Aaron Howerton

CSM, here are 28 reasons to be thankful for in 2024: 1- AI tools are reducing administrative grunt work 🤖 2- CEOs understanding the importance of retention 💡 3- Predictive analytics are getting much more robust 🔮 4- Remote work expanding global CS opportunities 🌐 5- Retention metrics at board-level conversations 📉 6- The flywheel is overtaking the funnel as a GTM engine 🤲 7- Measuring Customer Outcomes is a top priority for CS 📊 8- Automation is handling repetitive customer interactions 🤖 9- Salary ranges for CSMs are becoming more competitive 💰 10- Customer health scoring is more sophisticated than ever ❤️ 11- There are so many learning programs for CS professionals 🎓 12- More companies budget for professional CS development 🏆 13- Customer feedback loops are faster and more transparent 🔄 14- More start-ups are tackling CS challenges and opportunities 🚀 15- Diversity and inclusion are improving in CS leadership roles 🌈 16- Tech stacks are becoming more integrated and user-friendly 💻 17- Executive leadership values emotional intelligence more now 🤝 18- CSM burnout prevention is getting more leadership attention 🧘‍♀️ 19- Technology is making personalization easier and more effective 🎯 20- The first CRM that supports the CSM work launched (HubSpot) 🧡 21- The skills learned in CS are highly transferable across industries 🌍 22- We're finally unifying the data to tailor the customer experience 🏅 23- The job market for CS professionals is showing genuine recovery 📈 24- The CS community is more supportive and collaborative than ever 🤙 25- Customer success is recognized as a revenue-generating function 💸 26- Networking opportunities have expanded through digital platforms 💻 27- Learning resources for CS professionals are abundant and accessible 📚 28- The stigma around customer success as a "nice to have" is disappearing 🔥 Customer Success is growing and it's becoming better. Despite the hurdles, there’s nowhere else I'd rather be. Who's ready for another revolution around the sun, making a real impact? Let’s go! - 📧 Join thousands of others learning to ace their CS roles by subscribing to my newsletter. (link below) #CustomerSuccess #SaaS #CustomerExperience #CSM #revops

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Maximize your grant impact and secure long-term funding with these 7 best practices for post-award grant management. 🚀 Read our e-book for expert tips. https://hubs.la/Q02xFt9-0

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Are you ready for the new FCC TCPA rules? What are you listening for... trigger words only?!? What if I said that only captures 1 out of 5 of the explicit requests to revoke consent..... There's a better way - check out our latest blog post #compliantoutreach #FCCRules

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The PT industry needs more transparency so we're sharing our data. Here's operational benchmark data for PT practices in California - Let's dive in 👇 Average days until documentation completion - 5.16 days Average units per visit - 3.021 First pass clean claim rate - 97.01% (average) Denial Rate - 4.3% (average) Average Reimbursement Per Visit - $86.58 Top Payers in CA: CA Medicare South - $107.45 MedRisk - $106.04 Align Networks - $89.06 American Speciality Health - $87.78 Curious to see more benchmark data like this for other states? Comment "StrataPT" below and I'll DM you a link to them! #physicaltherapy

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#NonprofitLeaders, how many systems are you using to manage your current #Fundraising, #Marketing, #OnlineGiving, #VolunteerManagement, & #RobustReporting functions? Omatic's recent Nonprofit Tech Ecosystem Trend report breaks down the growing complexities NPOs face with evolving tech. "Siloed systems and lack of integration result in supporter data living in different locations, forcing teams to manually consolidate or reconcile the data into a more usable state. This often comes with consequences such as data inaccuracies or delays in fundraising campaigns, as teams spend time fixing data instead of more meaningful work to help drive their mission forward." This is exactly why so many Nonprofits are choosing #Consolidation & #Automation in a modern tech stack like Virtuous 💻 Virtuous is a true 7-in-1 Nonprofit-specific platform that consolidates: Fundraising, Marketing Automation, Online Giving, Donor Signals, Volunteer Management, Moves Management, & robust BI Reporting, all into ONE platform. Learn more here 👉 https://virtuous.org/ #BuildBetter

