Customer Success

Customer Success ensures clients achieve their goals with a company's products or services, driving satisfaction, retention, and growth.

Performance Management

Effective performance management in Customer Success uses KPIs as a compass—not just a scoreboard. The goal is to guide behavior, foster growth, and reward what truly creates customer value. To align individual and team efforts around the KPIs that drive customer and business outcomes, and to create a feedback loop for continuous improvement.

Combine regular 1:1s and team reviews with quarterly performance check-ins. Discuss progress by KPI, highlight customer stories behind the numbers, and co-create action plans for areas behind target. Celebrate wins publicly, and use misses as learning moments—not blame.

Focus Areas and Top KPIs

Focus Area	Top KPIs
Customer Retention & Churn Prevention	- Customer Retention Rate - Net Revenue Churn - Customer Churn Rate - Churn Risk Score - Customer Downgrade Rate
Customer Health & Engagement	- Customer Health Score - Customer Engagement Score - Onboarding Completion Rate - Activation Rate - Feature Adoption Rate (Ongoing)
Expansion & Growth	- Expansion Revenue Growth Rate - Expansion Opportunity Score - Activation-to-Expansion Rate - Expansion Revenue Rate - Expansion Activation Rate
Advocacy & Referrals	- Net Promoter Score - Referral Program Participation Rate - Referral Conversion Rate - Referral-Driven Expansion Revenue - Referral Opportunity Pipeline Contribution Rate
Operational Efficiency	- Average Resolution Time - Cost Per Ticket - Check-In Impact Score - First Contact Resolution - Customer Satisfaction Score

Frameworks for Metric Selection

Choosing the right metrics is about clarity, not quantity. A focused framework helps Customer Success teams prioritize KPIs that actually move the needle—so you don’t drown in dashboards or chase vanity numbers. To structure how you select, validate, and evolve the KPIs that matter most for customer health and business impact.

Customer Journey Alignment

Map KPIs directly to key stages in the customer lifecycle to ensure metrics reflect real customer progress and outcomes.

Key Stages / Examples

• Onboarding: Onboarding Completion Rate, Time to First Value
• Adoption: Customer Engagement Score, Feature Adoption Rate (Ongoing)
• Value Realization: Net Revenue Retention, Expansion Revenue Growth Rate
• Advocacy: Referral Program Participation Rate, Net Promoter Score

Leading vs. Lagging Indicators

Balance proactive (leading) metrics with outcome-based (lagging) metrics to spot risks early and prove impact.

Key Stages / Examples

• Leading: Customer Health Score, Onboarding Completion Rate
• Lagging: Customer Retention Rate, Net Revenue Churn

Actionability Filter

Prioritize metrics your team can directly influence or respond to, ensuring every KPI leads to a clear next step.

Key Stages / Examples

• If Customer Effort Score drops, trigger a workflow for CSM outreach.
• If Expansion Opportunity Score rises, flag the account for upsell playbook.

Reporting Cadence and Structure

Consistent, purposeful reporting keeps everyone aligned and ensures data drives action—not just observation. The right cadence brings focus, while a clear structure makes trends and insights impossible to ignore. To ensure Customer Success metrics inform daily actions, weekly priorities, and strategic decisions, without overwhelming the team.

Cadence Overview

• Level: Team and Leadership
• Frequency: Weekly (team), Monthly (leadership), Quarterly (executive review)
• Audience: Customer Success managers, CS leadership, cross-functional stakeholders (e.g., Product, Sales), Executive team

Examples

• Weekly: Churn Risk Score trends, new Expansion Opportunity Scores, recent Customer Satisfaction Score results
• Monthly: Cohort Retention Analysis, Net Revenue Retention breakdowns, Expansion Revenue Growth Rate
• Quarterly: Customer Retention Rate, Customer Downgrade Rate, Check-In Impact Score, strategic QBR learnings

Standard Report Structure

• Executive Summary
• Key Metrics & Trends
• Customer Health Highlights
• Churn & Expansion Risks
• Actions & Next Steps
• Wins & Learnings

Common Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them

Even the best-intentioned teams can fall into data traps. Awareness of these pitfalls keeps your culture focused, agile, and outcome-driven—not lost in the weeds. To help Customer Success leaders sidestep common mistakes that undermine the value of metrics, ensuring data remains a tool for progress, not confusion.

