Churn Prevention: 5 Strategies to Stop Customers from Leaving

January 9, 2023
Contributor: Shubham Gupta

Implement these foolproof churn prevention strategies to keep your customers around for the long haul.

While gaining new customers is always desirable, retaining existing customers is equally important. Losing customers can significantly impact the finances of your business, resulting in lower overall profits and a slower growth rate. According to Gartner research[1], retaining and selling to an existing customer is more cost-effective and profitable than acquiring a new one.

If you’re a B2B software provider struggling to improve customer retention rates and prevent churn, you need to act fast and put in place strategies to keep your customers happy, satisfied and loyal throughout.

The first step toward customer churn prevention is tracking attrition at regular intervals (quarterly, monthly or annually) to identify trends or patterns. Thereafter, you need to understand why customers are replacing your software.  

Why do buyers replace their existing software?

According to Gartner Digital Markets’ 2022 Global Software Buyer Trends Survey, 15% of buyers replace their existing software either due to incompatibility with other software systems or because they find a better alternative. 

The most common reasons buyers replace their current software include:

  • The software doesn't integrate well with other business systems.
  • There are better alternatives on the market with improved features and better pricing.
  • The software is too buggy and unreliable for their needs.
  • The software is complex and difficult to use, and simpler alternatives exist.
  • Customer service is poor and unhelpful.

5 strategies for customer churn prevention

Customer churn is inevitable, but it doesn’t have to be permanent. We discuss five strategies you can use as a SaaS provider to prevent customer attrition and increase customer satisfaction.

5 easy-to-implement customer churn prevention strategies

1. Create a culture of personalization

Customers appreciate when companies go the extra mile to understand their needs and personalize their experiences. Segment customers according to their needs and preferences, and then provide personalized after-sale services, including customer support, tailored product recommendations and timely follow-ups.

According to the Gartner Digital Markets’ 2022 Global Software Buyer Trends Survey, 27% of buyers prefer having personalized product demos*. During renewals, you can offer personalized demos of existing products with improved features to increase the chances of customers renewing their subscriptions. You can also create tailored email campaigns that provide targeted offers and discounts to boost customer loyalty.

2. Make onboarding seamless

Onboarding is pivotal in reducing customer attrition, as it sets the tone for a new customer’s overall experience with your business. Ensure your customers have a smooth transition from their trial period through onboarding, with no bumps along the way. 

Provide easy-to-follow onboarding processes such as clear instructions and visual aids (e.g., infographics, how-to videos) to guide customers as they start using your software. Additionally, offer personalized product tours and dedicated customer support for a more engaging customer experience.

Onboarding factors that buyers value the most

3. Incorporate customer feedback and suggestions

Actively seek customer feedback, as it helps you identify how to improve your product or service offerings. To retain customers, involve them in the product development process by listening to their feedback, responding to it promptly and incorporating their suggestions into your product. 

Encourage customers to leave feedback, either through surveys or by setting up a customer feedback portal. Doing this will show customers that you take their feedback seriously, leading to higher customer satisfaction and chances of renewal.

4. Provide stellar customer service

Customer service is an important consideration for buyers planning software renewals. In fact, 84% of buyers look for superior support services during the renewal stage*. Therefore, provide timely customer service that meets customers’ needs and resolves any queries they may have, from simple FAQs to complex IT issues. 

Be proactive in identifying issues before they become problems, and make sure your customer care team is well trained on offering a superior customer experience. Additionally, offer self-service channels such as answer bots and online resources such as video tutorials to help customers who prefer to solve their own issues or just need a quick answer.

5. Offer an effective pricing strategy

Pricing plays an important role mainly during the software selection process, but it's also a significant consideration during the renewal stage. Nearly 10% of buyers replace existing software due to dissatisfaction with pricing*. Although the percentage is not that high, it's still substantial enough to consider.

Set up a pricing strategy that is competitive yet flexible enough to accommodate customer needs and usage. Make sure the pricing plans allow customers to pay for just what they need. Also, consider offering discounts and promotional deals from time to time to encourage customer loyalty.

Measure results to determine the effectiveness of your churn prevention efforts

Analyze retention data such as customer churn rate, customer satisfaction rate and customer engagement rate to track your progress. This will provide insight into what’s working and what isn’t so you can make adjustments accordingly. Additionally, set up automated alerts to stay informed about any sudden drop in engagement or user churn rates. With real-time updates, you can quickly intervene and address any potential issues.

Take the steps discussed above and follow these best practices to optimize customer retention and lower the churn rate. These tactics will also help ensure greater customer success in the long run. So don’t wait any longer, and start implementing these strategies today.

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Shubham Gupta

Shubham Gupta is a Content Writer at Gartner Digital Markets who ideates and creates purpose-driven content to help modern technology businesses achieve their goals. Outside of work, he enjoys reading thriller novels and Urdu poetry, as well as spending time with his dog. Connect with Shubham on LinkedIn.

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Survey Methodology

*Gartner Digital Markets’ 2022 Global Software Buyer Trends Survey 

Results presented are based on a Gartner Digital Markets study to understand business challenges and approaches to technology and software investments. The primary research was conducted in October 2021 among a total of 2,501 respondents in the following countries: United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, India, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, Italy, Portugal, Brazil, Colombia, Belgium, Poland, Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Norway, Ireland, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Germany and France. 

Respondents were screened for having recently purchased technology and decision-making authority. Respondents were required to be responsible for making decisions on purchasing technologies for their organization.

Sources

  1. Boost B2B Customer Retention With a Content Strategy That Drives Product Adoption, Gartner
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