People muddle fulfillment and customer onboarding
I know. I know. It’s easy to do. They sort of happen simultaneously. At least, they kick off at the same time. The outcome of doing either badly can be the same thing – churn.
People buy your digital product; you take their money and you give it to them. You thank them. In addition, you send a welcome message. You record the transaction. Update data bases, change them from lead to customer.
In some ways it is a touchpoint that is largely actions you take. You give. They receive.
It does need to be done right. Or the transaction, well, fails. And you are met with a refund request.
But that’s fulfillment, not onboarding. A small voice inside says onboarding is different. Hmmmm.
Onboarding sounds like something that you do for your customer. Still, the best onboarding is based on first actions the customer takes. You are there to guide them through it. They need to commit to doing it.
The goal of onboarding is to set the customer off onto the journey as a new customer successfully. So that they quickly begin to realize value from using the product. It is about utility. To borrow a cliché – to start as you mean to go on.
It’s an opportunity to do an assessment of what the customer really needs and make recommendations that can be tailored and personalized.
It’s a time to clarify expectations. And even if we don’t want to admit it, possibly even correct assumptions made in the sales process. Which helps to cement the agreement to continue.
Moreover, it’s a moment to encourage engagement in communities. To celebrate belonging and connection.
Certainly, for you, it’s a huge learning experience. To help understand customers better. To glean insights on what customers need to make onboarding a success. So that you can continue to improve the process.
It’s a time for customers to do things. An instance, that if you observe then you can learn a lot.
What are some of the best onboarding practices you have experienced as a customer? As a result did it inspire you in your adoption of the product?
Do you use any of these practices in your onboarding of customers?
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