Frequent Pitfalls and How to Avoid Them:

Issue	Solution
Tracking too many metrics or chasing vanity numbers.	Focus on a manageable set of KPIs tightly aligned to customer outcomes and business impact. Review regularly and prune non-essential metrics.
Inconsistent definitions across teams or systems.	Standardize metric definitions and document them in a shared knowledge base. Review them with all stakeholders before each new reporting cycle.
Using lagging indicators exclusively, reacting after the fact.	Balance with leading indicators that allow for proactive intervention and course correction.
Overcomplicating reports, making insights hard to find.	Stick to a clear reporting structure and highlight actionable insights, not just raw data.
Failing to connect metrics to daily action.	Embed KPI review into team rituals and tie metrics to specific playbooks or workflows.

How to build a Data-Aware Culture

A data-aware Customer Success culture isn’t built overnight—it’s shaped by intentional habits, shared wins, and a commitment to learning from every customer story the numbers reveal. To create an environment where data is trusted, shared, and used to drive better customer outcomes—making every team member a steward of customer success.

Foundational Elements

• Clear, shared definitions for every KPI
• Easy access to real-time, trustworthy data
• Leadership buy-in and visible use of metrics
• Regular, open discussion of results and learnings

Team Practices

• Kick off team meetings with a KPI spotlight and customer story.
• Celebrate data-driven wins and experiments—big or small.
• Run post-mortems on churned accounts with both qualitative and quantitative insights.
• Encourage cross-functional sharing of key metrics (e.g., with Product, Sales, Marketing).
• Document and share learnings from both successes and setbacks.

Maturity Stages

Stage	Description
Foundational	Metrics are tracked and shared, but definitions and usage are inconsistent. Data is referenced, but not central to decision-making.
Emerging	Key metrics are standardized and regularly reviewed. The team starts using data to drive customer interventions and share insights cross-functionally.
Established	Data is embedded in daily workflows and playbooks. The team proactively leverages leading indicators to improve outcomes and regularly iterates on KPIs.
Advanced	Customer Success is a trusted source of insights for the wider business. Data-driven culture is self-sustaining, and experimentation is encouraged to unlock new value.

Why Data Aware Culture Matter

A data-aware culture in Customer Success is the difference between reacting to churn and proactively building lasting customer relationships. By grounding decisions in reliable metrics, your team can spot opportunities, address risks early, and scale what works. It empowers everyone to act confidently, knowing they're guided by facts, not hunches. To help Customer Success teams make smarter, faster decisions that drive retention, expansion, and advocacy by embedding data into daily workflows, conversations, and strategy.

Relevant Topics:

• Prevents costly surprises by identifying churn or expansion risks early.
• Aligns the team around clear goals and shared definitions of success.
• Enables scalable, repeatable processes—not just heroics or gut feel.
• Builds trust with customers and leadership through transparency and accountability.
• Unlocks continuous improvement by turning data into actionable insights.

