The B2B sales world has treated closing a deal as the finish line, the focus has been on landing contracts, hitting targets, and meeting quotas. However, the change we’re seeing is, signing a deal is only the beginning, customer success is no longer just a support function; it’s the backbone of sustainable growth, retention, and long-term partnerships.

In this piece, I want to share why I believe customer success should be at the heart of your strategy and explore how integrating sales and customer success can reshape not just retention rates, but the entire customer experience.

We’ve been speaking with Russ Head of Customer Success at trumpet for some insights.

1. Moving from transactions to partnerships

Salespeople are often praised for closing deals, but what about the part that comes after? The reality is, success in B2B is no longer defined by a single transaction—it’s about forging ongoing partnerships. Businesses now need to rethink their strategies to focus on long-term relationships, not short-term wins.

This is where customer success comes in, as it’s not just about ensuring your product or service works—it’s about making sure it delivers ongoing value to your clients. Customer Success teams need to proactively engage, understand customer needs, and align strategies with the client’s future goals.

Russ, Head of Customer Success at trumpet, put it best when he said, “I think a common trend with CS as a whole is that a lot of them kind of see themselves as glorified support or sometimes sales in disguise. So with that, I think they work quite reactively to clients; they kind of wait for clients to come with any problems and jump on that to try and solve the issue.” He stresses the importance of positioning customer success not just as a support function but as a “trusted expert” who delivers “surprise and delight” to customers.

2. Positioning your CS team as trusted experts

Russ shared insights on a common issue in customer success: the tendency to be reactive rather than proactive. “Sometimes CS professionals, they’ll complete onboarding, they’ll get the QBRs booked in for the rest of the year and think, job done. But what they should be doing throughout that time is just dropping little nuggets of joy for the customer.”

Instead of waiting for a quarterly business review (QBR) that might get postponed or run into attendance issues, Russ suggests regularly sharing relevant insights and updates. “It could be things like a great new feature we’ve just released, something I’ve seen one of their peers doing on the platform, or an industry trend that I think could be really valuable.”

This proactive approach strengthens the relationship by showing clients that the CS team is continuously invested in their success. 

3. Handovers: Aligning sales and Customer Success

“Sales, [are] closing the deal, and next, it’s the responsibility of CS.” If there is a lack of clear communication between sales and CS can leave customer success teams scrambling to figure out why the customer bought, who the key stakeholders are, and what the expected timeline is.

To combat this, Russ recommends a simple solution, that CS teams need to take ownership from day one and position themselves as the client’s primary point of contact. This doesn’t just mean waiting for sales to schedule meetings and make introductions; CS teams should be proactive in setting the agenda and taking charge of the relationship.

By building this collaboration and clarity, Customer Success teams can deliver consistent, value-driven support and demonstrate their expertise from the start.

4. Moving from transactions to partnerships

Salespeople are often praised for closing deals, but what about the part that comes after? The reality is, success in B2B is no longer defined by a single transaction—it’s about forging ongoing partnerships. Businesses now need to rethink their strategies to focus on long-term relationships, not short-term wins.

This is where customer success comes into play. It’s not just about ensuring your product or service works—it’s about making sure it delivers ongoing value to your clients. Customer success teams need to proactively engage, understand evolving needs, and align strategies with the client’s future goals.

When sales and customer success work in harmony, they create a smooth handover from closing the deal to delivering tangible value. Salespeople lay the foundation for what success looks like in the early conversations, and CS teams build on that by ensuring those promises turn into reality. This partnership shifts the mindset from merely “winning accounts” to genuinely “growing partnerships.”

5. The role of Digital Sales Rooms in driving collaboration

One of the most powerful tools we’ve seen for facilitating seamless collaboration between sales and CS is the Digital Sales Room. 

Digital Sales Rooms allow sales and customer success teams to collaborate with clients in a shared digital environment. Here, you can centralise communications, document the journey, and keep everyone aligned on the value being delivered. With everything from onboarding materials to quarterly business reviews accessible in one place, Digital Sales Rooms simplify interactions and build transparency.

By using Digital Sales Rooms, Custom Success teams can continuously reference key points and promises made during the sales cycle, enabling them to deliver consistent support. It also opens up channels for more frequent and meaningful interactions with clients, which is key to nurturing long-term loyalty.

6. Retention through relationship building

One of the most significant challenges in B2B is retaining customers in a world of rising competition and the highest expectations. This is why relationship building is so important. Sales teams may open the door, but it’s the Custom Success team’s role to keep clients engaged, happy, and aligned.

For a successful Custom Success strategy, personalisation and proactive outreach are crucial. Every interaction should reinforce the value of your solution. Regular check-ins, strategic reviews, and offering tailored solutions to new challenges go a long way in showing customers that you’re not just selling them a product—you’re invested in their success.

At trumpet, we’ve seen first-hand how these relationship-driven strategies lead to customer loyalty. When our Custom Success teams maintain an ongoing dialogue, address potential issues early, and share insights proactively, clients not only stay—they advocate. Remember, advocacy is the highest form of customer success.

Final thoughts

Winning deals is important, but retaining and nurturing those relationships is what drives sustainable growth. Customer Success isn’t just a continuation of the sales process—it’s what builds long-term partnerships. By positioning Custom Success teams as trusted experts, and using tools like Digital Sales Rooms, and improving the handover between Sales and Custom Success, businesses can deliver a seamless and impactful customer experience.

As Russ pointed out, “At the end of the day, that’s what it’s all about—helping your customers get more value.”  Go beyond the sale, and your customers will thank you with their loyalty.

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