Going back to the summer of 2023, how have your renewals generally been going?
- More challenging to secure than ever before
- Pretty tough, I’d say
- Neutral (not particularly hard or easy)
- Kinda smooth for the most part
- Slam-dunked 'em all
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Wow @Matt.Conley dating all the way back to 2023?
In general my renewals have been fairly smooth. Of course the standard pushbacks, but I was able to secure the renewal.
That said, the challenges I am facing recently are my customers being acquired and in one particular case the acquiring company canceled our contract. That one hurt.
I’d like to say, I spent time finding the value realized which helped put me in a more defensible position.
Oh man, a canceled contract?! Super sorry to hear that.
Genuinely curious (if you’re able to shed some light on that experience and/or feel comfortable to do so, that is) about how that process works when a contract is canceled due to an acquisition? And how does that involve and impact you, as the seller?
20% of my variable is tied to renewals. So there was a sizable financial impact.
Situations will vary, but in this particular case, the acquiring company has had a history of acquiring our customers and terminating the contract. We are not the only vendor this has happened to BTW. This acquiring company runs their business on spreadsheets (ie Sales Forecasts, Financials, etc).
When something like this happens, all you can do it say “oh well”. We definitely gave it a shot to try and grow the contract and renew before the acquisition was finalized, but the gravitational pull from the acquiring company become too overwhelming for everyone involved.
In the other situation, the acquiring company is an active and happy customer. So when we kick off our new fiscal year next month, my customer will roll up to the AM who is assigned to the acquiring company.
I think every vendor does things different when it comes to handling acquisitions, divestitures, and attrition. Either way there is going to be an impact to the seller.
Did this answer your question?
Absolutely. Appreciate you shedding some additional light on it, as I was a bit unfamiliar with the process/impact if the rug is pulled out from under you. So sorry to hear you take the hit on that one. Bummer! But - knowing you - it’s all about getting back up and going after the next one.
Thanks again for sharing, Greg!
As a BDR, I’m not directly involved in renewals, but I’m curious how folks here deal with champions/executive sponsors leaving in the midst of a renewal. Anything that’s worked to engage new stakeholders and maintain the relationship?
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@ben.fanjoy Great topic. Renewals these days are already tough enough, so we never want to get yourself in a position where you’re relying on the same old champions as day one. Develop a process as much as you can to stay connected to customers and have your team keep tabs on the data to see who is using the product, who is becoming an advocate, and how you can empower them more to feel a closer bond to you and your team. Think outside the box, and consider workshops that bring customers together, or get your power users meeting with the product team to give feedback. Get the product as sticky as you can through human interaction at a larger scale through a group effort (because you can’t build champions all by yourself.) I’d also recommend some kind of customer recognition program (with budget if you can afford it.) People love to be recognized for doing what you want them to do, and they enjoy a good surprise. If you can find additional ways to bulk up user engagement, then you can use that data to get one step closer to having a bigger pool of potential champions you can make stronger relationships with.
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