Engagement & Retention project | Tracxn

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Engagement & Retention project | Tracxn

Understand & Define

What is the core value proposition?

👉🏼 Online market intelligence platform offering private market data

How do users experience the core value prop of the product?

👉🏼 Ram - Angel Investor (IIM Mumbai Grad / Product at Paytm)

Looking to invest in early stage startups and was actively searching for a platform to source data (People, Financials, Competitors, Marketplace etc.) would come onto Tracxn and be able to fetch data.

Define the action makes a user an active user?

👉🏼 Downloads 2 - 4 reports on a monthly basis

👉🏼 Downloads reports from two or three modules in a month

What is the best engagement framework for your product?

Engagement Framework	Key Tracking Metric	Selected	Rationale
Breadth	Number of different modules used.	Primary	More the number of modules used, better the engagement and retention for the user. When the user uses more features, there is habit formation and lock in - this makes switching costs high for the user and eventually leads to lower chance of churn
Frequency	No of times a core activity is performed	Secondary	* Number of times the feature is used in a week is important when it goes with the breadth of features used.
Depth	Time spent inside the product	None	* Depth of usage is important for one product line. * More time spent on a app is also not desirable - it might mean that the tool could be complicated to use.

Engagement Framework

Key Tracking Metric

Selected

Rationale

Breadth

Number of different modules used.

Primary

*More the number of modules used, better the engagement and retention for the user.

* When the user uses more features, there is habit formation and lock in - this makes switching costs high for the user and eventually leads to lower chance of churn

Frequency

No of times a core activity is performed

Secondary

* Number of times the feature is used in a week is important when it goes with the breadth of features used.

Depth

Time spent inside the product

None

* Depth of usage is important for one product line.

* More time spent on a app is also not desirable - it might mean that the tool could be complicated to use.

What is the natural frequency of the product?

User Type	Description	Customer Segments	Key Characteristics	Usage Frequency	Usage Patterns
Core Users	Regular users who consistently rely on Tracxn for their professional activities	Venture Capital, Private Equity, Investment Banking, Family Offices, Corporate Venture Capital, Corporate Innovation, M&A Teams, Corporate Development, Digital Transformation	Dependable, frequent interaction with the platform	Daily	Daily use for market research, competitor analysis, and investor relations
Casual Users	Users who use Tracxn occasionally for specific needs or projects	Startup Founders, Entrepreneurs, Business Development Professionals, Consulting, Companies, Accelerators & Incubators,Government Agencies, Universities	Occasional, need-based interaction	Weekly - Monthly	Nominal use for specific projects or ad-hoc research
Power Users	Advanced users who leverage the full potential of Tracxn’s platform	Research Analysts, Senior Corporate Strategists, Innovation Leads,	Highly skilled, in-depth knowledge of platform capabilities	Multiple times in a day	Intensive use for detailed analysis, custom reports, and strategic decisions

User Segmentation

User Category	Role	Action Threshold in a Week
Casual Users	Startup Founder	Spend a minimum of 60-90 minutes reviewing reports: market trends, competitor analysis, investor landscape, and funding opportunities.
	Entrepreneur	Review startup ecosystem trends and funding news for at least 60-90 minutes.
	Business Development	Analyze industry reports and potential partnership opportunities for 60-90 minutes.
Core Users	Venture Capital Analyst	Engage at least twice with the following reports: market analysis, startup evaluations, funding rounds, and portfolio performance reviews.
	Private Equity Analyst	Review investment opportunities and industry trends reports at least twice a week.
	Corporate Development	Engage with M&A reports, industry trends, and competitive landscape analysis at least twice a week.
Power Users	Research Analyst	Regularly access detailed reports such as sector-specific insights, competitive bench-marking, startup performance, and market opportunity analysis.
	Innovation Lead	Review innovation trends, technology landscape, and potential startup partnerships multiple times daily.

