Set up the Playbook

How are you setting up your customer for success?

My 9 month old daughter is in her infancy progressing through the crawl, walk, run methodology. She is at step numero uno in the three step process. Nonetheless, I am thoroughly amazed and in horror of her determination. I watch as she overcomes obstacles like the Mayflower crossing the Atlantic (glances over to Mas400.com). She falls, she tumbles, she endures. I love it and so proud of her! The other day I setup an obstacle course with foam barriers in the way of her prized possession…a banana chew toy (best $7 I’ve ever spent — https://amzn.to/3u1AT2P). Each mountain she overcomes, her smile gets bigger till she finally reaches victory. It’s beautiful!

My kids are the largest influence on my life right now, which makes for a great analogy to apply to Customer Success. Therefore, to continue Hayden’s walking evolution, I began thinking, “How can I foster her growth? How can I enable her to reach her next milestone?” These are the same questions we should be asking ourselves of our customers:

• • How can I help my customer be successful?
• • Are the actions I take today (tomorrow) going to create long term growth for the client?
• • How can I help them to accomplish their next milestone?

For my cute daughter, the answer was simple and effective. It is a device that has proven to work through centuries. I invested in a baby walker. Therefore, placed an online order to the local big box store and picked the brightest colored one with tiny alligators that make noise as Hayden journeys forward! This may be a small investment, but one that will accelerate progress. Moreover, the satisfaction I see in her face as she accomplishes her goals are priceless!

Investments we make in our customers can be small or large. More times than not, the small impact events create big waves to downstream relationship building. Start with the small stuff and watch your customer grow! I challenge you to answer those questions for yourself. Be mindful of your actions on a daily basis. If you are reacting to situations, then take a step back and analyze the current course. Are you reacting because that is what is known and comfortable? Are you reacting because there is an overload of errors and hurdles? What kind of “walker” can you put in place to accelerate a customer's goals and reach their milestones? As with any relationship, communication should be your first priority. The communication sets the foundation and enables you to take action on small/big impactful events. Be proactive and assertive in communication with your customer and drive their goals in IBM Cloud. If you run into hurdles, ask for help early and often!

And…no family story is complete without a video of Hayden is action: