. Every now and then, Fitbit does the math about how far I’ve traveled and sends me that data, putting the number into a more meaningful context, like the length of Japan or the breadth of India. This data makes me reflect on my success towards my broader value of exercising.
Every business collects data about its customers. If it makes sense, and isn’t creepy, can you put it together to quantify some of the success?
This is part of an email I got from Fitbit. I wear a Fitbit because I hope it will motivate me to become more active. Every now and then, Fitbit does the math about how far I’ve traveled and sends me that data, putting the number into a more meaningful context, like the length of Japan or the breadth of India. This data makes me reflect on my success towards my broader value of exercising.
Nurture Customer Value
- Achieved value
- Perceived value
- Added value
A third strategy is to add value outside the solution itself. This is where you have a chance to be creative
Effective Customer Success teams already add value to the customer relationship by offering support, guidance, training.
Customer retention marketing is about finding ways to doing the same thing at scale – without high-touch, personal interactions.
Effective Customer Success teams already add value to the customer relationship by offering support, guidance, training.
Customer retention marketing is about finding ways to doing the same thing at scale – without high-touch, personal interactions.
Create Community
Value of Community
Invite customers to participate in broader communities.
When you can connect people with others who have similar interests and concerns, you’ve done something valuable, and potentially earned customer loyalty.
There are many ways to create and support customer communities, including live phone calls, email lists, and social media communities.
Don’t forget the power of in-person events – local customer forums and meetings, and larger conferences.
When you can connect people with others who have similar interests and concerns, you’ve done something valuable, and potentially earned customer loyalty.
There are many ways to create and support customer communities, including live phone calls, email lists, and social media communities.
Don’t forget the power of in-person events – local customer forums and meetings, and larger conferences.
Photo by jared_smith
Untitled Slide
Totango Customer Success Summit was a great example of an in-person event that added a lot of value.
The event gathered people in the same industry, sharing the same concerns, to learn from speakers and each other.
Bonus: In-person events give you a chance to listen to and interact with customers, guiding marketing and product strategies going forward.
Events like this are also about providing content. Creating and sharing great content is another way to add value to the relationship with customer, beyond the solution itself.
Content marketing is widely used for lead generation and lead nurturing. It should extend beyond the sale.
The event gathered people in the same industry, sharing the same concerns, to learn from speakers and each other.
Bonus: In-person events give you a chance to listen to and interact with customers, guiding marketing and product strategies going forward.
Events like this are also about providing content. Creating and sharing great content is another way to add value to the relationship with customer, beyond the solution itself.
Content marketing is widely used for lead generation and lead nurturing. It should extend beyond the sale.
Nurture Customer Value
- Achieved value
- Perceived value
- Added value
- Higher-order value
The next strategy is to appeal to your customers’ higher-order values.
Untitled Slide
If you took a psychology class in college, you may know about Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs
The highest-level needs on this pyramid are self-actualization needs, which have to do with personal growth: being creative, learning, solving problems, helping others.
If you can help customers fill these needs, you’ll earn a place in their lives that is difficult to displace.
The highest-level needs on this pyramid are self-actualization needs, which have to do with personal growth: being creative, learning, solving problems, helping others.
If you can help customers fill these needs, you’ll earn a place in their lives that is difficult to displace.
Proceed with Caution
Before we go further, a word of caution: Be real, not manipulative, using these strategies.
In Maslow’s own words, people who are interested in self-actualization have “an unusual ability to detect the spurious, the fake, and the dishonest in personality, and in general to judge people correctly and efficiently."
If you’re openly manipulative in your marketing strategies, these campaigns will backfire on you. We live in an era of radical transparency – you cannot fake your values.
In Maslow’s own words, people who are interested in self-actualization have “an unusual ability to detect the spurious, the fake, and the dishonest in personality, and in general to judge people correctly and efficiently."
If you’re openly manipulative in your marketing strategies, these campaigns will backfire on you. We live in an era of radical transparency – you cannot fake your values.
Share Your Story, Values
If your company has a unique story, share it. Those are the stories that will make people feel good about doing business with you. It’s why people buy shoes from Toms’ or socks from Bombas.
Bombas shares its story up front on its website. Its founders were moved to create the business by reading that socks were the most requested item at homeless shelters. So they built Bombas using the buy-one, give-one model, and designed a special sock that met the needs of people living in homeless shelters for the “giving” sock.
By buying a pair of socks, Bombas customers automatically donate another sock to someone else. That’s a higher order value.
Bombas shares its story up front on its website. Its founders were moved to create the business by reading that socks were the most requested item at homeless shelters. So they built Bombas using the buy-one, give-one model, and designed a special sock that met the needs of people living in homeless shelters for the “giving” sock.
By buying a pair of socks, Bombas customers automatically donate another sock to someone else. That’s a higher order value.
Ask for Advice
Ask customers for their advice or help. Invite them to contribute product ideas, share their thoughts, offer ratings. Being helpful to others is a higher order needs.
I love Babson College’s Define Entrepreneurship campaign. Babson is a Boston-based college that defines itself as the school for entrepreneurship of all kinds
Boston asks people to contribute personal definitions of entrepreneurship, then shares them on a website and across social media.
