Communication skills are key to Customer Success.

Knowing how to write and send emails that inspire and get your customers to respond is critical.

But there are also times when you need to send unsolicited, cold emails.

We use them to introduce products or services to a new audience at the customer or to prospects. These emails are also core to generating new leads or expansion opportunities.

The downside is that you must be careful with the wording to avoid ending up in your recipient’s spam folder. Or worse, having your message ignored.

So how can you avoid it and write emails that get opened and deliver results?

The technique I’m going to explore today is KISS:

KISS: Keep It Simple, Stupid

It is a fundamental principle coming from the Design world:

You should make things as simple as possible, and avoid complexity whenever possible.

It ensures that your communication with customers is clear and easy to understand.

In today’s world, it’s easy for an important message to get lost in long and complicated messages.

The KISS technique ensures your customers get the information in a way that is easy to process and act upon.

It helps build stronger relationships with your customers. Additionally, it saves time and avoids misunderstandings.

Ready?

So, here are the 4 easy steps you can start using today to crush your cold emails using the KISS technique: 

1/ Keep the subject line simple and direct.

Avoid using complex words or jargon. Write using the most basic language.

Example:

Instead of using a subject line like “Introducing our new cloud-based CRM platform”,

say “Easy and effective CRM for your business”.

2/ Keep the email body short and to the point.

Avoid long sentences and paragraphs.

Focus on the key points of your message instead.

Example:

“Excited to introduce our new product and we would love for you to try it out for free. Our product helps you {value/benefit}, and you will love it.

Click on the link below and follow the instructions to receive your free sample. This offer is only available for a limited time, so don’t miss out!”

3/ Be direct and honest.

Be transparent about what you are offering and why it is useful for them.

Own your errors and don’t hesitate to recognize them.

Example:

“Hi {Name}, I made a mistake in my previous email. I mentioned that the next release of our product was at {date}, when in fact it is {date}. Sorry for any confusion or inconvenience this may have caused.”

4/ Format your text to make it easy to read

Most people don’t read long emails.

So make it short, and easy to skim.

• Use bullet points, line breaks, and section titles.

Make it easy for the reader’s eyes to scan.

Like I did here

Example of a cold email with KISS

Subject line: Simple and effective project management

Hi {prospect/customer name},

Are you tired of using complex project management tools?

Our platform is easy to use and comes with all the features you need to manage your projects:

• Simple and intuitive interface
• Real-time collaboration
• Flexible task management

Are you available next week on {date/time} to discuss?

Best regards,

{your name/company/mail}

It’s important to focus on the customer using “you” as highlighted here and finish with a call to action.

And always include your contact details to build more trust and confidence.

And voilà!

Use simple language and keep the email short.

And you’ll be more likely to grab the recipient’s attention and get a response.

So, Keep It Simple Stupid, and see how your cold email open rates skyrocket !

The post KISS Your Way To Success: How To Write Cold Emails That Get Opened appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

The number of SaaS startups entering the market has exploded over the past few years. And there are more than 15,000 open CS positions at the moment.

The temptation of making your next career move to join a smaller organization has never been that high.

And yet you dread the change.

You fear the unknown. You think you’ll have to work longer hours and get under the spotlights every day.

And… you’re right.

But although the work rhythm is different, a startup job comes with massive upsides.

So, here are the 7 reasons why you should challenge yourself, make the jump and join a startup:

1/ All Eyes On You

A startup by definition is a small group of highly talented people willing to win fast.

Everyone knows each other and what you do.

The news travels fast and there is no room for mediocre work.

You can brainstorm and bring an idea to life in a few hours. And you get feedback on your work immediately.

So, if you want massive visibility on your work in a very short amount of time, working for a startup is a no-brainer.

2/ Direct Access To Execs

In a startup, you have a direct communication line to the C-suite.

There is no poor middle management that would kill your energy and motivation.

When you need the leadership team’s help on a deal or with a customer conversation, you go and bring them to the table.

While this is a massive benefit, it also comes with a warning:
your work must add value to their vision of the business.

Otherwise, you could find yourself disconnected and lose confidence.

So, if you are drowning under heavy processes with no access to your executives, the startup job is for you.

3/ Autonomy is Power

In a startup, everything is a challenge. Some part is even unknown and you have to figure them out yourself.

You must be autonomous enough to take initiative on your own to do the work and go beyond.

There is no room for those who love saying “this is not my job”.

You can not do the bare least and stay, either.

You are in the driver’s seat. You either own it or lose it.

So, if you like delivering results and making an immediate impact, join a startup.

4/ Salary Cut But Massive Win

While salary is important, most people crave recognition and purpose first.

In a corporate job, you’re likely to have a steady comfortable paycheck and some great perks.

But this is where most people get stuck in their careers.

They start “climbing the wrong hill” as would say, Chris Dixon.

A hill that you thought was the highest. But the fog was covering the top.

As you arrive at the peak and start seeing clearer, you realize there were other hills much higher than this one.

So, no matter what the next steps are in your current job, consider stepping down. Take your chance on the other higher hill better aligned with your skills.