Engagement Campaign

Engagement Strategy for Casual Users

Campaign: Tutorials and Customer Testimonials

Goal	Transition casual users to core users by increasing their engagement and understanding of Tracxn’s platform.
Pitch	"Here are 5 quick tutorials to help you make the most out of Tracxn."
Channel	Email
Offer	Free learning material
Frequency	Regular touchpoints
Timing	When user has not hit activation metric
Metrics	Email opens, clicks, percentage of accounts moving to core

Campaign: Single Click Report Templates

Goal	Make it easier for casual users to engage with Tracxn by providing ready-to-use templates.
Pitch	"Not sure where to start? Create your market analysis report in a single click."
Channel	In-product nudges
Offer	Easy way to create reports
Frequency	2 nudges overall
Timing	In-app
Metrics	Nudge opened, CTR, new reports created after nudge was clicked

Engagement Strategy for Core Users

Campaign: Advanced Tutorials and Use Cases

Goal	Transition core users to power users by showing them advanced features and use cases.
Pitch	"Unlock the full potential of Tracxn with these advanced tutorials."
Channel	Email, In-product nudges
Offer	Advanced learning material
Frequency	Monthly
Timing	Regular intervals
Metrics	Email opens, clicks, increased usage of advanced features

Campaign: Customized Market Insights

Goal	Encourage core users to explore more of Tracxn’s capabilities by providing personalized insights.
Pitch	"Get customized market insights tailored to your industry."
Channel	Email
Offer	Custom reports
Frequency	Monthly
Timing	Monthly
Metrics	Email opens, clicks, increased platform usage metrics

Campaign: Competitive Bench-marking

Goal	Motivate core users by showing them where they stand compared to their competitors.
Pitch	"See how you rank among your peers in the industry."
Channel	Email, In-app notifications
Offer	Competitive bench-marking
Frequency	Once a month
Timing	Monthly
Metrics	Accounts interacting with nudge, percentage taking suggested steps, improved activity

Engagement Strategy for Power Users

Campaign: Exclusive Webinars and Workshops

Goal	Keep power users highly engaged by providing exclusive content and learning opportunities.
Pitch	"Join our exclusive webinar series for advanced Tracxn users."
Channel	Email
Offer	Exclusive access to webinars
Frequency	Monthly
Timing	Monthly
Metrics	Webinar attendance, engagement, follow-up actions

Campaign: Personalized Advisory Sessions

Goal	Provide personalized support to power users to help them achieve their strategic goals.
Pitch	"Book a personalized advisory session to optimize your use of Tracxn."
Channel	Email, In-product nudges
Offer	Free advisory sessions
Frequency	As needed
Timing	On request
Metrics	Sessions booked, feedback, subsequent platform usage

Campaign: Beta Access to New Features

Goal	Keep power users engaged and get their feedback on new features.
Pitch	"Get early access to our latest features and provide your feedback."
Channel	Email
Offer	Early access to new features
Frequency	As new features are developed
Timing	Development cycles
Metrics	Feedback received, usage of new features, overall satisfaction

Retention

Tracxn has achieved significant growth with a robust platform serving over 1,139 customers across 58 countries. Despite competitive pressures, it maintains a high retention rate of 74%, supported by its comprehensive database and value proposition.

✅ Activation is the key metric

Before we get started into looking at what drives Retention and churn, it is important to note that “Activation” is the key metric that will drive retention, engagement and upgrades.

For a platform like Tracxn, it means that the person in the company evaluating tracxn vs other tools, starts seeing early success with the platform when they are on Tracxn Lite User (Freemium)

Who drives retention?

