When I started deTASO, I wore all the hats, and I mean all of the hats. I was the developer, trainer, inside sales representative, outside sales representative, billing support, and customer service representative. It became clear that I was the limiting factor to deTASO's growth and success.
When I began to evaluate the most significant need, both internally and for my customers, I was confident it was providing adequate support to help clients learn how to use deTASO. So, in February of 2015, I made my very first hire. I hired Michael Gerard as deTASO's Implementation Department Manager, and he assumed the immediate responsibilities of training and supporting new clients. It was a quick win for our clients and me personally.
As deTASO grew and our team expanded, I continued to notice the value in providing excellent front-end training, go-live support, and service after the sale. Our clients often needed additional training after launch and ongoing billing support, and they also required help to address industry changes and everyday challenges. We wanted to be their resource and advocate.
As I considered the gambit of services and support our clients required, I wanted to rebrand our Implementation Team. The term implementation only suggested support at the beginning of a transition to deTASO, but we needed to convey our willingness to be there after launch. After a lot of careful consideration, we settled on the name Customer Success. I certainly cannot assume we were the first to apply this to a department or a team's mission, but immediately the team embraced the label, and our clients agreed.
Currently, in any demonstration, I strive to mention this team. I jokingly say, "we have a great software solution but an excellent customer success team." My heart behind this statement is that it doesn't matter how good our software is if you don't know how to use it and cannot get timely support when you need it. As a simple example, we strive to offer industry-leading support. I'll never forget the challenge a mentor of mine gave me. He said, "If you just call people back within an hour, you are already better than 90% of the industry." Now I cannot say his statistic was factual, but it is one example of the support we strive to offer.
I am confident that our clients would tell you that the Customer Success team is one of the most valuable pieces to deTASO. We are so much more than a software solution. For example, we have extended the services offered by our team to include a full-time quality assurance person to ensure our updates are error-free and a full-time billing support person to address any billing questions.
As we look to the future, my vision is to continue to provide exceptional service and support. I feel more confident than ever that the new name "Customer Success" adequately conveys our mission to add value and support towards the goal of helping our clients excel in their industry! Not just in the beginning, but every step, hill, and mountain along the way.
