Blog

How to Calculate the ROI of Customer Success Software

Tldr: skip to the bottom to access a spreadsheet that calculates the Return-on-Investment (ROI) of a Customer Success platform PLUS a quick explainer video on how to use the spreadsheet. Customer Success Platforms (CSPs) are designed to move the needle on Net Revenue Retention (NRR). Improving your rate of NRR directly impacts your SaaS company’s […]

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Data-Driven Customer Success

According to anthropologist Robin Dunbar, our primate brains can only maintain stable relationships with around 150 people—beyond that, we begin to struggle. That definitely resonates with those of us that forget a person’s name as soon as we’re introduced. It seems logical that a similar challenge faces us when managing our customers.

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The New Akita

Out with the old… We launched Akita in 2018 with the goal of making effective Customer Success Management software that was affordable for small businesses. By most measurements, it was a success. We had a rapidly growing customer base (and revenue) and our customers loved us. Despite this, we decided it wasn’t working. At least, […]

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The $99 Sales Stack – How to Prospect on a Budget

We’re a Customer Success company. The first rule of Customer Success is to avoid acquiring bad-fit customers. This begins at the prospecting stage.

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How to Lose Your First 10 SaaS Customers (to Churn)

There are a number of great resources available to early-stage startups who are trying to land their first 10 paying customers. Doing so is no small task. It can take hard work, hustle and sometimes a bit of luck. But getting your first 10 customers isn’t cool. You know what’s cool?

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5 Questions with Vipin Thomas of Freshworks

Freshworks is a SaaS company with a suite of business software products that includes Freshdesk, Freshservice, Freshsales, Freshchat, Freshcaller, Freshteam, and Freshmarketer. Leading their Customer Success team is Vipin Thomas, whose job is to increase retention, advocacy, and growth with existing customers. We asked Vipin 5 questions about his role at Freshworks and this is […]

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Happy Holidays from Akita!

And you thought The Elf on the Shelf was creepy…

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Happy Halloween 2017!

Coming soon to a theater near you! Leave the kids at home…

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5 Questions with Melvin Prada of Docebo

Leading the overall Customer Success management strategy at Learning Management System provider Docebo, Melvin Prada is passionate about helping organizations receive value throughout their Customer Journey. He is responsible for retention, upsells and the CS operations of Docebo’s Global CSM teams. In his own words: Our vision is to build measurable partnerships that are both […]

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Calculating Customer Health

Calculating customer health scores is a necessary (and transformative) step in building a strong Customer Success program for Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies. Below I review what health scoring in SaaS is all about and identify the variables you should consider when building your customer health scoring model.

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Nobel Prize Research that Minimizes Customer Churn?

Even for companies with a laser focus on Customer Success, the period before a key client renewal can be a nervous one. How the customer ‘feels’ about your service at renewal is as (or more) important than the actual value they accrue. Every renewal is an opportunity to churn so it’s essential they ‘feel’ they […]

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Does IoT need Customer Success Managers?

At Davos World Economic Forum 2016, there was much talk of the 4th Industrial revolution. The man who literally wrote the book on it, Professor Klaus Schwab, defines this revolution as being “…characterized by a fusion of technologies that is blurring the lines between the physical, digital, and biological spheres.” As this revolution unfolds, we […]

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