Turn Wins Into Renewals: PEAK Playbook + 7-Day Plan
Most teams chase red flags. The best teams compound green flags.
Health scores and dashboards are necessary, but they’re lagging indicators. The fastest way to protect renewals is to act when value peaks, not when risk shows up.
If you want the complementary “early warning” system, read my Silent Churn Detection: The QUIET Method.
The Core Principle
Retention is a timing game.
If you reinforce value within 24 hours of a visible win, you anchor the result to your product and to your sponsor.
For the upstream fixes that prevent value drift right after go-live, this play pairs well with The Onboarding Fix Every CS Leader Needs.
The PEAK Framework
(P) Pin the win: Write the result in one line (metric + who benefited).
(E) Executive echo: Send a 1-slide summary to the sponsor: problem → result → next outcome.
(A) Activation sprint: Turn the win into a 7-day mini-project so more users get it.
(K) Kill the risk: Close the biggest blocker with a clear owner and date.
Why This Works
Wins are memorable
Tie renewals to them, not to usage graphs, and use these tactics alongside the broader renewal system in Defend Renewals Without Discounts: The CS OS.
Execs buy outcomes, not features
If you need help turning updates into board-level stories, use the templates in QBR Frameworks: Turn Updates into Strategic Growth.
Expansion follows visible success, not vague promises
For high-stakes scenarios, add the rescue motions from The CSM Churn Rescue Playbook That Saves $2.3M+.
What Counts As a “Peak Moment”
First integration live and used by a real team
First report shared with Finance or Leadership
Second team active on the same workflow.
SLA recovery after a visible incident
Any “X by Friday” milestone your champion cares about
So, don’t just detect churn. Schedule wins and lock them in with PEAK.
If you’re formalizing these motions into a customer success plan, grab my Ultimate Collection of CS Templates (150 pages of playbooks you can implement today).
Get the install kit: peak triggers, forwardable sponsor slide, fillable one-page checklist (PDF), email/SOP templates, and a 7-day activation plan you can ship this week.
→ Join hundreds of CS pros using these playbooks every week to lock renewals before risk shows up.
Real-world results, not theory.
“The CS Café is incredibly valuable! It gives a view on how and what to do next.” — Lara Barnes, SVP Customer Success
“The CS Café Newsletter is the ultimate resource for all things Customer Success. Always current and actionable.” — Kevin Herrholtz, VP Client Success, AddShoppers
→ Upgrade to premium and get the full kit below.
For context on preventing seven-figure losses, see How to Stop $1M Customer Churn Before It Happens.
🔐The Peak-Moment OS (Templates + 7-Day Plan)
What you get today: copy-and-send scripts, the 24-Hour Proof Pack slide, the fillable checklist PDF, and a 90-minute instrumentation plan.
No fluff, just the system.
Prefer automation? Pair with From Spreadsheets to Automation: CS Lifecycle Playbook.