IN PARTNERSHIP WITH
I have worked with Ascendr to create an extensive customer onboarding checklist.
Download it for free and see how your onboarding stacks up against world-class standards!
It’s easy to follow a script.
It’s hard to read between the lines.
Last week, I talked about this in regards to emotional intelligence.
Read it here if you missed it.
It had such a good response that I want to elaborate on another related soft skill.
Active listening.
It’s the key to effective two-way communication.
And it’s incredibly important in customer onboarding.
Customer’s want to air their concerns, stressors, goals, blockers, and excitement.
Active listening is a systematic skill that can be taught, measured, and improved.
If your whole team improves this skill even by 1%, it will increase trust, advocacy, revenue opps, AND reduce churn.
Are you listening… truly? 😏 ↓
🧪 The Project: Lend An Ear
This is a broad topic to fit into one newsletter so I have taken inspiration from the technique and created this project.
It will enable an onboarding team to make customers feel heard, understood, and valued throughout their journey.
Step 1: Pause, clarify, confirm
Resist the urge to immediately respond to customer statements.
Instead, try this:
Pause: Leave space after a customer finishes speaking (get comfortable with silence, it creates opportunities for customers to naturally elaborate).
Clarify: "Let me make sure I understand correctly..." then summarise what you heard in your own words.
Confirm: "Is that accurate, or did I miss something important?"
This technique immediately demonstrates that you're processing their words thoughtfully rather than waiting for your turn to speak.
Your customers will notice this, even if it’s subconscious!
Step 2: Label emotions
Acknowledge the feelings behind customer statements, not just the technical requirements.
When a customer says: "We've tried three other platforms and nothing worked properly"
Don't respond with: "Our platform is different, let me show you all the ways it’s better..."
Instead try: "That sounds incredibly frustrating. Those experiences in onboarding must make you cautious about committing resources again."
Do you see the difference in that interaction?
You validate their experience and open space for them to share concerns that technical demos can’t address.
Step 3: Let’s talk about silence
We can often fill every conversational gap with information. Instead, embrace strategic pauses after asking important questions.
"What would success look like for your team six months from now?"
Wait. Let them think.
"What concerns you most about this onboarding process?"
Resist the urge to jump in. Let silence do the work.
Customers often share their most valuable insights in these extended pauses, but only if you create space for deeper reflection.
Step 4: Feel, felt, found
This is a common objection handling technique in sales and a valuable one in onboarding.
Acknowledge customer concerns whilst building confidence.
For example:
"I understand how you feel about the integration timeline..."
"Other customers have felt similar concerns about disrupting their current workflows..."
"What they found was that our phased approach actually reduced disruption by X%..."
This technique demonstrates empathy whilst providing reassurance through peer examples.
Create standard examples of data for the most common onboarding concerns and objections so that the team has them ready to use.
This transforms abstract promises into visible progress that rebuilds confidence quickly.
🤓 The Analysis
Customers who feel heard during onboarding consistently demonstrate higher engagement with training materials, more proactive communication about challenges, and greater willingness to explore additional features.
They become your most effective sales team.
They provide detailed case studies and enthusiastic referrals.
The financial impact shows up in reduced support tickets and faster time-to-value.
The real revenue effects compound over years as these customers become your most vocal advocates.
… And all because you listened.
What to expect by making these changes:
Stronger customer relationships
Higher expansion revenue
Reduced churn
More qualified referrals
