Existing customers – and the retention and growth of their ARR - are the most important drivers of efficient growth. Customer Success focuses on ensuring customers get value from your product, and in turn renew and expand. In this final module, we’ll explore how to leverage Customer Success as a strategic driver for upsells, expansions, and advocacy. By aligning CS with revenue goals, you can turn existing customers into a powerful source of growth.
“Existing customers create a key flywheel of growth, driving insight, advocacy, and efficient ARR.”
Andrea Spillman-Gajek – Founder at
Customer Success Accelerators and Brighteye Mentor
1. Identifying Growth Opportunities:
Your existing customers are your best prospects for growth. In this section, we’ll cover how to identify:
Expansion Signals: Look for customers who are using your product extensively and are ready for additional features or services.
Upsell Opportunities: Recognise when customers need to upgrade plans or add new features. Use key advocates to get warm intros to other areas of the business that could use your tool.
Cross-Sell Potential: Identify complementary solutions that can increase customer value.
Top Tip: Use customer health scores and engagement data to pinpoint growth-ready customers. Healthy, satisfied customers are more likely to expand.
2. Building a Customer Advocacy Program:
Happy customers are your best marketers. We’ll discuss how to:
Identify Advocates: Find customers who have achieved success and are eager to share their story.
Gather Testimonials and Case Studies: Showcase real-world outcomes to attract new customers.
Create Referral Programs: Incentivise customers to refer others to your product.
“Advocacy is incredibly important- advocacy in B2B often looks like having customers join you on-stage at events, conferences, among others. When done right, advocacy can also help your advocates advance their career goals.”
Andrea Spillman-Gajek – Founder at
Customer Success Accelerators and Brighteye Mentor
Top Tip: Start small—ask for a short testimonial or quote. Over time, build a library of success stories that demonstrate ROI.
3. Aligning CS with Revenue Goals:
Customer Success should work hand-in-hand with Sales and Product to achieve growth targets. Key strategies include:
Account Reviews: Conduct regular reviews to uncover expansion opportunities.
Collaboration with Sales: Work with Sales to ensure a smooth handoff for upsells and renewals.
Voice of Customer Programs: Use feedback loops to drive product improvements that increase retention and revenue.
“Ensure that incentives are aligned. Sales and CS compensation plans should work in tandem to incentivise collaboration and a value-driven customer experience. Done badly, compensation plans can create tensions, competition, or a disjointed customer experience. The CS-Sales relationship is often painted as antagonistic, but when incentives are aligned and the customer experience is centred, the partnership between these teams can drive the whole company forward.”
Andrea Spillman-Gajek – Founder at
Customer Success Accelerators and Brighteye Mentor
Top Tip: CS should be a revenue-generating function, not a cost centre. Demonstrate how CS drives measurable growth. Set goals and metrics for the team aligned to ARR retention and growth that make that very clear.
Takeaways for Founders:
Identify growth opportunities within your existing customer base.
Turn satisfied customers into advocates through testimonials and referrals.
Align Customer Success with Sales and Product to drive revenue growth.
Use CS as a strategic tool to increase customer lifetime value.
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