SaaS Backwards - Reverse Engineering SaaS Success - Ep. 158 - 97% of SaaS Churn at First Opportunity is Decided in the First 90 Days—Onboarding Is the Key

Ep. 158 - 97% of SaaS Churn at First Opportunity is Decided in the First 90 Days—Onboarding Is the Key

03/14/25 • 31 min

SaaS Backwards - Reverse Engineering SaaS Success

Guest: Srikrishnan Ganesan, Co-Founder & CEO of Rocketlane

Most B2B SaaS leaders know that onboarding is important but underestimate its impact.

The reality is that 97% of churn at first opportunity is decided in the first 90 days, making onboarding the most critical stage in the customer journey and the defining factor in revenue growth and long-term customer success.

In this episode, Sri Ganesan, Co-Founder and CEO of Rocketlane, shares how SaaS companies can transform onboarding from a fragmented process into a strategic advantage. From community-led growth to automation-driven efficiency, he reveals what top SaaS companies do differently to drive retention, expansion, and revenue acceleration.

Key Takeaways:

Onboarding Determines Retention & Growth: The first 90 days define whether customers will churn or expand.
Community-Led Growth Builds Credibility: Building an engaged audience before launch fosters trust and momentum.
Automation Eliminates Inefficiency: Siloed tools slow teams down; all-in-one platforms drive success.
Market Validation is Critical: The biggest factor in startup success isn’t the product—it’s picking the right market.

Sri shares actionable strategies for SaaS CMOs and CROs to create onboarding experiences that drive retention, expansion, and revenue acceleration—making this episode a must-listen.

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Guest: Srikrishnan Ganesan, Co-Founder & CEO of Rocketlane

Most B2B SaaS leaders know that onboarding is important but underestimate its impact.

Key Takeaways:

Onboarding Determines Retention & Growth: The first 90 days define whether customers will churn or expand.
Community-Led Growth Builds Credibility: Building an engaged audience before launch fosters trust and momentum.
Automation Eliminates Inefficiency: Siloed tools slow teams down; all-in-one platforms drive success.
Market Validation is Critical: The biggest factor in startup success isn’t the product—it’s picking the right market.

Sri shares actionable strategies for SaaS CMOs and CROs to create onboarding experiences that drive retention, expansion, and revenue acceleration—making this episode a must-listen.

---
Not Getting Enough Demos?

Your messaging could be turning buyers away before you even get a chance to pitch.

🔗 Get a Free Messaging & Conversion Review

And the best part?

💡 It’s completely free.

No commitments, no pressure—just actionable advice to help you book more demos.

Your next demo is just a click away—claim your free review now.

Previous Episode

Ep. 157 - AI is Reshaping B2B Marketing—Are You Ready?

Guest: Christina Richards, Fractional CMO & Author of Rise of the AI-Powered CMO

Most B2B marketers think they’re using AI effectively. The reality? Many are barely scratching the surface—and failing to leverage AI as a true revenue driver.

Christina Richards, fractional CMO and author of Rise of the AI-Powered CMO, breaks down how AI is transforming go-to-market strategies, reshaping demand generation, and redefining the role of marketing leaders in B2B SaaS.

The biggest shift? AI is moving from a tool for efficiency to an autonomous operator, changing how marketers engage customers, optimize campaigns, and drive pipeline growth. Those who fail to adapt will fall behind competitors who are already leveraging AI-driven personalization, predictive lead scoring, and hyper-targeted ad strategies.

Christina shares actionable insights on how B2B CMOs and CROs can embrace AI—not just for automation, but as a strategic advantage to accelerate growth and revenue.

Key Takeaways:

AI is Now Critical Infrastructure: It’s no longer just a tool for automation—it’s transforming how companies generate revenue.
CMOs Must Become Revenue Architects: The role of marketing leaders is shifting from brand builders to full-funnel revenue drivers.
AI-Driven Search is Changing SEO: If your content isn’t optimized for AI-generated search, your audience may never find you.
Agentic AI is Here: Autonomous AI agents are moving from experiment to execution—marketers must prepare now.
First-Party Data is a Competitive Advantage: With hyper-personalization on the rise, companies that don’t own their audience data will struggle to compete.

Get ready to rethink your marketing strategy in the age of AI—or risk being left behind.

---
Not Getting Enough Demos?

Your messaging could be turning buyers away before you even get a chance to pitch.

🔗 Get a Free Messaging & Conversion Review

And the best part?

💡 It’s completely free.

No commitments, no pressure—just actionable advice to help you book more demos.

Your next demo is just a click away—claim your free review now.

Next Episode

Ep. 159 - Why Full-Cycle Reps Are Beating Your SDRs

Guest: Guy Rubin, Founder & CEO at Ebsta

Most B2B SaaS leaders know their top performers carry the team, but few understand why the performance gap keeps widening.

The reality is that just 14% of reps are now responsible for 80% of revenue, and the gap between A-players and everyone else has grown to 11x. Fixing this isn’t about more training or new tools—it’s about creating consistent, data-driven sales execution across the entire go-to-market team.

In this episode, Guy Rubin, Founder & CEO of Ebsta, shares insights from the 2025 B2B GTM Benchmark Report (in partnership with Pavilion) and explains how SaaS companies can close the performance gap, improve forecast accuracy, and drive revenue by making data and behavior work together.

Key Takeaways:

Top Performers Win with Consistency: The biggest gap isn’t talent—it’s execution at every stage of the funnel.
AI Enables Better Selling, Not More Noise: When AI is used to extract insights, not automate spam, it becomes a game-changer.
Full-Cycle Reps Are Back: 45% of companies are ditching the SDR model in favor of holistic sales ownership.
Engagement Drives Forecast Accuracy: Momentum scoring predicts risk before it’s too late to course-correct.
Success = Process + Behavior + Data: Sales isn’t just about gut feel anymore—it’s finally becoming data-driven.

Guy offers CROs and CMOs a blueprint to scale what works, eliminate what doesn’t, and win more consistently—making this episode a must-listen.

---
Not Getting Enough Demos?

Your messaging could be turning buyers away before you even get a chance to pitch.

🔗 Get a Free Messaging & Conversion Review

And the best part?

💡 It’s completely free.

No commitments, no pressure—just actionable advice to help you book more demos.

Your next demo is just a click away—claim your free review now.

SaaS Backwards - Reverse Engineering SaaS Success - Ep. 158 - 97% of SaaS Churn at First Opportunity is Decided in the First 90 Days—Onboarding Is the Key

Transcript

Welcome to SaaS backwards, a podcast that helps SaaS go to market teams to accelerate revenue growth and enhance profitability. Our guest today is Sri Ganesan, co founder and CEO of RocketLane, a customer onboarding platform that shortens time to value and helps you deliver a collaborative, transparent, and delightful onboarding experience.

Sri Ganesan: Hey Sri, welcome to the podcast

Hey Ken, thanks for having me on today.

Ken Lempit: It's a pleasure. It's a great topic an