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Every CSM knows the challenge: proving tangible business impact from a customer’s often-opaque internal operations. You dig through dashboards, chase usage data, and try to connect adoption to outcomes, only to realise that numbers alone don’t tell the full story.
The truth is, metrics matter – but not on their own. What really sets great Customer Success Managers apart is how they own the value narrative. The most effective CSMs co-create success stories that are both quantitative and qualitative, and make sure those stories are seen, heard, and championed at the executive level.
That’s where MEDDICC comes in. By applying the same structure that drives top-performing sales teams, CS teams can use MEDDICC to uncover, shape, and communicate value more strategically, throughout the entire customer lifecycle.
Here’s how to bring that mindset to life.
1. Source real, meaningful metrics
Many businesses don’t fully understand their own metrics, or what “value” really means to them. That’s where CSMs can add clarity: by connecting outcomes to strategic goals and focusing on data that actually moves the needle.
To make metrics meaningful:
Stay realistic. Focus on outcomes you can genuinely influence.
Avoid the “Attribution Trap.” Don’t chase impact you can’t prove.
Spread value over time. Build a story of consistent wins rather than one big promise.
Find the data owner early. Identify who controls the metrics to avoid friction later.
This is where MEDDICC’s Metrics and Economic Buyer elements overlap – because when you understand what your customer values and who defines success, your metrics start to carry real weight.
2. Control the value narrative
Value doesn’t have to mean everything to everyone. You don’t need to prove you can transform the entire business, just that you can drive measurable outcomes in a few strategic areas that matter most.
To control the story:
Anchor your impact to one or two key business initiatives.
Combine hard data with human stories, feedback, quotes, and real-world examples that make the results tangible.
Connect top-to-bottom: show how your product ties into company-level goals, not just usage stats.
When you frame value this way, you move from being a vendor who reports numbers to a partner who shapes outcomes.
3. Make value visible
“What you see is all there is.” Most conversations about your product happen when you’re not in the room. Your job is to make sure the right story gets told, by equipping your champions to share it internally.
Think of visibility as part of your renewal strategy:
Create simple, visual summaries that your champions can use in internal updates or QBRs.
Encourage customers to present your data themselves. It lands with more credibility when it comes from them.
Help them link your impact to their own success metrics so they can advocate effectively.
When you give customers the tools to tell your story, your value becomes part of theirs – and that’s what drives advocacy and renewal momentum.
The takeaway
The transfer and maintenance of value are just as important as proving it. Invest time early in setting up the right metrics, building visibility around them, and co-creating the narrative with your customers.
The more you control the value story, the easier it becomes to manage renewals, influence expansion, and strengthen your partnership.
Want to go deeper?