In the world of SaaS, customer retention and a steady flow of customer acquisition is the recipe for success. With that being said, retention is much less expensive than acquiring new customers so you really need to put great focus on trying to hold on to your customers.
Below are our top 10 customer retention tips for Saas businesses.
1. Follow up with customers after every interaction
After you have helped a client, it is key to follow up with them after as well. Add this extra layer to your customer service process and it will pay off big. With this scenario, you solved their issue but by following up a couple weeks later, you are making sure they are satisfied. When it comes to customer retention, a satisfied customer is just as important as solving their problems.
2. Welcome feedback
Addressing feedback should be a key component of any retention strategy. If a customer takes the time to make suggestions on how you can improve, they are investing themselves in the success of the company. Make it clear you are interested in their feedback by strategically placing something on your pricing page where they can submit their suggestion. You can also include a link on their monthly invoice. Just make sure wherever you place these calls to action, your customers can see it.
3. Create multiple opportunities for interaction with social media
You want to be able to engage with customers as much as possible. For this reason, it is key that you have a social presence on the key platforms (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn) as well as any others that are relevant to your business. By doing this, customers can easily reach out to you via their platform of preference. By using social media as part of your customer retention strategy, you are not only boosting awareness for your brand but also driving engagement which is the number one way to reduce your churn rate.
4. You need to brand yourself as both a software and a service
SaaS providers really need to play both sides of the coin by positioning themselves as both a software and a service. The service part really is key. Take a look at your billing schedule and try to match your service improvement schedule to it. People want to feel like they are getting their moneys worth. This can be in the form of increased security features, storage upgrades or any other add on that will provide additional value to the customer.
5. Avoid customer satisfaction surveys
Every business wants feedback, but surveys are not the way to get them. They really just end up being annoying for the customer. This is not more true than when a customer has a problem that you have fixed (customer is bothered but happy it’s fixed) and you continue to follow up with survey requests that they do not want to fill out. The customer ends up feeling like the survey is more important than their time.
6. Emphasize engagement as soon as possible
If you are looking to improve your churn rate, driving engagement is key. Engagement equates to value when it comes to the customer. For this reason, you want to get your customers to use your product. Send out emails, make phone calls, whatever you need to do to. The sooner they start using your service the faster they will recognize the value. Once this happens, the less likely they are to cancel.
7. Come out with a new version
If customers aren’t getting enough value from your product, they will eventually move on. One way to get around this is by releasing a new version. It should be free and happen automatically but most of all, the increased value should be clear to the customer.
8. Offer free training
If your software is on the complex side, it would go a long way with users to provide free training sessions. As we have touched on before, the more value users receive, the less likely they are to churn. Furthermore, you are cultivating a stronger relationship between you and the customer.
9. Consider a loyalty program
Loyalty programs have been proven to work. It does not need to be expensive to be effective. The occasional gift card or discount will make customers feel valued.
10. Track exit feedback
You will not be able to save every customer. Some churn is inevitable. In order to reduce customer churn, you need to understand why they are leaving. But it doesn’t have to be all about loss. Take this unique opportunity to find out why they are leaving. You can then use this valuable information to help improve upon your processes and in turn provide more value to your current customers.