--- name: customer-win-back-sequencer description: > For churned accounts, research what has changed since they left — new funding, team growth, competitor dissatisfaction, product updates that address their pain — then assess re-engagement potential and generate a personalized win-back email sequence with timing recommendations. Chains web research and LinkedIn monitoring with email sequence generation. tags: [outreach] --- # Customer Win-Back Sequencer Not every churned customer is gone forever. This skill identifies which ones to pursue, finds the right re-engagement angle, and generates a personalized win-back sequence. Timing and relevance are everything — no generic "we miss you" emails. **Built for:** Startups that have churned customers sitting in a spreadsheet with no plan to re-engage them. The best win-back campaigns are triggered by change — this skill monitors for those changes and strikes when the timing is right. ## When to Use - "Which churned customers should we try to win back?" - "Build a win-back campaign for [customer]" - "Research our churned accounts for re-engagement opportunities" - "Generate win-back emails for customers who left because of [reason]" - "Run the win-back scan on our churn list" ## Phase 0: Intake ### Churned Account Data 1. **Churn list** — CSV/sheet with: company name, domain, contact email, contact LinkedIn URL (if available), churn date, MRR at churn, churn reason (if known) 2. **Time since churn filter** — Min/max months since churn to consider (default: 3-18 months. Too recent = too soon. Too old = too stale.) 3. **Minimum value** — Only pursue accounts above $X MRR? (Focus effort on worthwhile wins) ### Product Context 4. **Major product updates since churn** — What's new? (Features, pricing changes, integrations, performance improvements) 5. **Churn reasons addressed** — Which past churn reasons have you actually fixed? 6. **Current offer** — Any win-back incentive? (Discount, extended trial, concierge onboarding, free migration) ### Sequence Preferences 7. **Sender** — Who should the emails come from? (Founder, CSM, account exec) 8. **Channel** — Email only, or email + LinkedIn? 9. **Sequence length** — How many touches? (Default: 3-4 over 3-4 weeks) ## Phase 1: Churned Account Research For each account in the churn list, research what's changed: ### 1A: Company Changes ``` Search: "[company name]" funding OR raised OR "series" OR acquisition 2025 2026 Search: "[company name]" hiring OR "we're hiring" OR "growing team" Search: "[company name]" launch OR "new product" OR expansion OR pivot ``` Extract: - **Funding:** New round raised? (More budget available) - **Growth:** Headcount increasing? New hires in relevant roles? - **Product changes:** Launched something new that would benefit from your product? - **Market moves:** Entered a new market, new partnerships? ### 1B: Contact Changes ``` Search: "[contact name]" "[company name]" OR linkedin.com Search: "[company name]" "[relevant title]" new OR hired OR promoted ``` Determine: - **Same contact still there?** If yes, continuity helps. If no, find the new person. - **Contact promoted?** More authority = bigger potential deal. - **New decision-maker?** Fresh eyes, no baggage from the old experience. ### 1C: Competitor Dissatisfaction Signals If you know which competitor they switched to: ``` Search: "[competitor name]" complaints OR issues OR "looking for alternative" Search: "[competitor name]" site:g2.com negative reviews Search: "[company name]" "[competitor name]" OR "switched from" ``` Look for: - Public complaints about the competitor they switched to - Reviews mentioning problems that your product solves - Signs of "buyer's remorse" in the market ### 1D: Product-Churn Fit Analysis Match what's changed in your product against their churn reason: | Churn Reason | Product Update | Win-Back Angle | |-------------|----------------|----------------| | "Too expensive" | New pricing tier / startup discount | Price-based re-engagement | | "Missing [feature]" | [Feature] shipped | Feature announcement | | "Too complex" | Simplified onboarding / UX overhaul | "We listened" narrative | | "Switched to [competitor]" | Competitive advantage developed | Competitive displacement | | "Didn't see ROI" | New ROI dashboard / case studies | Proof-based approach | | "Champion left" | N/A — find new champion | Fresh start narrative | | "Company downsized" | Company now growing again (from research) | Timing-based re-engagement | ## Phase 2: Win-Back Scoring Score each churned account's re-engagement potential: ``` Win-Back Score = (Change Signal × Churn Reason Addressability × Account Value) / Time Decay Change Signal (1-5): 5 = Multiple strong signals (funding + growth + competitor issues) 4 = One strong signal (funding or significant growth) 3 = Moderate signal (hiring, product launch) 2 = Minor signal (still operating, no major changes) 1 = No detectable change Churn Reason Addressability (1-3): 3 = You've directly fixed the reason they left 2 = Partially addressed or different angle available 1 = Same issues exist / unknown churn reason Account Value (multiplier): 2.0x = Was top 20% by MRR 1.5x = Mid-tier MRR 1.0x = Lower MRR Time Decay (divisor): 1.0 = Churned 3-6 months ago (sweet spot) 1.2 = Churned 6-12 months ago 1.5 = Churned 12-18 months ago 2.0 = Churned 18+ months ago ``` ### Priority Tiers | Tier | Score | Action | |------|-------|--------| | **High Priority** | 8+ | Full personalized sequence + founder outreach | | **Medium