Is there a gap between what your customers expect and what they actually experience?
44% of customers who churn do so because they can't achieve their goals.
Because what they expected and what they got didn't align.
You know how it is…
Marketing builds the dream.
Sales sells the vision.
Onboarding inherits the reality check. 😅
When those three things don't match, customers feel misled.
So, let me align our expectations.
I’m going to give you the steps, and then you are going to implement them.
Deal? ↓
🧪 The Project: Expectation Alignment
Managing expectations is about creating alignment so customers can achieve genuine success.
Step 1: Establish reality before the sale closes
Before the contract is signed, document what success looks like in the first 90 days.
Create a one-page "What to Expect" document that outlines:
- Timelines for setup
- Required resources from their team
- Realistic milestones
- Common obstacles customers face
Share this during the sales cycle. Not to cover your arse (!) but as a trust-building exercise.
Customers appreciate honesty.
Whilst we are on this topic, take a look at my previous article. ↓
Step 2: Expectation audit
Don't assume you know what the customer expects. Ask directly.
In your kick off call, include these questions:
- What does success look like for you in 30/60/90 days?
- What concerns do you have about implementation?
- What is your expectation from previous conversations with our team about timelines?
Document their answers. Then immediately address any misalignments.
If you identify any issues, use this opportunity to dig deeper with the customer to understand why they have these expectations before directing them to realistic ones.
Step 3: Transparent milestone tracking
Customers get anxious when they don't know where they stand.
Build a simple progress tracker they can access anytime.
Show:
- Completed tasks
- Upcoming milestones with dates
- Blockers (and who owns them)
- The next three actions they need to take
Step 4: Reframe setbacks as learning
When things go wrong (and they can), how you respond determines whether the customer churns.
Establish a simple protocol:
- Acknowledge the issue immediately
- Explain what happened
- Outline what you're doing about it
- Adjust the timeline together
Don't hide problems. Don't spin them. Just be honest.
We are humans, and mistakes do happen.
Customers can handle setbacks. They don’t like dishonesty.
I wrote in more detail about what to do when things go wrong in onboarding in a previous article. Check it out. ↓
Step 5: Schedule expectation reviews
Expectations drift. What mattered in week one might not matter in week six.
Build expectation reviews into your onboarding cadence.
Ask things like:
- Are we still aligned on priorities?
- Has anything changed on your end?
- Do our current timelines still work for you?
These conversations take 10 minutes and prevent months of misalignment resulting in increased churn.
🤓 The Analysis
Companies with a structured onboarding process see a 60% improvement in annual revenue.
Further data shows that 86% of customers are more likely to remain loyal to businesses that invest in onboarding content that educates and welcomes them post-purchase.
But education without expectation management is just information overload.
The winning teams are the ones who've mastered the human skill of setting, managing, and realigning expectations.