Other Related KPIs

Metric	Description
Activated-to-Follow-Up Engagement Rate	Activated-to-Follow-Up Engagement Rate measures the percentage of activated users who engage with the product again within a specific time window. It helps evaluate short-term retention and stickiness post-activation.
Activation Rate	Activation Rate measures the percentage of users who reach a predefined milestone that signifies meaningful initial engagement or product adoption. This milestone, often referred to as "activation," represents the moment when users experience the core value of the product for the first time.
Activation-to-Expansion Rate	Activation-to-Expansion Rate measures the percentage of activated accounts that go on to expand—typically by adding users, upgrading plans, or increasing usage. It helps assess whether activation is leading to monetization and account growth.
Active Feature Usage Rate	Active Feature Usage Rate measures the percentage of active users who engage with a specific feature within a given time period. It helps determine the feature’s relevance, discoverability, and stickiness.
Advocate Re-Engagement Rate	Advocate Re-Engagement Rate measures the percentage of previously engaged brand advocates who return and participate in a new activity (e.g., referral, review, or campaign). It helps assess brand loyalty and the strength of your advocacy program.
Average Customer Lifespan	Average Customer Lifespan (ACL) refers to the total duration a customer remains actively engaged with a company’s product or service. It’s an estimated timeframe from the point of customer acquisition to churn, during which the customer is actively using, purchasing, or subscribing to the product.
Average Purchase Frequency	Average Purchase Frequency (APF) is a metric that measures how often customers make a purchase within a specified time period. It provides insight into customer behavior and the consistency of their interactions with a brand.
Average Resolution Time	Average Resolution Time (ART) measures the average amount of time it takes to fully resolve a customer issue or support ticket from the moment it is raised to when it is marked as resolved.
Average Returning Revenue	Average Returning Revenue (ARR) represents the total predictable and recurring revenue a company expects to generate annually from its subscription-based products or services.
Average Revenue Per Expansion Account	Average Revenue Per Expansion Account measures the average revenue generated from accounts that have expanded—via upgrades, add-ons, or usage increases—over a defined period. It helps assess expansion efficiency and account growth potential.
Breadth of Use	Breadth of Use measures the number of distinct features, modules, or product areas used by a single customer or account. It helps assess product adoption depth and customer stickiness.
Check-In Impact Score	Check-In Impact Score measures the correlation between customer success check-ins and positive business outcomes (e.g., retention, expansion, product usage). It helps quantify the value of proactive account engagement.
Churn Risk Score	Churn Risk Score is a predictive metric that estimates the likelihood of a customer canceling or downgrading within a given period. It helps identify at-risk accounts for proactive retention efforts.
CLTV for Referred Users	CLTV for Referred Users measures the average customer lifetime value (CLTV) of users who were acquired through a referral. It helps assess the long-term value of referral-driven acquisition.
Cohort Retention Analysis	Cohort retention analysis involves tracking a group of users (a cohort) over time to measure how many of them continue using a product or service, providing insights into retention and churn patterns.
Community Growth Rate	Community Growth Rate measures the percentage increase in members of your brand’s community over time. It helps track momentum, awareness, and the success of community-led strategies.
Contract Renewal Rate	Contract Renewal Rate measures the percentage of expiring customer contracts that are renewed within a given period. It helps track customer retention, revenue continuity, and CS performance.
Converted PQL Lifetime Value	Converted PQL Lifetime Value measures the average lifetime revenue from product-qualified leads (PQLs) who convert to paying customers. It helps evaluate the revenue impact of product-led acquisition.
Cross-Sell Conversion Rate	Cross-Sell Conversion Rate measures the percentage of existing customers who purchase additional, complementary products or services, typically during or after the initial sale. It reflects the effectiveness of cross-selling efforts aimed at increasing revenue from existing customers.
Customer Churn Rate	Churn Rate is the percentage of customers who stop using a company’s product or service during a specific period of time. It reflects the rate at which customers leave or cancel their subscriptions, typically used in SaaS and subscription-based businesses.
Customer Downgrade Rate	Customer Downgrade Rate measures the percentage of existing customers who reduce their subscription value (e.g., lower tier, fewer seats, removed features) within a given period. It helps assess product fit, pricing friction, and account health risk.
Customer Engagement Score	Customer Engagement Score measures how actively and consistently a customer is interacting with your product, content, or brand. It helps assess product adoption, value realization, and retention potential.
Customer Feedback Retention Score	Customer Feedback Retention Score measures the retention rate of customers who have provided feedback (positive, negative, or neutral). It helps assess whether engaging customers in feedback loops improves loyalty and long-term value.
Customer Feedback Score (Post-activation)	Customer Feedback Score (Post-activation) measures the average rating or sentiment provided by customers after reaching a defined product activation milestone. It helps assess product satisfaction and value delivery in early stages.
Customer Health Score	Customer Health Score (CHS) is a composite metric used to evaluate the likelihood of a customer renewing, upselling, or churning. It typically combines multiple data points related to product usage, satisfaction, engagement, and support interactions into a single, actionable score.
