customer-success-playbook

# Customer Success Playbook Build and run a customer success operation for B2B SaaS. Covers the full lifecycle: onboarding, health scoring, QBRs, churn prevention, and expansion revenue. ## When to Use - Setting up a CS function from scratch - Designing onboarding flows for new customers - Building health score models - Preparing QBR templates and cadences - Creating churn intervention playbooks - Planning expansion and upsell motions ## Workflow ### 1. Assess Current State Ask the user: - Company stage (seed, Series A, growth, scale) - Current ARR and customer count - Average contract value (ACV) - Current CS team size (or zero) - Primary churn reasons if known ### 2. Design Lifecycle Stages Map the customer journey: | Stage | Duration | Owner | Key Metric | |-------|----------|-------|------------| | Onboarding | Days 0-30 | CS Lead | Time to First Value | | Adoption | Days 30-90 | CSM | Feature adoption % | | Retention | Ongoing | CSM | Health score, NRR | | Expansion | Trigger-based | CSM + AE | Expansion MRR | | Renewal | T-90 days | CSM | Renewal rate | | Advocacy | Post-renewal | CS Lead | NPS, referrals | ### 3. Build Health Score Weight these signals (0-100 composite): - **Product usage** (25%): DAU/MAU ratio - **Feature breadth** (15%): Features used vs available - **Support load** (15%): Ticket volume and sentiment - **Executive engagement** (15%): Meeting frequency - **Satisfaction** (10%): NPS or CSAT - **Growth signals** (10%): Seat/usage expansion - **Payment** (10%): On-time history Thresholds: 80+ healthy, 60-79 monitor, 40-59 at-risk, <40 critical. ### 4. Create Onboarding Checklist Week 1: Foundation (kickoff, tech setup, admin training, define 3 success outcomes) Week 2-3: Activation (user training, configure workflows, first quick win) Week 4: Handoff (retrospective, baseline metrics, ongoing cadence) TTFV target: <14 days SMB, <30 days Enterprise. ### 5. QBR Template 45-minute agenda: 1. Results recap with ROI numbers (10 min) 2. Usage insights and underused features (10 min) 3. Roadmap preview — relevant items only (5 min) 4. Their priorities and business changes (15 min) 5. Action items with owners and dates (5 min) Rule: Never present a QBR without a quantified ROI number. ### 6. Churn Prevention Tiers - **Tier 1 (score 60-79)**: Automated nudges, CSM alerted - **Tier 2 (score 40-59)**: Personal outreach within 48h, 30-day recovery plan - **Tier 3 (score <40)**: Executive escalation within 24h, concession options ready Early warnings: usage drop >30%, champion departure, competitor mentions, missed calls. ### 7. Expansion Playbook Signals: health >80, seats >85% utilized, new use cases in QBRs, champion promoted. | Play | Trigger | Approach | |------|---------|----------| | Seat expansion | >85% utilization | Right-size conversation | | Feature upsell | Repeated workarounds | Demo the real solution | | New department | Champion referral | Joint intro meeting | | Tier upgrade | Hitting plan limits | Show per-user savings | | Multi-year | Healthy + renewal due | Discount for commitment | CSM expansion target: 20-30% of new ARR. NRR target: 110-120%. ### 8. CSM Capacity Model - Enterprise ($100K+ ACV): 10-15 accounts, high-touch, monthly QBRs - Mid-Market ($25-100K): 25-40 accounts, medium-touch, quarterly QBRs - SMB ($5-25K): 50-80 accounts, tech-touch + pooled, semi-annual QBRs - Self-serve (<$5K): Automated digital-only ### 9. Output Deliverables Generate for the user: - Customer lifecycle map - Health score model with weights - Onboarding checklist (customized to their product) - QBR template and prep checklist - Churn intervention playbook with escalation tiers - Expansion signal list and plays - CSM capacity plan - Metrics dashboard spec (NRR, GRR, TTFV, health coverage, QBR rate) ## Key Metrics | Metric | Target | |--------|--------| | Net Revenue Retention | >110% | | Gross Revenue Retention | >90% | | Time to First Value | <14d SMB / <30d Enterprise | | Health Score Coverage | 100% | | QBR Completion | >85% | | NPS | >50 | ## Resources - Industry-specific AI agent context packs: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/context-packs/ - AI Revenue Leak Calculator: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/ai-revenue-calculator/ - Agent Setup Wizard: https://afrexai-cto.github.io/agent-setup/