If your top priority is a steady income, a corporate job would be a better fit.

But if your ambitions are to climb higher with the potential of a massive win in all fields, join a startup.

5/ Build Your Brand

Working for large corporations means everyone around you knows your company.

People know your brand. And it sends a strong signal to your network about your value to the market.

Whereas with a startup, most people are not aware of where you work.

So, if social awareness and recognition are important to you, prefer a corporate job.

But if you have a founder mindset to help the company build its brand from scratch, join a startup.

6/ Wear Many Hats

You work in Customer Success and you have many talents.

You enjoy reaching out to other internal departments to align.

And it’s the reason why the startup world is the perfect opportunity for you.

You are not limited to a single job. You can practice other skills and wear different hats.

That way, you learn and grow faster in your current role.

So, if you are a generalist with the ambition to make a difference in many areas, the startup job is for you.

7/ Career Growth

A startup job will offer you massive professional growth opportunities.
But you need to be ambitious and self-confident to succeed.

If you like the idea that the company must give you a job to execute, the corporate world is great.

But if you enjoy outgrowing your role fast, the startup job is for you.
And remember:

Difficult roads often lead to the most beautiful destinations
And that’s it!

It’s not about working in the startup vs. the corporate world.
Both have their ups and downs.

And both are fine as long as you make your choice deliberately.
Here, it’s all about you and what you want to become.

What would you like to do next?

How do you see yourself in a year, 3, or 5 years?

Decide on what YOU want and find the right path for you.

As Jim Rohn would say:
The only question you should ask on a job is not “what am I getting here?”, but “what am I becoming here?”.

And don’t compare yourself to others.

The only person you should compare yourself to is you, from six months ago.

See how far you’ve come, celebrate, decide where you want to be next, and take action!

One day, or day one. The choice is yours!

The post 7 Reasons To Join A Startup (And Skyrocket Your Career) appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Emotional Intelligence or EQ is the “number one predictor of success” in life.
It’s your ability to understand and manage emotions.
And yet, most people focus on IQ, the Intelligence Quotient instead.
Sure, the ability to solve problems is important.
But it’s often the lack of emotional intelligence that leads to poor success in anything you do.

So, here are the 5 best books that will help you maximize your EQ and become unstoppable

1/ Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman

“In a very real sense, we have two minds. One that thinks, and one that feels.”
Daniel Goleman is a top reference when it comes to EQ topics.
Key takeaways:
Self-awareness and self-regulation are key.
You should develop your EQ to become more successful and healthier in life.
Boost your EQ by imitating other people’s body language.
A must-read.

2/ What Every Body Is Saying, Joe Navarro

This book is an ex-FBI agent’s guide about how to read non-verbal cues in a person. It will help you spot people’s real intentions and feelings. Even if they don’t say anything at all.

Key Takeaways:
Observation skills are fundamental. Half of what people say is not coming out of their mouths.

Develop situational awareness. Learn how to detect non-verbal cues. Uncover discomfort, lies and truths, dishonesty, and more.

An awesome practical book you can apply in everyday life.

3/ The Untethered Soul, Michael A. Singer

“There is nothing more important to true growth than realizing that you are not the voice of the mind. You are the one who hears it.”

Learn how to detach yourself from your ego, focus on your energy and win instead of resisting or fighting it.

Key Takeaways:
You are more than your thoughts.
Your inner energy is for real. Let it flow to become better in anything in life.
The end of life gives meaning to your actions. Don’t wait. Do it right now.

4/ Emotional Intelligence 2.0, Travis Bradberry & Jean Greaves
This book will help you build strong relationships in your career and life in general. You will learn how to read others and build stronger relationships.

Key Takeaways:
What is Emotional Intelligence and why it’s important
Framework for understanding, measuring, and improving EQ
Measure EQ and create a plan to boost it
Develop your self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, and relationship management skills.
A must-read.

5/ Crucial Conversations, Will Hines

Learn how to avoid conflict and drive positive outcomes in important conversations.

Key Takeaways:
Be present, listen, and make your counterpart feel safe in the conversation.

Don’t let your emotions overtake your goals during the discussion.
Make choices, be bold, but also open to change.

And that’s it!
These are the books that helped me learn and grow for the better.
And I know they’ll help you too.
I guarantee it.

The post 5 Best Books On Emotional Intelligence To Become Unstoppable appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

The fundamental rule in Customer Success is to understand what your customers need.

So far so good.

But the problem is most people don’t take the time to find out what’s happening behind the scenes.

These are moments when your customers pull the trigger and switch to your solutions.

And your primary goal is to decode their underlying desires and take action.

So, here are 3 mistakes you need to avoid to ensure you align with your customers’ deepest motivations:

1/ Don’t sell the mattress. Sell a good night’s sleep.

People don’t buy products.
They buy the promise of a change for the better.

Their emotions and feelings always come first before any rational decision and logic.

When you understand what they want, you can position your products as the right solution.
This is why you need to find out what their most selfish needs are first.
Then craft and laser-target your messaging with that idea in mind.