User Segmentation	Casual Users	Core Users	Power Users
Retention	Low	Mid to High	High
Correlation to Aha Moment	High chance of churn if Aha moment is not hit early	Lower chance of churn if Aha moment is hit and multiple features are adopted	Low risk to churn; Aha moment realized earlier
Price Sensitivity	High	Medium	Low
Switching Cost	Low	Medium	High
Company Stability	High threat of company shutting down	Stable, low threat of shutting down	Mature, low threat of shutting down
ICP Needs	Need help to get started; rely on product nudges and content	Can deploy account managers; rely on product nudges and content	Exclusive account managers to manage the account
Products Used	Basic data and insights access	Advanced data analytics, market intelligence	Full suite of data services, including customized reports and deep market analysis
Goals	Maintain active usage; drive deeper engagement and adoption of more features	Maintain active usage; drive adoption to more advanced features	Ensure full integration; maintain active usage in multiple features; drive adoption to additional services

⭐ Casual Users (Startup Founders, Entrepreneurs, Business Development Professionals)

Aha Moment: Discovering valuable market insights or identifying a promising startup that could be a potential partner or investment opportunity.

⭐ Core Users (Venture Capital Analysts, Private Equity Analysts, Corporate Development Teams)

Aha Moment: Utilizing advanced analytics to identify investment trends, evaluate startups efficiently, and make data-driven investment decisions.

⭐ Power Users (Investment Banks, Private Equity Firms, Corporate Innovation Leads)

Aha Moment: Realizing the depth of Tracxn’s customized reports and comprehensive data that supports strategic decision-making and competitive analysis.

Defining churn

churn can be defined as an activated account that is currently dormant for a considerable period of time, or has shown strong signals of cancelling subscription.

Types of Churn

Reason	Type of Churn
Employee quits or is fired	Involuntary
Death of an employee	Involuntary
Company moves to a competitor like PitchBook	Voluntary
Lack of product awareness or engagement	Voluntary
Pricing	Voluntary
Team/Company shuts down	Involuntary
Change in government regulations or compliance	Involuntary
Business slowdown	Involuntary
Product instability or lack of needed features	Voluntary
Changes in company strategy or priorities	Voluntary
Dissatisfaction with customer support	Voluntary
Poor user experience or interface issues	Voluntary
Data security or privacy concerns	Voluntary
Integration issues with other tools/software	Voluntary

Negative Actions

No searches or report downloads in the past 30 days
Low rating in satisfaction surveys - detractors
Increased number of support tickets around billing, renewals, and cancellations
Cancels subscription
Moves to a lower plan

✅ Capturing user signals

Running resurrection campaigns become difficult if we end up reaching the customer a little too late. Hence it is important to look for early signals to reach out to the user early on and prevent churn
Send a survey(email) or an in-app nudge to understand in a single line “What’s your biggest challenge in using Tracxn”
Run targeted campaigns based on user responses </aside>

Resurrection

✅ Thinking of resurrection in 2 phases

Step 1: Do what it takes to avoid churn - watch for negative actions, introduce friction while performing negative actions. Wherever possible collect reasons for negative actions, dormancy or churn
Step 2: Run resurrection campaigns to reactivate users

Step 1: Increase friction while performing negative actions & capture reasons for churn

Action	Theme	Campaign	Medium	Offer	Success Metric
No Searches/Reports in 30 Days	Re-engage dormant users	Reminder of unused features, gather feedback	Email	Personalized training session	Increase in engagement, capture feedback
Low Rating in Satisfaction Surveys	Address dissatisfaction	Request detailed feedback on low ratings	Email	Follow-up call with account manager	Improvement in satisfaction ratings, gather reasons
Increased Support Tickets	Address concerns, prevent churn	Proactive support to address issues	Email, in-app notification	Dedicated support assistance	Reduction in churn-related tickets, resolution rate
Cancels Subscription	Understand reasons, prevent churn	Confirm reason for cancellation	In-app notification, email	Discount for continued subscription	Capture detailed reasons for churn, reduction in cancellations
Moves to a Lower Plan	Prevent downgrades, gather feedback	Confirm reason for downgrading	In-app notification, email	Discount for higher plan	Fewer plan downgrades, gather feedback reas

