How To Build A Customer Marketing Framework

The starting point is the same as any GTM process. You need to build a playbook/ framework and strategy for the outcomes of customer marketing. The first question you need to ask yourself is does your business model fit making customer marketing a priority?

Map 3 stages of the customer journey overlaid on the BowTie and processes with your CRM.

There are 3 elements to your framework.

1. Onboarding - Sales pipeline: Closed won. Example marketing ideas include ‘Welcome email’, enrol into a private customer newsletter, tech and commercial enablement e.g. training, demos, sales packs, give customers access to marketing and sales materials to help them to promote your product and/or Marketing Development Funds (tiered).

2. Impact - Implementation & Customer Success pipelines. Example marketing ideas include exclusive newsletter with new products, events tech releases, product webinars, feedback opportunities e.g. NPS, co-marketing stories, events, client gifts and ongoing training opportunities.

3. Growth - Customer Success pipeline. Example marketing ideas include targeted product launches, ABM marketing, NPS surveys, incentives, referrals, special offers, exclusives to test new products and account-based selling deployed.

Building out the customer marketing plan needs to be a collaborative effort between Customer Success, Sales and Marketing. To be successful, you have to have clear cross-sell / up-sell revenue goals, with account plans for named accounts (Tier 1) and other (Tier 2 and Tier 3 accounts). These can be defined by revenue, size and opportunity. Success needs to be tracked in the BowTie, exactly the same as net new pipeline reporting.

Marketing needs to ensure the framework is focused on revenue outcomes and building customer advocacy.

Customer Marketing needs to own the end-to-end customer experience, a versatile resource working cross functionally to get results in underlying revenue streams.