And beware.
Don’t talk about features and how great your product is.
Focus on what’s in it and what you can do for them.

So, don’t sell the product, sell the outcome instead.

2/ Don’t sell the vitamin. Sell the pain killer.

Your customers bring you many concerns at once.

But your role is to define what priorities you should be working on first.
And these are your customers’ need-to-haves:

the most important and urgent problems they need to solve. See the Eisenhower decision matrix I described here for guidance.

And at the same time, they might also be looking for things that are not business-critical:

these are rather the vitamins, nice-to-haves that can wait for now.
And which one do you think you should focus on to get the most results?

Solving the pain of course.
As I say in a more poetic note:
Kill the pain, win the game.

3/ Don’t assume, but connect.

Assumptions rarely reflect reality.
There are reasons why your customers want to get on a call or meet with you. They have a task and believe you can help them with it.
But most people are too quick to reply.

They bring in the product and its features instead of listening to understand first.

Here are a few direct questions you should ask to clarify what your customers want:

Why are we meeting today?
What are you trying to solve?
Why is this important to you?

Can you tell me how you’ve been dealing with this so far?
What did you do to resolve it? How successful was it?

Did you try anything else?

These will help you get to the point fast, and uncover what the most painful problem is.

So, like with any other thing in your life, always take a step back and don’t make assumptions.

Rather, make lasting connections instead.
And that’s it. You’ve got this!

The post 3 Deadly Mistakes In Customer Success (And How You Can Avoid Them) appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Customer Success comes with your own success, first.

And as Jim Rohn once said, you need to:

“work harder on yourself more than you do on your job.”

And one way to do so is to read non-fiction books.

They give you real-life examples and guidance so you can develop your skills faster.

But it comes with a big warning.

It only works if you apply the lessons in practice.

So here are the 13 greatest books that will make you become more successful and change your life for the better.

Experiment with what works best for you and double down on what you love doing the most.

Are you ready?

Let’s go!

1/ Mindset, Carol Dweck

“Talent is not passed down in the genes. It’s in the mindset”

Key Take Away:
We are all born with a growth mindset that anyone can develop at any age.

And the only difference between success and failure is how you turn a situation to your benefit.

An absolute must-read to develop a growth mindset!

2/ Influence, Robert Cialdini

In this book, you’ll learn why people say yes and how to apply these insights to Customer Success and more.

Key Take Aways: the 7 Principles of Persuasion
Reciprocation
Commitment and Consistency
Social Proof
Liking
Authority
Scarcity
and Unity

After reading this book, you’ll never talk to your customers the same way again.

3/ Atomic Habits, James Clear

“Habits are the compound interest of self-improvement”

Key Take Aways

All habits have the same 4-step pattern:
Cue
Craving
Response
and Reward.
To form habits, you must make them:
Obvious
Attractive
Easy
and Satisfying.

Whether you want to form a new habit or get rid of a bad one, read this book for a life-changing experience.

4/ Start with Why, Simon Sinek

“People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it”

Martin Luther King Jr., Steve Jobs, and the Wright Brothers had little in common, but they all started with why.

They realized that people won’t buy into a product, service, or idea until they understand the why.

Key Take Away
To inspire others, always communicate your Why, first.

5/ As a Man Thinketh, James Allen

“As we think, so we are”

James Allen reveals how our thoughts shape our character. They manifest themselves in our finances, health, appearance, and environment.

The choice is yours.

Master your thoughts and create the life you want. Or remain stuck in negativity, frustration, and failure.

Key Take Away:
Your actions follow your thoughts.
Thoughts can keep you young or make you age faster.

6/ The Almanack of Naval Ravikant

Naval Ravikant is an entrepreneur, philosopher, and investor.
In this book, you’ll learn how to walk your own path to a happy and wealthy life.

Key Take Aways:
Compounding interest also applies to your finances and your relationships.

Money is the ultimate tool for freedom.
To become happy, learn how to be neutral and stay quiet.
A must-read!

7/ The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferriss

“Doing something unimportant well does not make it important”
This book is the ultimate guide to living the lifestyle of your dreams.

Key Take Aways:
• How Tim went from $40,000 per year to $40,000 per month and 4 hours per week.
• How to cut 50% of your work.
• How to trade a long-term career for short work bursts and frequent “mini-retirements”.

Read it and you’ll never consider “work” the same way again!

8/ Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill

Number 1 motivational personal development and self-help book of all times.

Napoleon Hill studied more than 500 wealthy businessmen over 20 years. In this masterpiece, he describes the 13 common habits of the most successful people.

The philosophy taught in this book will help you succeed in everything you do.

Here are the 13 Laws of Success:
Desire
Faith
Auto Suggestion
Specialized Knowledge
Imagination
Organized Planning
Decision
Persistence
Power of the Master Mind
Transmutation
The Subconscious Mind
The Brain
The Sixth Sense

Key Take Aways
Use the power of auto-suggestion to build a strong belief in yourself.
Always stand by your decisions.

