Kimberly Lagrelius’ Post

6 bad habits that cost CSMs a fortune. As a Customer Success Manager, time is your most scarce resource. It’s one of the toughest challenges to understand how to spend it effectively. Here are 6 things you need to stop doing asap: 1. Resolving customer support tickets 2. Skipping discoveries 3. Avoiding customer conversations 4. Not tracking customer outcomes 5. Re-engaging non-responsive customers over and over 6. Fighting inevitable churn It’s a tough time to be a customer success manager. But at the same time, it’s a golden opportunity to prove your value once and for all. Start by eliminating all the time-wasting activities in your everyday work. PS: Level up with my free newsletter --> https://lnkd.in/dtC7MEjP

Customer success Managers, CSMs should be able to speak to customers with confidence while maintaining a warm and comfortable environment. This way, Customer Success Managers can build relationships with the customers that they are trying to keep. Not only do CSMs have to be empathetic and communicative, but they must also provide customers with tangible solutions to their business problems.

Everyone in Customer Success talks about becoming a trusted advisor. But the truth is that many CSMs are not even close. Because they don't have the right - mindset - approach - data (yes, that matters too) You don't become a trusted advisor by - checking in once a month - pointing customers to generic content that does not solve their problem - talking about stuff customers don't care about during your QBRs What you need to do instead: - asking questions to understand your customers' needs - creating customized success plans - scheduling follow-ups to ensure their progress - treating QBRs as strategic meetings to discuss results, plan the next steps, and get feedback - showing that you really care about their success by going the extra mile if necessary Becoming your customers' trusted advisor has to be earned. Act accordingly. PS: Learn how to get there faster in the newest edition of my newsletter https://lnkd.in/dY54Qz2X

So you landed a new customer success job – congrats 🎉 Now, here's what you can do with those tricky account transitions: https://lnkd.in/dbdr4Cty #customersuccess #csm

🚫Customers should not be hounded by weekly check-ins!🚫 Gone are the days of incessant follow-ups and intrusive communication. Instead, we must focus on fostering a culture of customer-centricity, where we prioritize their preferences and needs above all else. Here are a few thoughts on why this approach matters: 1️⃣ Empathy over Intrusion: Our customers deserve to be treated with empathy and understanding. Bombarding them with weekly check-ins can feel overwhelming and intrusive. By giving them space to breathe and engage on their terms, we create a more comfortable environment for meaningful conversations. 2️⃣ Respect for Their Time: Time is a valuable resource, and we must respect that. Rather than filling their inboxes with constant messages, let's provide them with helpful resources, valuable content, and personalized solutions that add genuine value to their lives. 3️⃣ Building Trust and Loyalty: Trust is the foundation of any successful business relationship. When we demonstrate that we trust our customers to reach out when they need assistance, we earn their trust in return. This trust leads to increased loyalty and advocacy for our brand. 4️⃣ Optimal Communication Frequency: Finding the right balance in communication frequency is key. Weekly check-ins may be necessary for certain time-sensitive projects, but for many cases, a well-timed monthly or quarterly update can be more effective and appreciated. 5️⃣ Personalization Matters: Quality over quantity should be our mantra when engaging with customers. Personalizing interactions based on their preferences, past interactions, and needs can create a more meaningful and memorable experience. Thanks Markus for bringing this much less talked about aspect of Customer Success. Share your thoughts on striking the right balance between staying connected and respecting customer boundaries. #customerexperience #customersuccess #customerengagement #customersuccessmanagement #engagementstrategy

The greatest trick the devil ever played on Customer Success Managers is that we're thinking about our customers 24/7 (seriously, it's hard to turn off), and most customers are thinking about us when it's time to have a regular sync, or a business review, or "something is wrong" (can be defined in oh-so-many ways). I always say that this job becomes infinitely easier when we have information. Please (x3) make sure you're talking to your CSMs about the good, the bad, and the ugly, and not just during a quarterly survey or a business review or any other completely arbitrary touchpoint that companies have a tendency to create. And if you're referring to your CSM as "my vendor" instead of "my partner", that is the first sign that a conversation is long overdue. Thank You to my amazing partners - past and present - who have taught me along the way. #customersuccess #csm #customerexperience

My team and I recently finished reading "The 7 Pillars of Customer Success" by Wayne McCulloch, and it was a great read. It’s embarrassing to admit, but this is the first Customer Success (CS) book I’ve ever read. My goal for 2024 was to educate myself in new ways. My journey in CS has been built mainly learning on the job, navigating through trials and failures. However, diving into this book has offered a fresh perspective in more ways than one. Here are my 3 quick takeaways: Read More - There’s obvious value in learning on the job, but I was struck by the similarities between my own experiences and the processes and thinking Wayne discusses. It dawned on me that I could have saved countless hours and avoided numerous failures had I turned to these books sooner, plus I have a handful of new ideas to push. So, don’t be lazy; read! CS is Evolving, Not Dying - It might seem like traditional CS roles are becoming obsolete, but this book is a powerful reminder that Customer Success is more relevant than ever. It’s about learning the right ways to change and continuously refining our approach to keep pace with the ever-evolving demands of our customers. CS to the Moon! Adaptability and Continuous Improvement - My path in CS, with mostly direct experience and learning from setbacks, sometimes left me sticking to my ways and being hard headed. However, one takeaway here was that the job is never done; we need to be constantly evolving and becoming more effective in how we do things. Fail fast and adapt faster! Thanks to Amrita Dey + Carly Lubitz for taking time outside of work to learn with me.

Glad to share that i completed the course of Customer Success Management Fundamentals. This has greatly helped me to understand the different aspects and notes in CSM and educating me the different terminologies like Customer Lifetime Value , Customer Advocacy. This shall help me use this information in an organizations growth , customer experience , and success of a customer in terms of using the product or services. This course specially helped in educating the core CSM abilities like : How being a CSM can provide value to a company? Being a CSM one should be able to help customer to attain value from using the product and services. Having subject matter expertise in terms of adopting , using and creating value of the product or service of a company. Being a CSM one should also have the understanding of the customer business in order to use the companies product or services to fulfil a customer needs. How a CSM needs to be a researcher and an analyst in terms of company , product and customer. A CSM should be a great consultant and an advisor. Also the importance of being an educator puts add on value to a CSM. CSM needs to be a good communicator and more importantly should be able to paraphrase to validate our own understanding and reassure the customer that they are heard and understood. Also , adding on the abilities like influencer , enabler , problem solver help a CSM to elevate in his role and model and making him strong in term of a customer perspective. At last , a CSM should be very well aware of any sort of sales opportunities that they can pull out from a new or an existing customer ! #customersuccess #customerrelationship #customermanagement #clientrelationship

Dear Customer Success Manager; Customers don't care about degrees and certification. What they care about is reaching their goals. It is important to understand what the customer needs to thrive. Keep the focus on their success, and you'll be sure to deliver results. #customerjourney #customerengagement #customerledgrowth #customerexperience #customersatisfaction

Check out thoughts from Aficio Co-Founder & CEO on the state of Customer Success Management and why CSMs need help