Jack Zimnavoda is the Head of Customer Success at Insightful and a member of Vitally’s Success Network

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Like many seasoned professionals in Customer Success, I began my journey before the term “Customer Success” was widely recognized. Back then, the role was more commonly referred to as Account Management, which often came with a bit of an identity crisis. After all, wasn’t Account Management just another arm of Sales? While we frequently reported to Sales leaders, our mission felt distinctly different — yet there was no clear playbook or definition for what that mission was.

To complicate matters, the mid-2000s were all about relationship-based sales. Everyone seemed hyper-focused on understanding personality types, building rapport, and forging connections with prospects. This mindset made its way into every corner of business strategy, including my early days in Account Management.

Fast forward to 2009: I had recently transitioned from a Sales role into this emerging function. With “relationships” being the industry buzzword, I fully embraced the idea that strong personal connections were the ultimate key to success. Customers not renewing? Build a better relationship. Low adoption rates? Strengthen the relationship. Revenue growth stagnating? Focus on relationships.

At the time, it seemed logical — after all, wasn’t business all about people? But what I discovered was a painful reality: even the strongest relationships couldn’t save a failing account. In fact, some of the customers I had the best relationships with ultimately churned. It was a tough pill to swallow but one of the most important lessons of my career.

Don’t get me wrong, building strong relationships with key stakeholders is critical. But I realized that relationships alone aren’t enough to drive success. The strength of an individual relationship is not a reliable indicator of an account’s health. What I should have been focusing on was this:

1) Understanding the Customer’s Core Use Cases

One of the biggest gaps in my early approach was failing to deeply understand the customer’s core use cases. While I may have known their names, preferences, and even hobbies, I didn’t fully grasp why they chose our product or service in the first place. Customers invest in solutions to solve specific problems or achieve strategic goals. Without a clear understanding of these use cases, I was essentially flying blind.

If a customer purchased a solution to streamline operational efficiency but wasn’t seeing the anticipated time savings, no amount of rapport-building would convince them to renew. By neglecting to dig into their unique needs and how our product aligned with their expectations, I completely missed out on the opportunities to demonstrate value. Understanding use cases isn’t just about gathering data — it’s about proactively tailoring your approach to ensure the customer feels confident that their investment is worthwhile.

2) Identifying the Customer's Goals and the Outcomes They Need to Achieve

Closely tied to understanding use cases is identifying the customer’s specific goals and desired outcomes. Early in my career, I often assumed that if a customer liked me and appreciated our interactions, they would naturally renew or expand their investment. What I failed to recognize was the importance of measurable outcomes. Customers don’t just invest in relationships, they invest in results.

Take for example a company that adopts a new CRM. Their goal might be to increase sales productivity by 20% within six months. If I couldn’t align our solution to that specific goal or track progress toward it, the relationship became irrelevant. Customers need to see a direct connection between their investment and tangible results. By asking thoughtful, outcome-driven questions early on and revisiting those objectives regularly, I could have ensured that our partnership remained focused and productive.

New CSM’s can easily mix up Use Cases with Goals and Outcomes, but it's crucial to differentiate them. Use Cases are the reasons why a customer chose your company, while Goals and Outcomes are the results that must be achieved to ensure the customer's continued satisfaction and business.

3) Ensuring the Customer Could Realize Measurable Value From Our Solution

Ultimately, my biggest mistake boiled down to failing to prioritize value realization. Even when I understood the customer’s goals and use cases, I didn’t always follow through on ensuring they could achieve measurable value. Value realization goes beyond simply using a product — it’s about making sure the customer sees and experiences the full potential of the solution.

It is the CSM’s responsibility to identify the gaps (real or perceived) that a customer faces, provide additional training, or suggest ways to optimize a customer's usage. Without this, the customer’s perception of value will remain limited, and the likelihood of renewal decreases. Over time, I learned that providing proactive support, sharing success stories, and quantifying the impact of our solution were essential for long-term success.

In hindsight, my early misstep taught me the foundational principle of Customer Success: the key to retention and growth is value realization, not just rapport. Relationships are the amplifier for success, not the engine. By focusing on understanding core use cases, aligning with customer goals, and ensuring measurable value, I learned how to build partnerships that were rooted in trust and results.

This lesson remains at the heart of my approach to Customer Success today. While relationships are still important, they are not the sole driver of success. True Customer Success lies in consistently delivering value that aligns with the customer’s needs — because, at the end of the day, business objectives will always take precedence over personal connections.