Join a mastermind group to speed up the learning curve.

9/ Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki

A bestseller in the categories of Personal Finance, Parenting, and Investing.

It’s the story of Robert growing up with his two dads: his own father and the father of his best friend.

The way in which both men shaped his thoughts about money and investing has changed his life forever.

Key Take Aways:
• You don’t need to earn a high income to become rich
• Defines what an asset is (puts money in your pocket)
and a liability (takes money from your pocket).
• You can’t rely on the school system to teach your kids about money

A must-read!
And you’ll never look at your finances the same way again!

10/ Never Split the Difference, Chris Voss

Chris Voss is a former FBI hostage negotiator.
In this awesome book, he explains how to negotiate in any type of situation.

Key Take Away:
Build trust by using the mirroring technique.
Label your counterpart’s emotions to build empathy.
Use the right tone of voice.
A must-read for any Customer Success professional!

11/ The Psychology Of Money, Morgan Housel

Doing well with money isn’t about what you know.
It’s about how you behave. And behavior is hard to teach, even to smart people.

The book tells you 19 short stories exploring the strange ways people think about money.

Key Take Aways:
Leave greed out when managing your money.
Don’t envy how others are doing with their money as it can lead you to make the wrong decisions for yourself.

Your childhood experiences influence the financial decisions you make later in life.

12/ How To Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie

Self-development book written by Dale Carnegie, and published in 1936.

One of the most groundbreaking and timeless bestsellers of all time!
The one book you should have close to you and read at least once every year!

Key Take Aways:
Six ways to make people appreciate you
Twelve ways to win people to your way of thinking
Nine ways to change people without appearing rude
And much more!

How To Win Friends And Influence People (6 hours)

Listen to the full Audiobook on the Customer Success Café Podcast

13/ Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen Covey

A New York Times bestseller with over 40 million copies sold. One of the most inspiring and impactful books ever written!

Key Take Aways:
Be Proactive
Begin with the End in Mind
Put First Things First
Think Win/Win
Seek First to Understand, Then Heard
Synergize
Sharpen the Saw

A must-read!

And that’s it!
These are the books that helped me grow for the better.
And I know they’ll help you too.
I guarantee it.

BONUS:
Here are a few other must-reads I’d recommend as well:

• Man’s Search For Meaning, Viktor Frankl
• Braving the Wilderness, Brene Brown
• Shoe Dog, Phil Knight
• Company of One, Paul Jarvis
• Zero to Sold, Arvid Kahl
• The Richest Man in Babylon, George Clason
• 10% Happier, Dan Harris
• Extreme Ownership, Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
• Getting Out of the Box, The Arbinger Institute
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, Mark Manson
• Negotiate Your Way To Riches, Peter Wink
• When, Daniel Pink
• Jonathan Livingston Seagull, Richard Bach
• Factfulness, Hans Rosling
• Trust and Inspire, Stephen Covey

Thank you!
Enjoying my newsletter?

Please share it with your network and say a few nice words online.
I’ll speak to you again next Sunday!

Until then, have a great week ahead, and take care friends!
Hakan.

The post 13 Non-Fiction Books That Will Change Your Life (And Make You More Successful) appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Self-confidence is key to Customer Success.

But no one becomes confident overnight. It’s a process that takes time and effort to learn, apply and repeat until it becomes a habit.

But the good news is:

It’s also a skill you can develop through consistent practice and improvement.

So, here are 5 TED talks that will boost your confidence in 5 days.

Let’s go!

Day 1

• The Skill Of Self-Confidence by Dr. Ivan Joseph
  • practice.
  • repeat.
  • go get it.
  • stop the negative self-talk.
  • self-affirmation.
  • praise the good.
  • believe in yourself.

Day 2

Six Behaviors To Increase Your Confidence, by Emily Jaenson
count yourself in (3,2,1, Go!)
give yourself 20 seconds to be brave
take a seat at the table.
cheer other people’s successes.
boost your confidence with new activities.
celebrate yourself consistently.

Day 3

How Not To Take Things Personally, by Frederik Imbo

1. It’s not about me.
2. Shift your focus from “me” to “we.”
3. Give yourself some empathy.
4. Speak up.

Day 4

The Surprising Secret To Speaking With Confidence, by Caroline Goyder

3 secrets to being a confident speaker:

1. a voice.
2. the breath inside. 
3. know when to shut your mouth. 

Day 5

How To Speak So That People Want To Listen, by Julian Treasure

Build confidence following these principles:

Seven deadly sins of speaking to avoid

1. gossip
2. judging
3. negativity
4. complaining
5. excuses
6. lying
7. dogmatism

Four powerful cornerstones of speech to make a change in the world

1. H: honesty (be clear and straight)
2. A: authenticity (be yourself)
3. I: integrity (be your word)
4. L: love (wish others well)

Six Tools to play with to increase the power of your speech

1. register: why you should lower voice tone
2. timbre: the way your voice feels
3. beware of its rhythm
4. pace: slow to emphasize
5. the pitch.
6. volume.

And 6 surprising but powerful exercises you can do before giving a presentation. Wait for it

And that’s it.

Follow the program over the next 5 days and you’ll be more confident in any type of situation.

In particular with your customers.

About you

This week, I’ve had the pleasure to interview Scarlett Baker.

She’s been a consistent reader of my newsletter for 6 months, so here we go. The stage is yours, Scarlett!

Where are you from?

My name’s Scarlett and I live in a little seaside town in Devon. Before moving to the South West, I used to live in Spain so I swapped one coast for another!

Your career path 

I’ve always worked in sales, it was something I fell into like most people.

I started with an estate agent in Spain (very cliché) then on to a local vetting business in Exeter.

And finally, my current company in London Bridge. We help sales teams be more successful.

How did you join Customer Success?  

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to join our CS team focusing on customer onboarding.

It was a new concept for the business but an area I’ve always had my eye on. It took me some time to realize that some are born to sell and others to serve.

And that’s fine. The latter definitely resonated more with me. Seeing our customers succeed is what I find most rewarding.

Where do you see yourself in 3 years?

Over the next few years, I’d love to be in a position where I can lead and help grow a team of onboarding specialists.

Working with our CS team, showing the benefits of effective onboarding. And also how it impacts customers in the long term.

What are the things you are most passionate about? 

It might sound quite boring but I’m very passionate about processes and sticking to them!

Identifying what works, what doesn’t and building a plan means we can make mistakes but we learn from them.

Putting it into practice enables our customers to see the most success.

Like most people in Customer Success, I love to hear and see our customers getting the results they want!

What are your top 3 priorities at the moment? 

1. Continuing to spread the word of how positive Onboarding is a game changer and building a culture where everyone’s bought into things.
2. Changing how Customer Success is perceived – we are not glorified assistants and/or always firefighting!
3. Moving into my new apartment, feeling quite chuffed being able to purchase my own property in today’s climate. Grateful to say the least!

Why did you join my newsletter? was it helpful? what was the impact on you? 

There are certain “experts” who know exactly what to say but can’t always back up the advice.

What I like about your newsletter is how you break down the information and make it resonate!

I often find myself already thinking about the topics you cover or areas I should be looking into.

A great way of staying on track and not getting lost among many resources out there!

What are some unknown facts about you?

It’s always my go-to and people are sick of hearing it but I’m fluent in Spanish!

I also got into paddle boarding recently. Ideal given the beautiful places we have on the Devon and Cornwall coast! 

What advice would you give to your younger self?

Don’t be afraid to hold the line.

Don’t rush into things. Success is a marathon.

How can we contact you?

Please feel free to reach out to me on Linkedin

Thank you

The post 🍵 5 TED Talks That Will Make You More Confident in 5 days appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

A great story is worth a thousand talks.

But the problem is most people don’t know how to tell one.
They don’t inspire or make others feel involved in the storyline.

And this is what we’re exploring today.

But before we dive in, see how accurate the following affirmation is.

The creator of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, Abraham Maslow, once said:
“The story of the human race is the story of men and women selling themselves short.”

Indeed.

One of the fundamentals of success is to believe in your own skills and abilities first.

If you don’t, why would you expect your customers to do so, right?
And here comes the art of storytelling.

Telling a great story is by definition about inspiring others to reflect and take action.

So, let’s see how you can build a story your customers will remember for many years to come.

And it only takes 5 easy steps you can apply immediately:

1/ Set the scene

Start with the current status. Describe how things work today.

Don’t talk about theories or unrealistic scenarios.

Give real-life examples instead.

Let your customers identify with what you describe and see themselves in action.

2/ Identify the pain

Customers don’t care about your company unless you can do something for them.

So, talk about the issues they must overcome in practice.

Bring in some emotions and show them how these problems affect them on a personal level.

Lead your narrative by asking yourself the following questions:

• So what?
• What’s in it for them?

And this is critical.

If you don’t make them feel the pain, they won’t believe in your ability to solve their problems later in the process.

3/ Put salt on the wound

Now that you described the pain, insist on the challenge and amplify its consequences.

Tell them things will get worse if they don’t take action.

Paint the picture of the worst-case scenario that your customers need to avoid at all costs.

Why?

Because we all want to stay away from danger, kill the pain first to feel better, and enjoy our lives.

So, the more you describe the pain, the easier it will be for you to introduce your solution.

4/ Introduce the solution and its benefits

And here comes the painkiller.

Describe the benefits first before asking for your customers’ buy-in.

You told them how painful their issues were.

Now tell them how easy it is to solve them.

Paint the picture of how it was before, and how it can be now if they take action today.

Never ever talk about the product features, but only what’s in it for them and how it can help transform their lives.

So, this brings us to the final step.

5/ What’s in it for them?

Make a bold and direct call to action.
Now that you answered the reasons for change, guide them through the next steps of action to take.
It should be an easy one.
Something they can do right now for a quick win without planning for months.
And voilà!
As a general rule, always position your customer as the hero of your story.
Remember: you are the guide helping them get where they want to be.
If you follow these steps, you’ll win their attention, trust, and confidence. I guarantee it!

