We have such high hopes for customers, don’t we? They’ll breeze through onboarding like champions. Collaborate on a success plan with a level of excitement appropriate to the new season of “The Pitt.” Explore every feature, deploy every asset, exceed all expectations, and attain ROI in record time.

That would be wonderful, but perfection is rare. As we considered how to align personalization to the B2B customer lifecycle (Forrester license required), we recognized the value of personalization to engage customers in a meaningful way throughout their postsale journey, whether they are brand-new users, seasoned pros, or learners whose experience diverges from its intended path.

How To Stay Organized, Not Overwhelmed

Marketing leaders are more likely to say they use personalization for marketing and sales than for customer engagement. That gap is closing as postsale engagement practitioners in customer marketing, customer success, and customer service discover more opportunities to use personalization.

A lot more opportunities, courtesy of AI. Shape content to specific industries or personas. Flag risk signals so customer success can get ahead of issues. Customize an approach and recognize sentiment at the individual and account level.

The choices can overwhelm, but The Forrester Postsale Customer Lifecycle Framework offers a solution. This foundational framework creates a structure for identifying and prioritizing interactions where personalization would raise the bar on customer engagement, showing customers that the offering matches their needs and expectations.

How To Use Personalization For New Customers

The initiate phase of the postsale journey begins when the (metaphorical) ink dries on the first contract. It includes welcome, onboarding, data enhancement and reconciliation, implementation, and early adoption. Personalization helps customers feel “known.” While decision-makers and champions play large roles in buying decisions, sellers should not assume that end users or their managers know a lot about the offering. You must bring them up to speed.

Where can personalization help? Personalized interactions and content should reflect individual roles in the postsale relationship, acknowledging newness rather than treating all contacts as if they fully understand the offering and expectations.

How Personalization Can Enhance End Users’ Experience

In the participate phase of the postsale customer lifecycle, customers and the company settle into their relationship. Customers are using the solution they purchased and exploring other parts of the ecosystem through partners, online communities, influencers, peers, and knowledge bases. Some end users’ experience will align with your ideal; others will struggle and require more help.

Where can personalization help? Personalization in next-step recommendations and learning content supports users who need it, while interactions with those who are advancing encourage them to continue their accomplishments and celebrate their milestones.

How To Use Personalization To Drive Renewal And Upsell

In the actualize phase of the postsale customer lifecycle, the company and the customer have solidified their relationship and can articulate customer value. This phase includes a commercial component in which the customer renews, repurchases, or expands their commitment with additional products and outreach to other buying centers.

Where can personalization help? Personalization can streamline self-serve renewals and purchases and highlight specific successes in the run-up to a renewal. It also supports cross-sell and upsell opportunities.

How To Use Personalization To Find Success Stories

In the advocate phase of the postsale customer lifecycle, the relationship evolves as some customers become active promoters, sharing their success stories with buyers (Forrester license required), other customers, and influencers. This phase is highly personal, as advocates, while representing their company, act as individuals when providing a quote or testimonial.

Where can personalization help? Personalize advocates’ experience with an eye toward the symbolic and experiential value that defines high-performing advocacy programs in B2B.

Forrester clients can start the journey to improving customer personalization by taking the B2B Personalization Maturity Assessment. Then schedule a guidance session to turn your assessment results into action.