Define.babson.edu
I love Babson College’s Define Entrepreneurship campaign. Babson is a Boston-based college that defines itself as the school for entrepreneurship of all kinds
Boston asks people to contribute personal definitions of entrepreneurship, then shares them on a website and across social media.
Define.babson.edu
Help customers help others
Help customers help other customers.
Amazon is a master at this. Amazon reviews are enormously helpful. If you submit a review and someone rates it as being helpful, Amazon notifies you. This reinforces the fact that you've helped someone else.
Amazon is a master at this. Amazon reviews are enormously helpful. If you submit a review and someone rates it as being helpful, Amazon notifies you. This reinforces the fact that you've helped someone else.
Find Your Super-Users
Ask your best users (your super-users) to officially assist and support other customers.
The Salesforce MVP program is a great example of a super-user program. To be an MVP, you need to be a brand advocate, be expert and responsive in answering questions, and help Salesforce by representing the customer viewpoint.
Salesforce MVPs help the company in many ways. Most importantly, they are recognized for helping other Salesforce customers.
Your definition of an MVP may vary: It’s important to identify your most loyal and active customers, know how to recognize them, and then create programs to help them help others.
The Salesforce MVP program is a great example of a super-user program. To be an MVP, you need to be a brand advocate, be expert and responsive in answering questions, and help Salesforce by representing the customer viewpoint.
Salesforce MVPs help the company in many ways. Most importantly, they are recognized for helping other Salesforce customers.
Your definition of an MVP may vary: It’s important to identify your most loyal and active customers, know how to recognize them, and then create programs to help them help others.
Align marketing with customer values
Up to this point, we’ve been looking at ways that marketing can help with customer success after the sale. Now let’s look at how Customer Success can help with Marketing before the sale.
With what you’ve learned about loyal customers, figure out how to align your marketing campaigns with what those customers value. Profile the super loyal customers, and use this information to create personas for marketing programs.
With what you’ve learned about loyal customers, figure out how to align your marketing campaigns with what those customers value. Profile the super loyal customers, and use this information to create personas for marketing programs.
Photo by ushtey
Find your raving fans
And make them customers
Go back in time and find the customers who be most loyal before they become customers.
Redesign the marketing messages that deliver customers to reach those personas that are more likely to become loyal customers.
Meg Murphy at BigCommerce shared her story of doing this at the Totango Customer Success Summit. Taking what they had learned in Customer Success, they completely redesigned their marketing personas, and changed their pay-per-click ad spending and lead generation strategies. The raw number of leads coming in dropped, but the quality of those leads increased, and that ended up creating better conversions and retention. In addition, they freed up marketing budget they’d been spending attracting wrong prospects.
Here's a link to her session: http://www.slideshare.net/totango/meg-murphy-323-1400
Redesign the marketing messages that deliver customers to reach those personas that are more likely to become loyal customers.
Meg Murphy at BigCommerce shared her story of doing this at the Totango Customer Success Summit. Taking what they had learned in Customer Success, they completely redesigned their marketing personas, and changed their pay-per-click ad spending and lead generation strategies. The raw number of leads coming in dropped, but the quality of those leads increased, and that ended up creating better conversions and retention. In addition, they freed up marketing budget they’d been spending attracting wrong prospects.
Here's a link to her session: http://www.slideshare.net/totango/meg-murphy-323-1400
The Process
- Understand customer value
- Nurture those values at scale
- Align marketing with customer values
To summarize the retention marketing process:
Start with the customer's perception of value.
Use the 4 strategies we discussed to nurture that value – help customers achieve value from the solution, demonstrate that value, add value through content or community, and appeal to higher order values.
And, when you’re done, take what you’ve learned and use it to align before-the-sale marketing with customer values.
Start with the customer's perception of value.
Use the 4 strategies we discussed to nurture that value – help customers achieve value from the solution, demonstrate that value, add value through content or community, and appeal to higher order values.
And, when you’re done, take what you’ve learned and use it to align before-the-sale marketing with customer values.
Collaborate
Customer Success + Marketing
Most of these strategies require customer success and marketing teams to work together
What can you do if that's not happening today?
What can you do if that's not happening today?
Photo by VinothChandar
Making it Happen
- Top-down
- Sideways
- Bottom-up
Collaboration happens because it's support in one of three ways.
1. Some businesses build collaboration into the organizational structure, by embedding a marketer on the Customer Support team or having both teams report to the same executive.
2 – Some businesses created processes to reinforce collaboration between groups. They might create task forces for customer-centric initiatives, or get everyone in a room regularly to address customer retention.
3 – If that’s not happening yet in your business, there’s a third approach. Just reach out on a personal basis and make it happen. If you’re in marketing, take a customer success colleague to lunch. If you’re in customer success, ask to sit in on a marketing meeting
“….I took it upon myself to be that person.”
Unnamed Customer Success Hero
Here's a quote from one of of the attendees at the Totango Customer Success Summit:
“Sometimes it’s easiest to reach across [departments] and not wait for top-down direction.
I took it upon myself to be that person.”
Sometimes you just have to reach out to your counterparts in marketing or customer success.
“Sometimes it’s easiest to reach across [departments] and not wait for top-down direction.
I took it upon myself to be that person.”
Sometimes you just have to reach out to your counterparts in marketing or customer success.
More Resources
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Thanks!
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