About you

This week, I’ve had the pleasure to interview Delia Visan.

She’s been a consistent reader of my newsletter every week for 7 months and I can’t thank her enough for her support.

So here we go. The stage is yours, Delia!

Where are you from?

I am Romanian, currently living in Bucharest, Romania.

Your career path 

I have 14 years of experience in customer-facing roles. 

My career started in 2008 with a part-time job.

It allowed me to pursue my classes at the Foreign Languages Faculty in Bucharest.

Besides my native language, I speak four foreign languages.

Then I had different roles in several industries. I worked for large corporations such as Microsoft and Oracle. Also at start-ups such as Glovo and most recently, Bright Spaces today.

How did you join Customer Success?  

It was the expected trajectory of my career.

After all these customer-facing roles, I felt that Customer Success was the next step. And I was right about it.

I joined the Oracle Customer Success team in 2021.

I love Customer Success! Because the main idea is that your customer’s success is your own success.

Moreover, it’s fulfilling.

I enjoy seeing my customers succeed, which is the greatest satisfaction.

And I am all into walking the extra mile to support and partner with my customers on their journey. 

Where do you see yourself in 3 years?

My biggest wish is to continue on this Customer Success journey.

I enjoy sharing knowledge and best practices from my own experiences. 

And I am willing to help develop this incredible community of specialists.

What are the things you are most passionate about? 

I love reading Psychology books.

Besides Customer Success and Career Development, I am passionate about Communication.

What are your top 3 priorities at the moment? 

My health, self-care, and personal/professional development.

I am an Executive MBA student at the moment.

Why did you join my newsletter? was it helpful? what was the impact on you? 

I joined your newsletter because of all the valuable and exciting content you share.

Best practices that can help any CS specialist on their journey.

You also share information to help develop CS-related skills and more.

It’s inspiring.

And thank you for that!

What are some unknown facts about you?
I am a writer. Both poetry and novels.
And I love singing. I am currently taking canto lessons.

What advice would you give to your younger self?
I would tell my younger self to always trust and stay true to herself.
And to keep going because she rocks!

How can we contact you?
Please feel free to reach out to me on Linkedin

And my website ww.deliavisan.com

Thank you so much, Delia, for this great interview!

Enjoying my free newsletter? 3 more ways I can help:

Whenever you are ready:

1/ Work with me 1:1

A 60-min coaching session where we talk about your top 3 goals. We then set an action plan so you can start in practice immediately.

Topics I cover:

• How to Start Writing Online
• How to Grow an Audience on Linkedin
• How to Become A Customer Success Manager
• How to Land Your Dream Job in Customer Success
• How to Start a Newsletter And Build Your Audience
• How to Become More Productive, Free-Up time, and Do More of What you Love
• Besides, I’m also an award-winning professional photographer. If you want to start selling your pictures online and build a passive income as I do here, I can also help you get started.

2/ Sponsorship: promote yourself, your work, your company, or CS events in my newsletter.

When you buy a sponsorship, you get a one-off advertisement. I publish my newsletter at 3 pm CET every Sunday, and you can expect 100+ visitors to your website or offer.

Your sponsorship will remain active forever in each newsletter. I also publish them on my websites and social media. You’ll get an extra 500+ visitors in a month.

This also helps keep my newsletter free to my readers. Thanks to my previous sponsor Churnzero, the leading platform for Customer Success.

The cost to run an ad is $500.

Reach out for more details. And if I can do anything else for you, let me know, happy to get on a Zoom to chat. Have a wonderful day, Cheers, Hakan.

The post 5 Dead-Simple Steps To Tell A Great Story That Makes Your Customers Take Action appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Welcome to the 36th edition of my weekly Customer Success Café newsletter!

1,178 smart people level up their game in under 5 mins every Sunday.

If you are not subscribed yet, sign up now to make sure you get the next editions delivered to your inbox!

Driving Customer Success is about being productive, not doing busy things.

And one of the major productivity tools CS teams use is Google Docs. Actually, 1.9+ billion people use it worldwide.

But most people are not aware of its full potential, yet. 

If only they knew what the best features for productivity were, they would jump out of their chairs.

Discovering these tips will almost make you scream. And this is what I’m going to show you today.

It will help you save thousands of hours and deliver amazing work faster.

So here are 7 Google Docs tips that are so powerful that you’ll wonder why you didn’t know them earlier:

1/ Create a new document from your browser

To create a new doc, you usually go to your drive and click on “+” right?

Did you know you can do so in seconds from your Chrome browser?

1. In the address bar, type in “doc.new”

A new Google Doc will open.

Short and sweat.

2/ Embed your document in emails

Sharing a doc in an email is easy.
You insert the shared link in the body of your email or add it as an attachment.
But a better option is to embed your doc into your email:
Go to File => Email
Email this file
Check the box “Don’t attach, include content”

3/ Add watermark

Want to share the doc with a client or on the web but keep it under copyright?
Add an image or text watermark on the background:
Insert
Watermark
select “text watermark” or an image.