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Are you looking to hire a Director of Product who is a B2B pro for SaaS companies?! Let's set you up with a time to speak with this candidate! 💠 FlanStaff - Director of Product - Texas/Remote 💠 Headhunter Notes - This candidate is a Product Pro! She has led product teams as large as 35 people. She has worked for large companies as well as small to mid sized companies. She is an expert when it comes to B2B and is super comfortable speaking with clients and has run products from Zero to One several times.  She is located out of McKinney, TX and is comfortable with a hybrid or remote opportunity. Resume Notes: 💠 Proven Leadership in Product Management: Successfully directed product vision and strategy across multiple companies, leading high-performing teams to deliver transformative solutions and drive revenue growth. 💠 Expertise in AI and Cutting-edge Technologies: Implemented advanced technologies, including AI Sentiment Analysis and generative AI, to enhance customer interactions and operational efficiency, improving response times and service quality. 💠 Successful Product Lifecycle Management: Managed end-to-end product lifecycle processes, from market research and discovery to competitive intelligence and go-to-market strategies, ensuring successful product launches and market penetration. 💠 Strong Strategic Planning and Execution: Developed and executed comprehensive product strategies, integrating new acquisitions, and aligning cross-functional teams to achieve business objectives and enhance user experience. 💠 Award-winning Product Innovation: Recognized with multiple awards for outstanding contributions in product management, including generating significant revenue through innovative product introductions and successful market strategies. #ProductManagement #Hiring #DirectorOfProduct #SaaS #TechJobs #B2B #RemoteWork #ProductLeadership #Innovation #AI #hiring #Imhiring #Product

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I was talking to one of our #CustomerSuccess teams at AlertMedia and lamenting how much I hate the LinkedIn posts that say 'the QBR is dead.' They told me I should write a post about it so here we go... I've been on the road a lot this month and in talking with customers, several of them have gone out of their way to tell me how valuable they find that dedicated hour to review metrics and usage and strategize with us about how to increase adoption or drive further new use cases going forward. In fact, some executives have told me they look forward to these meetings. These customers have worked with our team to tailor the presentations such that the data and insights presented are not only VALUABLE for them but for their leadership team and business more broadly. At AlertMedia this year we're going to set a record in terms of the number of QBRs we've conducted. It's really not going to be close. And I'm confident that customers keep doing QBRs with us because they truly find value in them. It's not that the QBR is dead, it's that you aren't giving your customers any value from the meeting. Try adding things your customers deem valuable and see what happens. Rant over.

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#CIO insights

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This just in.....It's Tomorrow Tuesday. Where we try to accurately predict where SDR leadership will go.....in the world of Tomorrow! RevOps - Ensuring your system is set up to collect data to optimize the revenue cycle, designing territories, streamlining lead to close conversion, and ensure data driven focus as you grow and expand your business. Congrats SDR leaders, we're going play an important part in this day to day. Less and less will you work with an ops partner, you will more and more likely be that ops partner. This can only come as teams operate on a leaner model, fewer, but more productive SDRs. Ideal ratios will start to look like 4-5 to one manager, as opposed to 7-10 per manager. Something to think about. Any prediction you'd like to add?

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If you are a #CSM then ask yourself this question every morning when you start work: "Why...?" And no...it is NOT: "Why...am I here?" 😅 As every CSM or #CS leader knows - every day in CS is a busy one. You have a long to-do list. Many KPIs to hit. Customers reaching out. Leaders asking you for things. Meetings back-to-back. It's easy to get overwhelmed. It is even easier to get distracted. And almost impossible to optimize your time. That is where "Why?" comes into the picture. When you start your day (or finish the previous day): 📆 Look at what you have on the calendar 📋 Look at your inevitable to-do list 📲 Look at your meetings for the day 🕺🏽 Look at how much "free" time you have that day Now consider your short-term goals & KPIs: weekly/monthly And consider your medium-term goals & KPIs: Quarterly/qualitative Here is where you ask yourself, "Why?" - Why should I spend time on this activity? - Why is that meeting important (or how to make it important)? - Why is this task at the top of my list? - Why, why, why... If the answer does not include something in line with..."because it best helps me get to this goal or KPI"...then you probably should not prioritize it. The reality in CS is that you never have enough time. There is always more. You can even spend TOO much time on GOOD activities. So don't waste it. Ask "why?". And maximize each day. *** 🛎️ If you enjoy my content, follow me for more ♻️ Repost to share with your network #CS #customersuccess #accountmanagement #timemanagement #csvalue #revsetter

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If you’re doing outbound sales, start at the top. If you catch the attention of the C-Suite, and they forward your email because they don’t have time… the recipient (likely the actual decision maker) will feel more obligated to get a demo. Think about it: How many times have you demoed software because YOU replied to a sales email? -versus- How many times have you demoed software because your boss or your boss’s boss forwarded you an email and said “can you look into this software?” - You feel obligated to get at least look into it and probably get a demo. #B2BSales #B2BMarketing

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Does prepping for that donor meeting take forever? Does it take weeks to get ready for a board or client meeting? Meet Agentforce. Join us for an introduction to Agentforce and how the nonprofit industry can use agents to scale your already strapped resources. Understand why having agents helps to supplement your job and not replace it. Get inspired on how you might use agents at your organization today.