Priority** | 4-7 | Personalized sequence | | **Low Priority** | 1-3 | Batch campaign or skip | ## Phase 3: Sequence Generation ### Win-Back Sequence — High Priority (4 emails over 4 weeks) **Email 1: The Relevant Update (Day 0)** ``` Subject options: A: "[First name], [specific thing] changed since we last spoke" B: "We fixed the thing that made you leave" C: "[Company] + [Your Product] — worth another look?" --- Hi [First name], [1 sentence acknowledging they left — no guilt, no desperation] Since then, we've [specific improvement that addresses their churn reason]: - [Change 1 — most relevant to their pain] - [Change 2] - [Change 3] [If you have a relevant customer proof point]: "[Company in their space] switched back and saw [result]." Would it be worth a 15-minute look at what's different? [Soft CTA — no pressure] [Signature] ``` **Email 2: The Proof Point (Day 7)** ``` Subject: "How [similar company] is using [product] now" Hi [First name], Quick follow-up — wanted to share something relevant. [Case study or proof point from a company similar to theirs]: - [What they achieved] - [Metric that matters] [1 sentence connecting this to their specific situation] [CTA — slightly stronger: "Want me to show you the new [feature] in 10 minutes?"] [Signature] ``` **Email 3: The Offer (Day 14)** ``` Subject: "[Specific offer — e.g., 'Free migration + 30 days on us']" Hi [First name], I know switching tools is a pain — that's usually what keeps people from coming back even when the product has improved. So we're making it easy: - [Offer detail 1 — e.g., "We'll handle the full migration"] - [Offer detail 2 — e.g., "30 days free to test everything"] - [Offer detail 3 — e.g., "Dedicated onboarding session"] [If applicable: "This offer is available through [date]"] Worth a conversation? [Signature] ``` **Email 4: The Breakup (Day 28)** ``` Subject: "Closing the loop" Hi [First name], Totally understand if the timing isn't right — just wanted to make sure this didn't slip through the cracks. Quick summary of what's new: → [Key improvement 1] → [Key improvement 2] → [Standing offer, if applicable] If anything changes on your end, my inbox is always open. [Signature] P.S. [Genuinely helpful resource — e.g., "We just published [relevant content]. Worth a read regardless of which tool you're using."] ``` ### Win-Back Sequence — Medium Priority (3 emails over 3 weeks) Shorter, less personalized but still relevant: **Email 1:** Product update announcement + relevance to their use case **Email 2:** Customer proof point + specific offer **Email 3:** Soft breakup with resource share ### Win-Back Sequence — Competitor-Specific If they switched to a known competitor: **Email 1:** "How [product] compares to [competitor] today" — honest, non-aggressive comparison focused on what changed **Email 2:** Customer story of someone who switched back from that specific competitor **Email 3:** Offer + easy migration path ## Phase 4: Output Format ```markdown # Win-Back Opportunity Report — [DATE] Churned accounts analyzed: [N] Time window: [Churned between X and Y months ago] --- ## Summary | Priority | Accounts | Total MRR Opportunity | |----------|----------|----------------------| | High Priority | [N] | $[X]/mo | | Medium Priority | [N] | $[X]/mo | | Low Priority / Skip | [N] | $[X]/mo | **Total recoverable MRR:** $[X]/mo (estimated, assuming [Y%] win-back rate) --- ## High Priority Accounts ### [Company 1] — Churned: [date] | Former MRR: $[X] **Churn reason:** [Reason] **What's changed (them):** [Research findings] **What's changed (us):** [Product updates that address their pain] **Win-back angle:** [The core pitch] **Contact:** [Name, title, email] **Sequence:** [Attached — 4 emails, personalized] ### [Company 2] — ... --- ## Medium Priority Accounts | Account | Churned | MRR | Churn Reason | Win-Back Angle | Score | |---------|---------|-----|-------------|---------------|-------| | [Name] | [Date] | $[X] | [Reason] | [Angle] | [N] | --- ## Email Sequences ### [Company 1] — Full Personalized Sequence [Email 1: Subject + body] [Email 2: Subject + body] [Email 3: Subject + body] [Email 4: Subject + body] ### [Company 2] — ... --- ## Accounts to Skip (and Why) | Account | Reason to Skip | |---------|---------------| | [Name] | [Still in same situation / company shut down / too recent] | --- ## Win-Back Campaign Setup If using Smartlead: - Campaign name: "Win-Back — [Month] [Year]" - Sequences: [Use generated sequences above] - Timing: [Recommended send schedule] - Sender: [Recommended — founder for high priority, CSM for medium] ``` Save to `clients//customer-success/win-back/win-back-report-[YYYY-MM-DD].md`. ## Cost | Component | Cost | |-----------|------| | Web research per churned account | Free | | LinkedIn research (optional) | ~$0.25-0.50 per account | | Sequence generation | Free (LLM reasoning) | | **Total** | **Free — $5** (for ~10 accounts with LinkedIn research) | ## Tools Required - **web_search** — for company and competitor research - **fetch_webpage** — for career pages, news, competitor reviews - **Optional:** `linkedin-profile-post-scraper` for contact monitoring - **Optional:** `review-site-scraper` for competitor dissatisfaction signals - **Optional:** `cold-email-outreach` for campaign creation ## Trigger Phrases - "Which churned customers should we win back?" - "Build a win-back sequence for [customer]" - "Research our churn list for re-engagement" - "Run the win-back scan" - "Generate win-back emails for churned accounts"