If you work in the SaaS environment, you know you need to convince customers every month that they need to renew. And you know your company spends a huge amount of money getting customers into and through the purchasing funnel. To help customers see value and renew the subscriptions, customers must see the value post-sales. A content strategy consultant, like Anthrobytes Media, can help you use product instructions to help your customers. Customers prefer self-service.
This part of the funnel is critical in product-led growth framework because the product is selling the product. And customers need a rich information ecosystem that helps them use the product.
Most companies are failing this part of the funnel.
Product-led growth and content ecosystems
Companies are concerned with showing value to their customers. Often, companies help customers see value post-sales, with Account Managers meeting with customers for Quarterly Business Reviews (QBR). These meetings are staff intensive (expensive) and intrusive (bothersome) to customers.
While there is value in QBRs, reserve these meetings for large customers who “pay” for these meetings. Don’t touch smaller customers frequently because the dollar value of the potential sale isn’t worth the effort.
In product led growth, the product sells itself because the value of the product is obvious to the customer. The value of the product should be obvious. That means the customer functionally needs to poke at it until they figure out how to solve their pain points. Post-sales content, like in-app guides and knowledge bases help customers get to using the product faster.
What your ecosystem needs
Companies need to demonstrate value to their customers, often through post-sales interactions like Quarterly Business Reviews (QBRs). While QBRs can be valuable, they are costly and intrusive, making them more suitable for large clients. Smaller customers should find value in the product without frequent meetings.
A content strategy consultant can enhance the post-sales journey by providing the necessary content for customers to reach the “Ah-ha!” moment independently. Anthrobytes Media excels in crafting content ecosystems that empower customers to solve their problems with minimal support interaction. Research shows customers prefer self-service, seeking clear, useful instructions over endless FAQs.
Effective post-sales self-serve content should include some or all of the following, depending on your product:
1. Targeted Guides and Tutorials
Guides and tutorials help customers get started with the product. These should be easy to follow and available at the point of information need. For examples of excellent guides and tutorials, go look at Salesforce or Intuit.
2. Comprehensive Knowledge Base
A well-organized knowledge base in Zendesk or other tool with searchable articles helps customers quickly find answers. Content should be concise and written in simple language. We always recommend Clear Writing as the best way to help your customers understand the content.
3. Interactive Content
Interactive content, such as videos and in-app walkthroughs, can engage customers more effectively than text alone. Visual aids can simplify complex procedures. Quality visuals, like videos with subtitles, work well in many markets. People like videos under 3 minutes, as after that point, the information load is too hard.
4. Feedback Mechanisms
Implement feedback systems to continuously improve your content. Customer feedback helps identify gaps and areas for enhancement. Your company needs to understand what’s working and what needs to improve. You can also learn about information gaps.
5. Regular Updates
Keep content up-to-date with product changes and new features. Regular updates ensure customers always have accurate and relevant information. We recommend at least quarterly updates to keep the content fresh and instill confidence the company is engaged with the product. Stale content looks like you abandoned the product.
Develop a strategy
Throwing all of these at a customer is a lot. Your product may not need all of them, or you may want to stage these out. Deciding what to start with requires a strategy and a plan.
You need a content strategy consultant to help create the strategy for the post-sales customer journey. Anthrobytes Media can help. We’re experienced with identifying the product led growth framework content ecosystem your customers need to get to the “Ah-ha!” moment you want. We know how to help your customers help themselves to see the value of the product and how it solves their pain points.
Customers prefer self-service. All the research shows no one wants to talk to support. It’s intrusive, frustrating, and not a good customer experience. What customers want is to answer their questions themselves, and that doesn’t mean an endless list of FAQs in the knowledge base. They want clear, useful instructions at the point of need to help them use the product to solve their problems.
Content strategy consultants help with post-sales information
How do you show value to these customers post-sales? Useful, timely technical information customers can actually use, delivered at the point of information need.
We help you define quality technical content for your environment and your customers and then customize a content strategy implementation plan to get there. We can help your team implement that plan or leave it to your team.
If needed, we can also help your team create that content, or we can train them to create technical information that humans can understand and use.
Learn more
These areas tell you more about the services Anthrobytes Media can provide to your company. Take a look around and then reach out to us. Let’s talk about what you need and how we can help.
- Content strategy
- Content audits
- Content tools
- Content development
- Content management
- Content training
- DAM management
- Product photography