Customer Renewal Rate	Customer Renewal Rate measures the percentage of existing customers who renew their subscription, contract, or membership during a specific time period. It reflects how well your product or service retains its customer base over time.
Customer Retention Rate	Customer Retention Rate (CRR) measures the percentage of customers a company retains over a given period. It reflects the ability to keep customers engaged, satisfied, and loyal to the brand, minimizing churn.
Downgrade to Churn Conversion Rate	Downgrade to Churn Conversion Rate measures the percentage of customers who downgrade their plan or usage and later churn. It helps identify whether downgrades are leading indicators of customer loss.
Drop-Off Rate	Drop-Off Rate measures the percentage of users who leave a process, page, or journey before completing a desired action. This metric identifies points of friction or disengagement, helping you optimize user flows for better retention and conversion.
Exit Reason Frequency (Segmented)	Exit Reason Frequency (Segmented) measures how often specific reasons for churn or cancellation occur across different customer segments. It helps identify patterns in churn behavior and root causes by cohort.
Expansion Activation Rate	Expansion Activation Rate measures the percentage of existing accounts that adopt a new product, feature, or service that can lead to upsell or cross-sell. It helps track momentum in expansion readiness and usage.
Expansion Feature Usage Frequency	Expansion Feature Usage Frequency measures how often a specific upsell-eligible feature is used by existing accounts. It helps assess product stickiness, value realization, and readiness for expansion.
Expansion Intent Signal Rate	Expansion Intent Signal Rate measures the percentage of accounts showing behavioral or engagement signals that indicate interest in upgrading, expanding, or purchasing add-ons. It helps identify and prioritize expansion-ready accounts.
Expansion Opportunity Score	Expansion Opportunity Score is a weighted score that indicates how likely an existing customer is to expand based on usage, engagement, intent, and fit. It helps prioritize accounts for cross-sell and upsell.
Expansion Readiness Index	Expansion Readiness Index is a composite score that measures how ready an account is for an upsell or cross-sell based on behavioral, product usage, and customer fit data. It helps prioritize expansion outreach.
Expansion Revenue Rate	Expansion Revenue Rate measures the percentage of total revenue that comes from upsells, cross-sells, and account expansions within a given time period. It helps quantify the contribution of customer growth to overall revenue.
Feature Adoption Rate (Early)	Feature Adoption Rate (Early) measures the percentage of new users who use a key feature within their first few sessions or days. It helps evaluate onboarding effectiveness and early value realization.
Feature Adoption Rate (Ongoing)	Feature Adoption Rate (Ongoing) measures the percentage of active users who regularly use a key product feature over a longer period. It helps track sustained value delivery and product adoption health.
Gross Revenue Churn Rate	Gross Revenue Churn Rate measures the percentage of total recurring revenue lost due to cancellations or downgrades over a given period. It helps quantify the direct revenue impact of churn.
Lead Response Time	Lead Response Time measures the average time it takes for a sales or marketing team to follow up with a lead after their initial inquiry or interaction. It evaluates how quickly your team engages with potential customers.
Lead Response Time (Post-Onboarding)	Lead Response Time (Post-Onboarding) measures the average time it takes for a sales or success team to follow up with a newly onboarded user or lead. It helps track handoff efficiency and momentum preservation.
Onboarding Satisfaction Score (OSS)	Onboarding Satisfaction Score (OSS) measures the average satisfaction rating given by users after completing their initial onboarding experience. It helps gauge perception of ease, clarity, and helpfulness.
Percent of Accounts Completing Key Activation Milestones	Percent of Accounts Completing Key Activation Milestones measures the proportion of accounts that reach predefined, high-value activation checkpoints. It helps determine whether users are progressing toward long-term adoption.
Percent of Accounts with 3+ Activated Users	Percent of Accounts with 3+ Activated Users measures the share of accounts where at least three individual users have completed activation steps. It helps identify depth of adoption and signals potential virality or team-based expansion.
Percent of Accounts with Multi-Role Engagement	Percent of Accounts with Multi-Role Engagement measures the share of accounts where users from two or more distinct roles are actively using the product. It helps identify cross-functional adoption and account maturity.
Percent of Retained Feature Users	Percent of Retained Feature Users measures the proportion of users who continue to use a specific feature over a defined retention window. It helps assess feature stickiness and long-term value.
Post-Renewal Engagement Rate	Post-Renewal Engagement Rate measures the percentage of renewed customers who actively engage with your product or service within a defined period after renewal. It helps assess long-term retention health and expansion readiness.
QBR Engagement Rate	QBR Engagement Rate measures the percentage of eligible accounts that attend, complete, or meaningfully participate in Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs). It helps track strategic relationship strength and post-sale alignment.
Referral Churn Rate	Referral Churn Rate measures the percentage of referred customers who cancel or stop using your product within a defined period. It helps assess the retention quality of referral-acquired users or accounts.
Referral Incentive Conversion Rate	Referral Incentive Conversion Rate measures the percentage of referred users who convert (e.g., sign up, purchase, activate) after being exposed to a referral incentive. It helps track the effectiveness of rewards in driving action.