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🎙️Sharing a clip from episode 1, season 3 of #RevOpsUnboxed. I think it's important for the #CSuite and #CROs to understand the downstream impacts silos create in their orgs. There's no perfect structure, but mitigating the friction between "Hand-off" points (a term I just despise but that's for another post) is critical. I have worked in quite a few orgs of different sizes and stages over the years and work with many leaders in other orgs to have perspective on this... There's always pros and cons, I get it, and there's no perfect solution, but keeping the #customer in the center is what's critical. 🔥🚀🌶️Here are some notes from the clip, also check out the full episode, it's a little spicy this one! 🚀🌶️🔥 👉Customer-Centric Focus: The ultimate priority should always be the customer. Organizations must ensure their structure supports seamless customer experiences from lead generation to onboarding and beyond. 👉Metrics: It's time to move beyond box-checking metrics. Instead of worrying about the MQL box being checked, for example, focus on whether leads convert to quality deals and ultimately satisfied customers! 👉Strategic Structure: A well-thought-out organizational setup is crucial. From the C-suite down to functional areas like #RevOps, every part of the structure should align with the goal of delivering exceptional customer experiences and driving revenue growth. 🎥Here's the YouTube version if you want the full video: https://lnkd.in/em9Pm68U 🎧Full episode: https://lnkd.in/eCPkwzPP #Leadership #CustomerExperience #RevenueOperations #Revenue #CustomerJourney #OrganizationalStructure #RevenueEnablement #SalesOps #MarketingOps #CSOps #SalesEnablement Warren Zenna Sales Enablement Collective Revenue Operations Alliance Rebecca Stewart Vivek Gulati Will Burden Jack Debono Rose Johnstone

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Your Sales to CS handoff process needs work. Call Comcast and you'll get a full lesson in how not to treat customers. Ask them to go through a bunch of prompts and repeat the issue 20x before speaking to an agent. You are probably thinking: well our process isn't THAT bad. Are you sure? I bet your process looks something like this: 1. Someone submits a lead or responds to an outbound message (information sharing 1) 2. A BDR follows up to qualify them and set a meeting (person 1, information sharing 2) 3. An AE sets up a Discovery meeting (person 2, information sharing 3) 4. 60-90 day sales cycle (information sharing 4-5) 5. Closed won, handed to implementation for 30 days (person 3, information sharing 6) 6. Moved over to CS (person 4, information sharing 7) Imagine the frustration customers have when they have to share the same info (company information, business problems, etc.) 7 times to 4 different people. It sucks! I had a great time talking about the broken handoff processes in SaaS with Cory Pitt on the Wiser AI podcast.

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Implementation is critical to retention We all know this and at Avoma we’ve spent a lot of time over the past year revamping our Implementation process I’ve been focused on how we can make our process more and more consultative.  Focused on how we can bring metrics into the process more.  Focused on measuring value early on. All important but to be honest there is one thing I’ve taken my eyes off of. Getting personally involved during the process. I’ll reach out to our strategic accounts and ensure the implementation is going according to plan but took my eyes off the others. As fast as we’ve been moving it just fell off my list of focus items. I’m adding a personal check-in into our flow now and refocused on this. But it was a good reminder to sometimes take a step back, really look at the entire process, what you are trying to achieve, and ensure that nothing is missed. CS leaders, what are you doing to add value during the implementation process? 

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Are you looking to track how people engage with your app to improve engagement and retention? I shared an Event Tracking Plan on Reforge Artifacts. I created it 4 years ago just before the pandemic. Some of it will need updating, but it's still a solid point of reference for anyone looking to add a tool like Segment, Mixpanel or Amplitude into their stack. You can access it here - https://lnkd.in/eujzjMJp

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Sometimes the ROI is not just cost savings. You need to ensure you are looking at each component of ROI with your technology. This is why we take a holistic approach at Ask Bob AI to addressing internal Q&A. We don't just stop with integrating into your help desk, email and IM platforms. No, we keep continual track of all questions and answers looking for where the documented information might be wrong. This allows for you to keep all of your documentation compliant and up to date, avoiding any costly mistakes. Secondly we leverage AI to analyze the questions being asked and help in determining if there are areas of improvement in communication around onboarding, M&A or any other aspect of the organization. If you are interested in learning more and Ask Bob AI saving you a boatload of money then shoot me a DM. Happy Tuesday!

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ZoomInfo Copilot is working 24/7 — surfacing important updates you should know about your top accounts.  With breaking alerts delivered via Slack, you'll never miss when a buying group shifts or a key account spikes on intent. 🔔 Have a question about one of your accounts? Ask Copilot's interactive, AI-powered chat and get answers in seconds.  Ready to give Copilot a try? Request a demo: bit.ly/3Kj4myP #ZoomInfoCopilot

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