Customer Success and Insurtech: A Winning Combination

In SaaS businesses, Customer Success Managers (CSMs) are essential to proactively developing and managing customer relationships, ensuring tangible value is realised from the software and services customers have bought - and that it’s all delivered via an optimum customer experience.

CSMs evaluate and analyse customer needs, understanding key business challenges their organisation can help solve. The role is multi-faceted, covering: 

• Driving platform adoption 
• Acting as the customer advocate 
• Consulting and strategic advising 
• Coordinating between the customer and all the teams within the organisation   

At hx, our Customer Success Managers aim to establish a collaborative, partnership-led relationship, constantly thinking about how they can maximise ROI and ultimately drive customer retention. The primary focus is to ensure we do everything possible to help customers achieve their business outcomes.

We sat down with hx Customer Success Lead, James Lubbock, on his thoughts on Customer Success in the Insurtech industry and his experience in his role at hx so far.

What were your first impressions as a Customer Success Manager? 

When I was first introduced to the concept of Customer Success as something innovative for the software industry a couple of years ago, I found it mildly amusing. Compared to my previous agency career, it sounded very similar to the world of Account Management, which had been around for many decades. I remember wondering why, only now, is the SaaS industry waking up to this idea? 🤔  

The answer, of course, was the realisation that in most scenarios, however intuitive your software is, people need guidance, support and, in many cases, consultancy to get the maximum value out of the software in which they have invested. This is particularly true for SaaS businesses with enterprise level customer relationships.  

Since those formative years, the Customer Success function has evolved as its value to organisations has become increasingly evident.  

What does a modern, forward-looking Customer Success proposition look like now? 

The Customer Success function is ultimately responsible for the relationship between the SaaS vendor and its customers. It needs to be across the entire customer experience, ensuring every customer touchpoint is positive. Most importantly, it is there to do everything possible to help customers achieve their business outcomes and demonstrate return on investment as quickly as possible.  

To achieve this end goal, a world-class Customer Success team needs to:  

• Accompany customers on all stages of their journey  
• Build a deep understanding of their current and future business needs  
• Act as an advocate for customers within the SaaS organisation  
• Oversee the engagement of specialist resources and ensure they provide additional business value  
• Share best practices and constantly target improved outcomes for both the stakeholders and broader customer organisation  

What has your experience been like working in Customer Success in Insurance? 

Since I started my exciting journey with hx and became familiar with the Insurtech space, something quickly became apparent: unlike Martech, where I spent the last nine years, the concept of Customer Success in this dynamic, fast-growing tech industry is relatively unknown. In a sense, this is ironic as one of the most noticeable traits I've picked up since deep diving into this fascinating industry is how much value it puts on human interaction throughout the customer journey. 

In many ways, Customer Success is perfectly suited for Insurtech. With its complex, strategic challenges and needs, the insurance industry is perfect for the partnership and guidance a best-in-class Customer Success function can offer. This knowledge presents an exciting opportunity for SaaS companies that have invested in this function, such as hx, to immediately offer a unique experience in terms of outstanding customer care and ROI.    

How does hx approach Customer Success? 

Insurance is unique in that it sells a promise, providing a level of certainty and peace of mind in people's lives. Customer Success is similar as it also offers that assurance to businesses – holding their hands as we help them navigate the constantly evolving world of technology and work together to solve their most pressing business challenges. 

At hx, we commit to partnering with our customers right from the beginning of their journey, providing business certainty, strategic and proactive consultancy, and support, ensuring that every drop of value is squeezed out of our customers' investment.   

We view this aspect of our business as a significant differentiator, and we are delighted to see the success our customers enjoy. If you'd like to know more about what Customer Success at hx can offer, please feel free to reach out directly to me or hx - we'd love to hear from you!