Referral Intent Identified in QBRs	Referral Intent Identified in QBRs measures the percentage of Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs) in which customers express interest or willingness to refer your product. It helps track referral readiness and advocacy opportunity among current accounts.
Referral Opportunity Pipeline Contribution Rate	Referral Opportunity Pipeline Contribution Rate measures the percentage of total sales pipeline value that originates from referred accounts. It helps quantify the influence of referrals on pipeline generation and deal velocity.
Referral Program Participation Rate	Referral Program Participation Rate measures the percentage of eligible users or customers who actively join or engage with your referral program. It helps track overall program adoption and advocate activation.
Referral Prompt Acceptance Rate	Referral Prompt Acceptance Rate measures the percentage of users who respond positively when presented with a referral prompt—e.g., clicking "Yes, I’ll refer" or continuing into the referral flow. It helps assess referral intent and the effectiveness of trigger timing.
Referral Prompt Interaction Rate	Referral Prompt Interaction Rate measures the percentage of users who engage with a referral prompt (e.g., click, hover, expand) regardless of whether they accept or decline. It helps track how effective your referral triggers are at capturing user attention.
Referral Readiness Score	Referral Readiness Score is a predictive metric that assesses how likely a user or account is to make a referral based on behavioral, usage, and sentiment signals. It helps identify high-potential advocates before they take action.
Referral Retention Rate	Referral Retention Rate measures the percentage of referred customers who remain active or subscribed over a specific time period. It helps track the quality and stickiness of referral-driven acquisition.
Referral-Driven Expansion Revenue	Referral-Driven Expansion Revenue measures the amount of expansion revenue (upsells, cross-sells, or seat growth) that originates from referred customers or accounts. It helps track the long-term revenue impact of referral-acquired users.
Referral-Ready Account Rate	Referral-Ready Account Rate measures the percentage of accounts that meet internal criteria indicating they are ready to be prompted for a referral. It helps identify which customers are best positioned to refer based on health, engagement, or satisfaction signals.
Referred Account Net Revenue Retention (NRR)	Referred Account Net Revenue Retention (NRR) measures the revenue retained and expanded from referred customer accounts over time, factoring in upsell, cross-sell, contraction, and churn. It helps quantify the long-term revenue quality of referrals.
Relationship Depth Score	Relationship Depth Score measures the strength and breadth of engagement between your team and customer stakeholders across roles, levels, and functions. It helps assess account health, expansion potential, and advocacy readiness.
Repeat Purchase Rate	Repeat Purchase Rate (RPR) measures the percentage of customers who make more than one purchase within a specified period. It’s a key indicator of customer loyalty and the effectiveness of retention strategies.
Revenue Churn Rate	Revenue Churn Rate measures the percentage of recurring revenue lost during a specific period due to customer cancellations, downgrades, or non-renewals. It is a key metric for subscription-based or recurring revenue models, highlighting the impact of customer attrition on revenue.
Sentiment Analysis (Sales + Social)	Sentiment Analysis (Sales + Social) measures the tone (positive, neutral, negative) of feedback and conversations related to your brand across sales call transcripts and social media platforms. It helps track brand perception, objection patterns, and positioning effectiveness.
Strategic Referral Win Rate	Strategic Referral Win Rate measures the percentage of referred opportunities from high-value sources (e.g., customers, partners, advisors) that convert into closed-won deals. It helps assess the effectiveness and revenue impact of strategic referral programs.
Time Between Logins (Post-Activation)	Time Between Logins (Post-Activation) measures the average time elapsed between logins for users who have already completed activation. It helps track engagement frequency and detect signs of drop-off or stickiness in the user experience.
Time to Exceed Value	Time to Exceed Value (TTEV) measures the time it takes for users to perceive that a product or service has exceeded their expectations or delivered greater-than-expected benefits. It’s a customer success metric that highlights when a user transitions from simply meeting their needs to experiencing delight or exceeding their goals.
Time to Expansion Signal	Time to Expansion Signal measures the average time it takes for an account or user to exhibit clear behavior that indicates readiness or potential for upsell, cross-sell, or plan expansion. It helps identify product maturity timing and sales opportunity windows.
Time to First Contact	Time to First Contact measures the time elapsed between a user or lead’s initial conversion event (e.g., signup, form submission, demo request) and your team’s first outreach or response. It helps assess responsiveness and lead handling speed.
Time to First Habitual Action	Time to First Habitual Action measures the average time it takes a user to perform a recurring, value-driving action for the second or third time — indicating the start of habit formation. It helps assess how quickly users are becoming engaged and sticky.
Time to First Key Action	Time to First Key Action measures the average time it takes for a new user to complete a product’s primary activation event — often referred to as the “aha moment.” It helps track how quickly users begin experiencing real value.
Time to Value (Expansion Features)	Time to Value (Expansion Features) measures the average time it takes for users or accounts to adopt and gain value from premium or advanced features after their initial onboarding or activation. It helps assess expansion readiness and product maturity velocity.
Warm Introduction Offer Rate	Warm Introduction Offer Rate measures the percentage of customers, partners, or users who are asked or prompted to provide a warm introduction to a relevant contact. It helps assess how often teams or workflows are activating social referrals as part of GTM efforts.