[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]We previously wrote about the upstream processes of a customer. Which ones? Onboarding and active customer
But unfortunately, customers don't last forever. The last stage is offboarding and we must make sure we end the relationship with the customer in the best possible way.
Both because they may return in the future and because of what they will say about our product, service or company.
What processes must be taken into account?
- Completing collections. It is important to ensure that the customer fulfills all its obligations when it stops using our products or services, and in particular with the outstanding payments. For this reason, it is advisable to have a formal process for the collection of payments from those who cease to be our customers. It should have different tasks and alerts to ensure that each action is performed in a timely manner.
- Remove access, revoke permissions, terminate service. A typical mistake is to forget to revoke all access, permissions and services provided to the departing customer. It may be that the customer has only one, or several that are not essential and we forget about them. Flokzu allows us to define this process, with a checklist of the accesses to revoke or permissions to remove, and also to have an audit of who completed the list. In this way we ensure that we stop providing a service that is not being paid for.
- Allow data export This point applies especially to services that store customer data. The customer must always be able to export his data. It is their right. But in addition, it would be a bad image and experience for the customer if the provider retained his data or tried to use this as an anchor to retain him as a customer.
- In cases where there is an agreement to remove confidential information, there should be a formal and auditable process to ensure that all sensitive information is returned to the other party.
2 best practices for customer offboarding
1. Make the client's departure memorable
A good exit process treats customers with warmth, regardless of the reason for their exit. Remember everything they accomplished with your product/service as an achievement for the company as well. Who knows? The whole thing may bring your customers back to the organization like a boomerang.
In addition, a memorable farewell will make customers talk positively about their experience and this, in turn, will increase the value of your brand.
2. Prevent productivity drops
When a customer leaves, day-to-day activities are often interrupted by those who have to deal with the process. As a result, there will be a considerable drop in productivity. Therefore, we recommend automating it.
To conclude the series of news, we tell you how to measure your efforts.
What to measure in all processes?
The success that the customer has using our products or services is difficult to measure, mainly because it is impossible in practice to access this information directly and objectively.
However, we can use indirect performance indicators (KPI's), which are part of the customer success processes described above, and which help us to have as objective a view as possible of how each of our customers is doing.
- Retention: Abandonment Rate, measures how many customers are abandoning our service. It is measured after the customer has already left.
- Retention: Monthly recurring revenue measures how much the customer is spending each month. This indicator allows us to see if he is spending more, the same or less. It makes sense when compared to previous periods (previous month, quarter, previous year). This metric can be acted upon.
- Satisfaction: Net Promoter Score measures the likelihood that a customer would recommend a company, product or service to a friend or colleague.
- Satisfaction: Customer Satisfaction Score measures how well products or services meet or exceed customer expectations. Based on the results, an improvement plan is feasible.