4/ Use substitutes for phrases

Do you have a sentence or block of words you use often?
Stop wasting time typing the same things over again.
Highlight the text you want to create a shortcut for.
Copy it to the clipboard (Ctrl+C or Cmd C)
Then go to:
• Tools => Preferences => Substitutions
• define the shortcut = > add its replacement
Now, whenever you type the shortcut and press Space or Tab, it will bring up the entire block for you.

5/ Share a preview, anonymously

By default, people can see who is viewing the document.

But sometimes we’d like to share without allowing anyone to see who is on it.

To do so, change the URL from /edit to /preview and share the new link.

This way, no one will be able to copy, or make changes

6/ Add building blocks

There is an easier way to add block templates to your doc.
Go to:
Insert
Building Blocks
Select Review Tracker, or any other blocks you need.

7/ Lowercase the entire block

It often happens that you start writing your doc but forget you were in all caps.

So you delete and start over.

From now on, do this instead:

• Select the text in capitals

• Click Format => Text => Capitalization

• Select “lowercase”.

And voilà I hope that helps!

About you

I’m introducing a new section where the stage belongs to my most active readers.

And today, it’s my absolute pleasure to introduce you to Diana Pavic.

She’s been a consistent reader of my newsletter since when I launched my newsletter 8 months ago.

I enjoyed interviewing her and appreciate her genuine answers.

So here we go. The stage is yours, Diana!

Where are you from?

I’ve been living in Auckland, New Zealand for 15 years. I’ve recently relocated to my home country Zagreb, Croatia

Your career path

I always had an interest in people, and everything related to them. This led me to complete a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology.
My interest developed further when I moved to New Zealand.
I started working in community services and used my skills and passion to improve people’s lives.
This is when I enrolled in a Bachelor of Social Work which I completed in 2015.
Since then, I have been working as a Social Worker in various fields (family, mental health).
In 2022, I started working in digital mental health.
I am currently working as a mental health professional/customer support.
This is where I started to see the potential and opportunities to make a positive impact on people.

How did you join Customer Success?

I am currently transitioning into Customer Success.
As I came across the CS function, I started doing a lot of research on the topic.
And I found it more interesting and related to my previous profession.
I enjoy solving problems, building rapport, and assisting people in reaching their goals.
I am eager to take my skills from previous roles and my passion for the tech industry into my next position.
To me, Customer Success was an obvious choice for my career journey.

Where do you see yourself in 3 years?

I tend to plan things within a shorter time frame.
My previous experience thought me that I always end up exactly where I should be.
And that everything happens for a reason.
What are the things you are most passionate about?
Personal growth, people, and social issues.

What are your top 3 priorities at the moment?

Family, well-being, and professional development

Why did you join my newsletter? was it helpful? what was the impact on you?

I find the CS Café newsletter to be a great opportunity to learn and get insights about the CS role.
I appreciate the format of the newsletter which is simple, concise, and to the point.
Your newsletter covers CS topics very well.
You deep dive into a variety of areas such as metrics or efficient customer interactions.
It’s also a free learning opportunity for me.
I often get back to it and read previous editions again to reflect and learn something new every time.
I appreciate your intention to make the reading enjoyable, interesting, and approachable.
And you do all of this regardless of people’s professional backgrounds or years of experience.

What are some unknown facts about you?

I am a cat lover. Actually, I’m searching for my next one
I enjoy singing. I’ve been part of different music choirs. In one of them, I had an opportunity to sing in Latin.
I have a passion for Italian and Spanish language, which I want to learn at some point.

What advice would you give to your younger self?

Be proud of who you are and always stay true to yourself, especially in challenging times.

How can we contact you?

I am always open to new connections.
And I love to meet new people and learn from them. We all have so much to offer. You can connect with me on Linkedin here.

Well, thank you so much, Diana!
Wishing you all the success in your journey!

The post 🍵 7 Powerful Google Docs Tips You Didn’t Know That Will Save You 1,000+ Hours appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Welcome to the 35th edition of my weekly Customer Success Café newsletter!

1,175 smart people level up their game in under 5 mins every Sunday.

If you are not subscribed yet, sign up now to make sure you get the next editions delivered to your inbox!

Metrics are fundamental to tracking your customers’ success.

But as the management expert Peter Drucker once said, you can’t manage what you can’t measure, right?

Today, there are thousands of CS teams out there focusing on the wrong and outdated KPIs.

And measuring things that don’t matter is a waste of time, energy, and resources.

So here are the 7 core metrics every CSM should know by heart:

Top 7 Metrics Every Customer Success Manager Should Know

1/ NRR: Net Revenue Retention

Calculates the percentage of recurring revenue from your existing customers over time.

It gives you a great picture of growth and revenue flow based on your MRR (monthly recurring revenue):

Example:

• Starting MRR = $50k
• Expansion MRR = $10k
• Churned MRR = $5k

=> NRR = (50 + 10 – 5)/50 = 110% => growth

If NRR < 100% => danger! you lose more than you grow.