Step 2: Resurrection Campaigns

Segment	Casual User (Startup Founders, Entrepreneurs)	Casual or Core User (VC Analysts, PE Analysts)	Core or Power User (Investment Banks, PE Firms)	Casual or Core User (VC Analysts, PE Analysts)	Core or Power User (Corporate Innovation Leads)	Power Users (Investment Banks, PE Firms)
Reason for Dormancy	Did not understand how to get Tracxn up and running for our company	Could not get buy-in (Renewal permission grant) in my organization to get started with Tracxn	No need for a market intelligence tool	Tracxn seems expensive to adopt org-wide	Missing features	Product not up to the mark
Signals to Watch For	- User started using actively but no activity after week 2 - Tried using features but not very active in tracking or dashboards - Account was last seen in Tracxn 15 days ago	- User set up key reports, started using free trial - Account has hit limits on the free plan and needs to upgrade - No login to the account in the last 15 days	- Downgrades plan or deletes number of licenses - Account was active but suddenly no activity - Macroeconomic or budget reasons	- Core user who has adopted Tracxn for market intelligence but shows recent negative actions - Downgrades plan or deletes licenses - Removes credit card or switches off auto-renew - Increased support requests around billing and renewals	- Core or power users who have hit Aha moment and are well integrated - Increased support tickets asking for features - Poor CSAT scores repeatedly - Requested features not yet available	- Core or power users, champions or loyalists with high usage - No dip in activity but red flags in secondary metrics - Increased support requests, low CSAT ratings - Multiple performance issues as they scaled their Tracxn account
Theme	Setup on-boarding call with expert	Share material on why Tracxn is better	Pause membership for 6 months	Discount for renewals	Call with customer success	Discount coupon and additional features unlocked
Campaign Details	- Call with the account manager to understand challenges and help with setup - Customer success team evaluates requests based on customer’s ticket size	- Share customized material with case studies and testimonials - Include a snapshot of initial usage success (e.g., x% reduction in research time)	Let the user pause the membership; Tracxn retains the data and if the user returns within 6 months, they can reuse the account	Give users a discount coupon for renewal - Share information on how Tracxn fares alongside competitors	- Understand missing features and discuss adding them to the pipeline - Provide workarounds to solve for their use cases	- Assign senior account managers to do damage control - Give extra benefits to alleviate the bad experience - extra reports, enterprise features, deep discounts
Campaign Messaging	"Hey, wondering how to make the best out of Tracxn? Exclusive chance for you to let our onboarding experts guide you."	"Unsure how to convince your team? Here's everything you need to convince them."	"We are sorry to see you go. Would you like to pause your subscription and come back when you are ready?"	"We apologize for your experience, here is a little something from us - 20% discount on your next renewal."	"We heard you - here's what we have been working on in the last month."	"We apologize for your experience, here is a little something from us - We have added additional access to advanced reports and unlocked enterprise features. Here's also a 20% discount for your next renewal."
Offer	Book a 15-minute call with your on-boarding expert	Customized content	Pause subscription and retain data for 6 months for free	20% discount on the next renewal	Free trial of new features shipped	20% discount on the next renewal, additional reports, and enterprise features unlocked
Frequency	Email - scheduled when user has not activated; In-app notification	Emails sent 1-2 times when the instance occurs	Emails sent 1-2 times when the instance occurs	Emails sent 1-2 times when the instance occurs	Emails sent 1-2 times when the instance occurs	Emails sent 1-2 times when the instance occurs
Success Metrics	- Number of customers who complete the call and become active - Improvement in 30d/90d retention - Improvement in engagement: user moves from casual to core	- Number of customers who consume content shared - Improvement in 30d/90d retention - Improvement in engagement: user moves from casual to core	- Number of accounts paused and eventually reactivated - Time to reactivate accounts after temporary pausing	- Number of customers who reverse negative actions - Instances in support and CSAT around pricing - Coupon code applied	- Number of new features tried - Qualitative feedback on the features - Improvement in 30d/90d retention - Improvement in engagement: user moves from core to power	- Number of customers who reverse negative actions - Number of sales meetings with the account manager - Monitoring red flags and addressing early on