Desired Outcome: The most important client onboarding metric

AppsFlyer has just rolled out a new onboarding process, which includes a structured process for establishing a clear handover between both teams. “The result of designing the process so deeply in Salesforce is that we now have a lot of data points that can be used for continuous improvement and continuity.

We asked Ziv for his personal recommendation on what to focus on if you’re just starting out with building an onboarding experience. “Focus on mastering the art of tailoring the onboarding based on the customer’s desired outcome. Then ensure you’re building significant business relationships with the relevant key stakeholders”.

Peled is known for advocating for relationship building. “When you think about B2B SaaS companies, most vendors have a lot of users, but most of them are insignificant when it comes to the decision to renew, and overall account happiness. Make sure you know the roles within each account, and the power each significant relationship holds”.

“You have a chance during onboarding to start a strong relationship, but that’s all based on the experience you gave. What you did for them, how they felt. On a practical level, make sure executives—the people in charge of the budget—are aware of how well the onboarding program is going. Ideally, they’ll see a definite ROI from it”.

Ziv brings up the major challenges with evaluating your customer’s success based on NPS. “You can’t see the blindspots that way. You can have 100 users saying you’re a 10, but none of them come from one of your key user persona who might think very differently. Because of that, creating a significant relationship becomes even more crucial”.

Lastly, Ziv suggests really nailing down the customer onboarding journey. “For example, our CSMs always start onboarding with a conversation with the marketer. But a conversation with the developer must also happen later in the process. The customer success manager will ensure this step happens. Ideally, you’ll be in a position where you've clearly defined the journey for the customer and are capable of connecting various departments within their organization in the onboarding process at the right time”.