2/ GRR: Gross Revenue Retention

Also called Gross Renewal Rate.

It’s like NRR, but with a major difference: it does not include expansion revenue.

The highest possible value for GRR is 100% and measures revenue stability.

Across all SaaS companies, the median GRR is around 90%. 

GRR < 80% => danger!

3/ ARR: Annual Recurring Revenue

The amount of money your company gets from its customers every year from:
A: subscription cost for one year
B: recurring revenue from add-ons or upgrades
C: churn, revenue lost from cancellations

ARR = [A + B] – C

Example:

• 3-year subscription for $3M
• B = $300k
• C = $100k

=> ARR = [$1M + $300k] – $100k = $1,2M

ARR = 12 x MRR

4/ CES: Customer Effort Score

Measures what it takes to perform a given action with your products or services.

To find this out, survey your customers by asking the following two questions, on a scale of 1-10:

1. How easy was it to solve your problem?
2. How much effort did it require?

CES = Sum of all scores / total number of responses

the more response you get, the better.

5/ LTV (or CLV): Customer Lifetime Value

A key indicator showing how much money a customer brings into your company over the lifespan.

LTV = [Customer $$] x [average customer lifespan]

Example:

• ARR = $300k with an average customer lifespan of 2 years

=> LTV = $600k

6/ CRR: Customer Retention Rate

Gives you the percentage of customers you keep compared to those you lose over a given period of time

Example:

• 100 customers at the start of the period.
• 110 customers at the end
• 20 new customers

=> CRR = 110-20 / 100 = 90% (you lost 10 customers between)

7/ CAC: Customer Acquisition Cost

Tells you how much money you spend in total including marketing and sales activities to acquire one customer.

Example:

• Total acquisition $$ = $100k in Sales commissions + $50k marketing spend
• New customers = 100

=> CAC = 150.000 / 100 = $1500

And that’s it.

Focus on these core metrics so you can explore others I’ve described in a previous edition here.

The post Top 7 Metrics Every Customer Success Manager Should Know appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.

Welcome to the 34th edition of my weekly Customer Success Café newsletter!

This week was very special.

The CS Community spoke and selected me as a Top 100 Customer Success Strategist in 2022!

I am so proud and honored to be part of this incredible group of such talented people like yourself!

Thank you all who voted for me! And congrats to all the other winners!

It gives me the confidence I’m doing the right thing for you and I’ll continue on my path to help you win in your own journey!

You can count on me as you always did, thank you!

If you are not subscribed to my newsletter yet, sign up now to get the next editions delivered to your inbox!

1,172 smart people level up their game in under 5 mins every Sunday.

Don’t wait. Join the growing tribe today!

Customer Success is not a theory.

You must get down to the basics and start building trust, first.

This will help you gather the right level of information to drive success, in practice.

But to do so, how do you know what your customers care the most about?

By asking great questions.

Here are 3 core techniques you can apply today and get your customers’ attention right on the spot:

1/ Ask precise questions

The last thing your customers want is to waste time.

This is why they usually give you quick answers, at first.

They prefer to stay superficial until you break the ice.

So don’t ask questions you could have googled yourself.

Ask deeper questions instead.

Invite them to elaborate more without appearing pushy or rude:

• I’m curious, how did that happen?
• What did you do to fix it? Did it work?
• What was the cost of such an issue?
• Is it something you might experience again?
• If so, how will you handle it next time it happens?

That way, you can influence them to tell you the story behind the pain.

Ask and listen without stepping in.

In short, help them tell you more in their own words.

p.s. a step further is to practice “mirroring”. Refer to section #4 in this previous edition where I guide you through this powerful method.

2/ Impact of not taking action

Your customers might be heads-down fixing things.

They might be so busy dealing with daily operations that they can pass on building a long-term plan.

So it’s important for you and your customers to take a step back and reflect on the consequences of inaction.

Now that you have some great information from the previous step, ask them:

• What would happen next if you don’t take action today?

It’s surprising to see sometimes they are even not aware of the potential cost themselves.

This question will reveal the harsh reality in the most practical way which brings us to the final step.

3/ Create urgency

You know what? your customers don’t care about your end of quarters and the time by when you need to land the deal.

What they care about the most is to have the solution implemented within their own timeline.

So reverse the situation and ask them:

• when do you need this solution to be up and running?

In doing so, you position yourself on your customer’s priorities. You can then reverse-engineer and say:

• to get it in production in [X] weeks or months, we need to start working on the project no later than [date].

That way, you shift the focus from your own business objectives to their roadmap.

This alone will bring the sense of urgency you need for them to take action.

And as a bonus, you didn’t appear pushy but had them take part in the decision-making process.

See the IKEA effect I’ve explored in a previous edition to learn more about the psychology behind it.

So well done, congratulations!

Your customers are now all ears!

The post 3 Techniques To Ask Better Questions (Without Being Selfish) appeared first on Customer Success Insights: Driving Success Worldwide.