Since CEO Jory Lamb founded in 1996, customer success has always been one of his main objectives.
鈥淔rom the beginning, we鈥檝e been focused on business management software and assisting efficiency, operational effectiveness, collecting information to run a business in a timely manner, and presenting data in a format that managers can use to make good decisions,鈥� he said.
However, Lamb also shared, 鈥淚n recent years, we鈥檝e become very conscious of how important it is to understand the customers鈥� journey and modify our processes and methodology to create not only consistent but delightful experiences as well.鈥�
Customer Success Defined
The 51风流North America partner works in competitive markets, including industrial machinery and components, life sciences, industrial , aerospace and defense, food and beverage, and high tech. Lamb pointed out that solution providers in these spaces are 鈥渙nly as good as your last project.鈥�
Furthermore, customers talk: 鈥淲ord of mouth is important in any business鈥� buying decisions. We set out to create engagements that are so remarkable that our customers are compelled to tell others.鈥�
That is the basis for VistaVu鈥檚 鈥淩ock Star鈥� initiative, which aims to turn clients into raving fans.
鈥淪uccess to me is our customers telling our story for us,鈥� said Lamb.
Taking Action at VistaVu
To deliver customer experiences that turn customers into advocates, it takes more than situational awareness and core competencies, according to Lamb. For VistaVu, it meant establishing new roles and teams.
From its inception, VistaVu had operated under a typical organizational chart: Sales, Marketing, Operations, Finance. In 2018, however, Lamb opted to divide its delivery team into two units: Net New and Customer Success.
VistaVu created the new role of customer engagement executive (CEE) and now places dedicated services teams with existing customers 鈥� now a focus for more than two-thirds of the company 鈥� and established a separate sales and delivery team for net-new customers.
鈥淲ith a CEE, the goal isn鈥檛 about trying to sell something. It鈥檚 about creating an experience that is so valuable the client will want to go deeper with their relationship with us,鈥� Lamb said.
The Customer Success team achieves that in part by clearly setting expectations and delivering value.
鈥淓RP clients often under value the effort required in implementation while overestimating what can be accomplished,鈥� Lamb pointed out. 鈥淲e work with them to understand business objectives at the outset and set realistic expectations.鈥�
CEEs are also tasked with moving clients from solution stabilization to optimization phases to considering new ways to leverage their technology to achieve greater benefits.
鈥淐EEs look to understand upcoming customer needs and find opportunities to increase automation or improve decision making,鈥� Lamb added.
At first, the new approach was met with skepticism internally. Some wondered about the potential for missed revenue as the balance shifted more toward improving relationships. Ironically, Lamb attributes VistaVu鈥檚 growing success to the entire organization embracing the model.
鈥淚t鈥檚 working well,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e鈥檝e never been bigger, and Customer Success has never sold more. They don鈥檛 have quotas, but they find opportunities to help in every conversation.鈥�
Recurring revenue has grown substantially year over year 鈥� now 50 percent of the total business 鈥� and VistaVu鈥檚 business valuation has grown five times.
Rave Reviews, Radical Realizations
In addition to establishing its Customer Success team, VistaVu began using Net Promoter Score (NPS) to understand its effectiveness in delivering experiences that delight customers. It asks the standard NPS questions: 鈥淗ow likely are you to recommend our company?鈥� and 鈥淲hat can we do to earn a higher score?鈥�
It is important to note that VistaVu does more than collect this data; it acts on it. When some clients requested faster response times, VistaVu reached out to see how they define acceptable turnaround and began capturing related data on a weekly basis 鈥� and soon achieved and exceeded the expectations.
鈥淲e鈥檙e insatiable listeners,鈥� said Lamb. 鈥淲e鈥檙e doing everything we can to make sure all customer experiences are remarkably positive.鈥�
He explained that his company鈥檚 new organization has also changed the way they sell to net-new customers: 鈥淵ears ago, we sold to everyone. Today, we鈥檙e a lot more selective. One of the first questions we ask is if they have a chance to become a raving fan. The size of the check isn鈥檛 what matters. The relationship needs to be successful. That鈥檚 what fuels ongoing growth.鈥�
鈥淭oday we have over 50 percent of our client base that we can call to advocate and provide a reference for us,鈥� Lamb said. 鈥淏ut we never want to get complacent. We want all of our customers to be pillars of our reputation and potential sources of new business.鈥�
