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📈Proactive Churn Prevention

Transform churn prevention into a proactive retention strategy that engages customers based on interaction patterns.

Updated over a week ago

About the Growbook

This Growbook guides you through building a proactive churn prevention flow that identifies churn before it occurs.
Instead of reacting to lost users, you'll learn how to:

  1. Track early signals like missed logins or declining product usage

  2. Build dynamic segments based on churn risk

  3. Trigger multi-step, personalized journeys designed to acquire and retain at-risk users

Benefits

  • Detect churn before it happens: Use behavioral signals to identify signs of disengagement early, before users become inactive.

  • Boost repeat purchase rates: Automatically re-engage customers who haven’t logged in or slowed down their usage.

  • Increase LTV: Deliver timely nudges that keep your best users active and loyal.

  • Automate retention: Replace one-off win-back emails with always-on journeys that adapt in real time.

How It Works

To illustrate the use case, we will refer to a made-up project management app, similar to Asana, called "Otto."

Step 1: Set Up Tracking for User Activity

To start, install the Intempt JavaScript SDK. This will enable GrowthOS to track actions like logins and session frequency, page and feature usage, sign-ups and trial starts, and completed tasks or missed milestones.

Step 2: Create a Qualification Agent

In a pre-monetization flow, our qualification agent can be used to qualify and route leads based on their ‘Fit’ and ‘Activity’.

In GrowthOS, head to Agents and create a new Qualification Agent named ‘Churn Risk Agent’. Set up Fit Criteria- to define your ideal user (e.g., location, company size, industry) and Activity Criteria- to track meaningful behaviors (e.g., sign up, task creation, email clicks)

This agent will assign each user a Fit Score - How well they match your ideal persona, and an Activity Score - How engaged they are, based on behavior.

Use weight to prioritize high-intent actions, and decay to reduce the value or impact of an activity over time.

Step 3: Build Real-Time Segments

In a post-monetization flow, qualification isn’t necessary— your users are already customers. Instead, use Segments to define activity-based criteria that reflect how they engage with your product. This gives you a direct way to build tailored journeys for both power users and those showing early signs of churn.

  1. For pre-monetization flow, head to the Segments tab and create new segments using combinations of Fit Score (how well a user matches your ideal customer profile) and Activity Score (how engaged they are).

    Here are 3 segments you can create for pre-monetization flow:

    Create a new Segment called ‘At Risk’ with a high Fit Score and low Activity Score. These users match your ICP but aren’t engaging. Reach them with personalized reactivation journeys.

    Next, create a new Segment called ‘High Potential’ with a high Fit Score and a high Activity Score.

    These are your ideal customers actively engaging right now. Perfect for feature expansion, plan upgrades, or exclusive offers to boost LTV.

    Next, create a new Segment called ‘Curious Visitors’ with a low Fit Score and high Activity Score.

    They’re exploring actively, but may not be a great long-term fit. Consider using light-touch journeys to qualify further or convert if relevant.

    These segments auto-update based on real-time behavior — no manual tagging needed.

  2. For the post-monetization flow, head to the Segments and create a new segment for users called ‘Slipping Users’ using actual behavioral data. Select events like ‘completed onboarding’, ‘created ml task’, ‘visited a feature page’ more than twice in the past 14 days, and ‘login’ once in the past 10 days.

Step 4: Multi-Step Retention Journeys

In Journeys, build a personalized flow for each segment. Each journey is triggered by real-time changes in Fit + Activity Score, so the moment someone starts slipping - the right touchpoint kicks in.

  1. For the pre-monetization flow, create a new journey named ‘At Risk Journey’ and select the ‘At Risk’ segment as the trigger. These users are a great match — but they’ve gone cold.

    Journey Example:

    • Day 0: Reminder of the last feature or page visited (“Still exploring Smart Dashboards?”)

    • Day 2: Email with curated use cases tailored to their role or company size

    • Day 4: Invite to a live onboarding session or async walkthrough

    • Day 6: Friendly check-in from success manager or founder (“Need help getting value from [Feature X]?”)

    Next, create a new journey named ‘High Potential Journey’ and select the ‘High Potential’ segment as the trigger. These are your best customers— keep them engaged and deepen value.

    Journey Example:

    • Day 0: Thank-you message + “Next best step” CTA (e.g., invite to automate workflows or explore advanced features)

    • Day 2: Early access to a new feature or roadmap preview

    • Day 5: Invite to community, referral program, or customer panel

    • Day 7: Pro tip email with advanced use cases they haven’t used yet

    Next, create a new journey named ‘Curious Visitors Journey’ and select the ‘Curious Visitors’ segment as the trigger. They’re active— but may not be a great long-term fit (yet).

    Journey Example:

    • Day 0: “Is Otto right for you?” interactive guide or onboarding quiz

    • Day 2: Role-specific use case spotlight or video

    • Day 5: Offer a quick 1:1 session or group demo

    • Day 7: “Still exploring?” email with light-touch CTA (download checklist, save progress, etc.)

  2. For post- monetization flow, create a new journey named ‘Slipping Users’ and select the ‘Slipping Users’ segment as the trigger. They are customers whose usage is slowing— proactive action is needed.

    Journey Example:

    • Day 0: Check-in email: “We noticed a drop — anything we can help with?”

    • Day 2: Recommend underused or new features they haven’t tried

    • Day 4: Offer priority support or beta access to an upcoming feature

    • Day 6: Invite to feedback call or customer roundtable

🧠 Pro Tip:

Use Branch Conditions in GrowthOS Journeys to dynamically adjust flows based on actions like opens, clicks, or conversions — keeping your messaging relevant without extra setup.

Step 5: Track & Optimize

Open your journey and monitor the following metrics- Entered: Users who qualified and entered journey, Messaged: How many received the message, In Progress: Users still progressing through steps, Completed: Finished full journey, Exited Early: Dropped out before completion, Converted: Took desired action (Subscribed to basic/ premium plan, sign up, invite team members)

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