Why SaaS Companies And Startups Should Stop Focusing On Metrics Sometimes.
Sometimes, your competition is just better. They might be doing better. That’s okay, you’ve got a long way to beat them.
If users are churning because of that, you can do something about it. And you should. Which is what my other articles are for.
Some other times, users are simply not having any more use of your product/service. They’ve done their thing, created more value but the exec that chose your company’s offering is leaving, they’re closing the branch that was making use of the software or they’re simply done with it. In the end, we all use tools to aid us in something but if the “something” (i.e. action) is what we’re done with, so is the tool.
You can almost do something about this (offer more) but that comes with time. One thing you can’t do in this regard is holding them (customers) hostage.
However, sometimes you really really can’t do anything about it. People die. Or they go out of business. Or they’re tired of running businesses any for longer and they leave an industry. They can also read something about spirituality and leave the common world for good, looking to turn themselves into monks.
Sometimes, shift happens. And you can’t do anything about it.
Not all churn is controllable. 0% churn is never going to happen if you plan to make it big. It is a stat that will stay at 0 for some time after you launch and until the day your company/product dies.
Looking forward to seeing the first case and looking forward to not seeing the second.
I help SaaS CEOs reduce user churn, running Chagency_, an experiences design agency and writing daily. Say hi on Twitter or LinkedIn!
Illustration credits: Benoit Drigny
