Are you sabotaging your client relationships?
You’ve probably been there: maybe you landed a new client. Or, maybe you convinced your client to use Klaviyo instead of their legacy solution. After you both start to work in Klaviyo, you both start to envision a future flourishing with Klaviyo Arributed Value (KAV), booming list growth, and quick time to value. But just weeks in, things take a turn. Frustration sets in, leaving you wondering what went wrong.
Does this sound familiar?
Gartner calls this the onboarding "hype cycle." Initial excitement plummets into frustration, also known as the trough of disillusionment. The graph below shows the rollercoaster of emotions a client goes through during an onboarding.
This is common, but you can avoid it by building a scalable, repeatable onboarding process that aligns with client expectations.
Whether you’re building your onboarding process for the first time or are refining your existing process, learn from our Klaviyo onboarding team, Partner Success Managers, and some of our top partners on:
- How to create a scalable onboarding process that sets you and your clients up for success.
- What features, flows, and campaigns every client should have during onboarding.
This course will include a mix of client management content and product content to help you follow best practices to effectively onboard a client.
Determine your level of responsibility in onboarding
Before you dive into onboarding your client, you should first identify how you’ll work with the Klaviyo team to onboard this client to the Klaviyo platform. We are here to help you and your client during this time and aim to make this process as seamless as possible.
If your account is paying above $1k MRR, you qualify for Klaviyo Onboarding. In order for everyone involved to be on the same page, review the following chart to see how you as an agency partner can work with Klaviyo’s Onboarding team:
Scenario | Klaviyo Contact | Klaviyo’s Role & Responsibility | Resources Available |
Partner-led onboarding (No assigned PSM) | Klaviyo Onboarding Team | • Guide partners and customers on onboarding best practices • Provide help center documentation • Monitor progress via onboarding forms | • Standard Onboarding Process • Help Center documentation • Onboarding form |
Partner-led onboarding (Assigned PSM) | Partner Success Manager (PSM) | • Ensure partner alignment with Klaviyo growth strategy • Provide strategic guidance • Serve as a point of escalation | • Partner enablement hub • Executive business reviews (EBRs) • Support escalation path |
Hybrid onboarding (Partially agency managed) | Klaviyo Onboarding Team & Partner | • Klaviyo supports technical implementation and provides strategic oversight • Partner handles tactical execution | • Standard Onboarding Process • Partner Collaboration Plan • Joint communication framework |
If you are following a hybrid onboarding process, keep the following in mind:
- If the partner owns a milestone: Klaviyo does not step in.
- If the customer owns a milestone: Klaviyo works directly with the customer to support.
- If the partner & customer split a milestone: Klaviyo aligns with both to ensure a smooth handoff.
Note: Depending on your client’s size, they may qualify for Premium Success and Support Packages (PSSP). For more information on who qualifies for these packages and what is included in each, please refer to our Help Center article on how to request a premium success and support package.
Your onboarding process begins before your client signs
While this course is packed with tips to delight your clients and drive value, the foundation for success starts even earlier: aligning expectations before the deal is signed. Whether you're a large firm receiving a client from the sales team or are continuing the partnership from the sales cycle, it's critical to be on the same page with your client before the dotted line is signed.
Along with a tight contract that details your services,discuss these 5 topics before your customer signs the deal.
Launch goals and timing
Does your client have a major launch they're prepping for? This information will help you tailor the onboarding process accordingly. In order to meet the launch, communicate to the client that you'll need to meet regularly and document clear action items on every call.
Be clear with the client that they will need to do their part to meet that deadline!
Required integrations
You know this better than us: clients want to see immediate results. Internally, we hear that managing expectations on the warming and integration process is critical.
We recommend setting a general timeframe for the below integrations*:
- Shopify and native integrations: 45 days
- Custom Integrations: 90 days
Many experienced agencies can complete data migration and onboarding within 2-4 weeks, but we highly recommend buffering time if you are a newer agency or freelancer locking down your process.
Each agency has its own approach for onboarding a new client, but take into consideration how long each of these integrations and warming periods will take.
Email service provider (ESP) considerations
Understanding their current email service provider (ESP) and its termination date is crucial. To facilitate a seamless data migration process, we typically recommend a one-month overlap between Klaviyo and their previous ESP.
We also cannot emphasize the importance of warming your account enough. Review our warming guidance to ensure you can effectively run the warming process with your clients.
List quality and acceptable usage
Here's how you can proactively discuss your client's email list quality to ensure a smooth onboarding and data migration process:
- Ask about their last list cleaning
If they have a small marketing team, explain the importance of regular list hygiene and proper unsubscribe management to avoid legal and billing issues. - Discourage them from buying email lists
While it might seem tempting, advise against purchased lists. Purchased emails are unlikely to be engaged and could get your client flagged as spam or even break laws. If they did buy a list, significant cleaning and account warming will be necessary. - Confirm their compliance with Klaviyo's Acceptable Use Policy (AUP)
Review the AUP with your client and ensure their practices are compliant. Activities violating the AUP can lead to account termination, which would prevent you from delivering value and potentially damage your reputation.
If your client needs a deep audit, this will add an extra 2 weeks to your launch date.
Active profile limit enforcement
Klaviyo charges your client based on the number of active profiles in their account. Here's what counts as an active profile:
- Subscribers who explicitly opted in
These are people who filled out a signup form or took another clear action to receive email marketing. - Profiles added through implicit actions
Someone might share their email without explicitly opting in for marketing. This could happen during checkout (e.g., placing an order or abandoning a cart).
To increase your client’s ROI, we recommend that you bulk suppress profiles who have not interacted with your client's brand in at least 18 months.
Access your Onboard a client to Klaviyo project plan
The best onboardings follow a tight project plan, so we created one for you! Check out our comprehensive Onboard a Client to Klaviyo project plan, your one-stop shop for a smooth client onboarding experience.
Throughout this course, we'll reference various decks and templates within the plan. By the end, you'll have mastered all key elements of the project plan and be equipped to deliver impactful onboarding for your clients.