Thought Industries, provider of the world's leading platform for customer learning, today announced the launch of The Customer Education Playbook: How Leading Companies Engage, Convert and Retain Customers (John Wiley & Sons, April, 2022).
The book, co-authored by Thought Industries executives Barry Kelly, Chief Executive Officer, and Daniel Quick, Senior Vice President, Learning Strategies, is based on the experience of the authors and the company in helping businesses design, build and manage customer education programs and measure their impact and returns.
The book outlines a 12-step process for building customer education programs that create value by streamlining trials, expediting onboarding, reducing customer acquisition costs and customer churn, and lowering customer support demands. "A well-designed, well-executed customer education program shortens the time required for customers to realize the promised value and benefits of a business's products or services, and that's key to building affinity and advocacy," Kelly said.
Quick said that fundamental to the customer education approach outlined in the book is thinking beyond the offering itself to instead focus on the job the customer is trying to do. "We think customer education and training should be more than a service that reacts to requests for help," said Quick. "Instead, we explain how to focus on making sure customers learn the right things at the right time in the right mode to gain confidence and mastery in the use of your products and services."
The Customer Education Playbook also explores content creation and curation issues, how to determine the best formats for different customer learning needs, and how to ensure training and education materials are engaging enough to be consumed by busy customers. In addition, the book examines the required skill sets and optimal organizational models for customer education and training teams, as well as how to evaluate the effectiveness and return on investment of customer education programs.
"Customer Learning is the natural evolution in customer-centricity, This book gives any business the knowledge on how to educate your customers for increased retention and a competitive advantage in the Customer Success landscape."
- Nick Mehta, CEO of Gainsight.
About Thought Industries
Thought Industries provides the world's #1 software platform for customer learning management (CLM). Industry leaders use CLM to grow revenue, increase customer loyalty, and ensure customer success across technology, manufacturing, healthcare and other industries with complex products and training requirements. Thought Industries was founded in 2014 around the core belief that online learning experiences should be modern, intuitive, engaging and scalable. Headquartered in Boston, Thought Industries has offices across North America and Europe.