The CAB for SaaS Enterprise Startups

What is a Customer Advisory Board (CAB)?

For SaaS companies, a Customer Advisory Board (CAB) can become a group of trusted influencers as you build industry thought leadership and relationships.

But given the benefits, a board of these customers can be very demanding on your time and energy - so is it worth creating and managing it? If so, how should your SaaS company start building this group of trusted advisors, and what should it look like? Learn more about the customer journey in this toolkit.

Your Customer Advisory Board needs the same time and attention as any other key stakeholder relationship, not unlike investors or employees. CABs tend to be the most valuable in complex, regulated industries or with complex products and business models like enterprise software. The expertise of the CAB can help executives and department leaders understand the complexities faster and in turn act faster, creating a win-win situation.

Build Your CAB with the Right Mix of Customers

Before you grab a random smattering of customers from your CRM system and fly them into town, there’s a few things you should ask yourself (and probably some of your internal stakeholders) and even more things to keep in mind while you get your CAB up and running.

Getting the right mix of individuals is incredibly important when building your CAB. Having customers that are in it for the wrong reasons or aren’t fully committed can cause more harm than good. You should strive to have a group of approximately 10-12 individuals that represent a mix of various characteristics. It’s also important to have customers who have been with your company from the early days, as well as those who are newer and have a fresh perspective.

Equally important is to ensure you have brands of all shapes and sizes - not just enterprise brands and not just small to medium sized brands. Make sure your CAB represents your customer base well. In addition, be sure to include executive-level customers as well as those that are very knowledgeable users or influencers. And on the other hand, if your CAB is composed of all users and influencers, then it will be difficult to have more strategic conversations. The best CABs have a healthy mix of both.

Find your customer champions. Who are the customers that use your product fearlessly, are forward-thinkers, and push innovation? Who are you NOT meeting the needs of today? It’s best to start with a wide range of individuals, and gain insight from Customer Success Managers (CSMs) and others who work closely with customers to determine who should not be included, and who the top contenders should be. Often times a few will immediately rise to the surface, but be sure that the group is diverse enough to meet the needs of your CAB.

In a recent blog post, Stengel Solutions outlines their approach to finding the right candidate: “Of course, when forming a CAB you need to understand its purpose, but you also need to know what specific skills to seek. In general, look for diverse skills, expertise and experience. You want members who are problem solvers, strong communicators, and are open minded. Big names can be a bonus … but not always: Getting a heavyweight on your board of advisers can give you credibility, but it’s also important to have members who are going to spend the time to give you thoughtful advice or are well connected and willing to make introductions.”

Once you’ve identified the individuals you want to include, have an executive from your company - preferably the CEO - specifically invite the customer to be part of CAB and outline the requirements, travel, and input needed. Having the invitation come directly from the C-Suite will ensure the customer takes the commitment very seriously.

Source: More here from ClientSuccess