For our latest GTM Insider podcast, Rory Sadler sat down with Daphne Costa Lopes Head of Customer Success for Strategic Accounts at HubSpot and creator of the This is Growth! newsletter, to talk about how Customer Success is evolving into a core revenue engine. Daphne shared her journey from the early days of CS to leading global enterprise teams, why blending digital motions with high-touch strategy is the future, and how AI will reshape CS roles in the next two years.

Our key takeaways from Daphne

1. Value first, revenue follows. Retention and expansion come from customers achieving outcomes.
   
   
2. Blend digital with high touch. Use scalable digital enablement to drive adoption, then let CSMs focus on strategic influence.
   
   
3. Start with minimum viable data. Define the smallest set of data you need, then layer processes on top.
   
   
4. Onboarding is make or break. Win hearts in the first 30 to 60 days or risk churn.
   
   
5. Treat Sales and CS as one journey. Seamless handovers prevent repetition and keep momentum.
   
   
6. AI removes the mediocre middle. Roles polarise into strategic relationship builders and deep technical specialists.
   
   
7. Measure usage and value. Forecast risk at least six months ahead so you have time to act.
   
   

From support function to strategic growth driver

“When we deliver value to our customers, we will not just retain their business. We will capture more of their demand.”

That realisation in 2011 set Daphne on a mission to transform CS from a reactive support department into a proactive growth driver. Back then, there was no clear roadmap for CS leaders to follow.

“There was literally no knowledge out there on how to do customer success – no processes, no technology. I reached out to leaders on LinkedIn and was met with an incredibly generous group who shared their time, advice, and even playbooks.”

Over the past decade, she has applied that same collaborative mindset to scaling CS teams for both start-ups and Fortune 500 companies, impacting over 200,000 customers and driving more than $2 billion in ARR.

Merging high touch with digital scale

At HubSpot, Daphne oversees CS for the company’s largest and most complex accounts. Traditionally, these enterprise customers were served exclusively through high-touch, multi-person teams. But buyer expectations and the need for scale have driven a change.

“We’re not reducing resources, but we’re merging high-touch with digital motions to engage customers in smarter, more scalable ways. The aim is to free CSMs to focus on high-value activities – building deeper relationships, driving adoption – while digital nurtures users with the right content at the right time.”

This hybrid model ensures that strategic accounts still receive personalised attention while the broader user base benefits from timely, relevant engagement at scale.

Building on a foundation of data

For Daphne, every scalable CS strategy begins with data – but not with an unrealistic drive for “perfect” data.

“Everything starts with your data. And I don’t mean clean everything – that could take years. Identify the minimum viable data you need to run the CS business you want. Then build processes on top.”

She stresses the value of using both structured and unstructured data. At HubSpot, AI is leveraged to listen to customer conversations and infer goals, creating personalised touchpoints without relying solely on manual CSM inputs. This approach speeds up action and reduces the dependency on perfect data hygiene.

One journey: uniting Sales and CS

One of Daphne’s biggest lessons has been to stop viewing marketing, sales, and CS as separate silos.

“For the customer, it’s one journey. If they have to repeat their goals and pain points to three different teams, you’ve already failed.”

At HubSpot, Sales uses Joint Evaluation Plans to set expectations during the buying process. These flow directly into CS Success Plans, ensuring that the customer’s goals, challenges, and measures of success are carried forward without losing context. This continuity not only creates a smoother onboarding process but also sets the stage for long-term retention and expansion.

Reducing churn by delivering value

When it comes to reducing churn, Daphne is clear:

“The best way to reduce churn is to deliver value. If you’re not delivering value, you’re on the chopping block.”

She outlines three key focus areas for delivering value consistently:

1. Onboarding – Win hearts and minds in the first 30–60 days.
   
   
2. Usage – While usage alone isn’t value, no usage means no value.
   
   
3. Forecasting – Identify risks at least six months ahead so there’s time to act.
   
   

By focusing on these areas, CS teams can actively drive retention rather than simply react to cancellations.

CS as a revenue engine

Post-pandemic, companies have started to recognise the untapped potential of their existing customer base.

“Every CS team should have a dollar-value North Star, whether it’s retention, growth, or both. But turning CSMs into pure sellers is risky. In the short term, you’ll upsell more. In the long term, you risk a shrinking pool of healthy customers.”

Her preferred model is for CSMs to generate Success Qualified Leads, while letting sales teams close them. This allows each function to focus on what they do best – CS on nurturing customer health, and Sales on deal execution.

AI and the skills for the future

Looking 12–24 months ahead, Daphne predicts AI will reshape the CS talent landscape.

“AI will handle the repeatable, low-complexity work. What’s left will be CSMs at either end of the spectrum – deeply relational and strategic, or deeply technical.”

She believes the next generation of CS leaders will be defined by three core skills:

• Adaptability – Embracing new technology quickly.
  
  
• Curiosity – Proactively exploring and experimenting.
  
  
• Prompting skills – Knowing how to get the best results from AI tools.
  
  

Her practical advice:

“Write your prompt, then ask AI how to make it better. The improvement is almost always transformational.”

How does a Digital Sales Room help a Sales to CS handover?

A Digital Sales Room, like a trumpet Pod, plays a pivotal role in creating a seamless onboarding experience by bridging the gap between Sales and Customer Success in one continuous journey. With a single Pod carrying over from the sales process into post-purchase onboarding, there’s no risk of lost context, repeated questions, or scattered documents. The same personalised space that convinced the buyer now evolves into their onboarding hub, complete with Mutual Action Plans, training materials, and relevant resources tailored to their goals. CSMs can update content instantly, track stakeholder engagement in real time, and respond with precision to where a customer is in their onboarding journey. This continuity not only accelerates time-to-first-value but also keeps momentum high, ensuring customers feel supported, confident, and ready to succeed from day one.

‍Final thoughts

Customer Success is no longer just about retention – it’s a strategic lever for revenue growth. By blending digital and high-touch engagement, anchoring every action in data, unifying Sales and CS around a single customer journey, and adopting the right AI-powered tools, CS teams can evolve into true growth engines. Daphne’s experience shows that the path forward is about delivering measurable value at scale – and being ready to adapt as the tools and expectations change.

If you’re in CS and want to stay ahead of the curve, Daphne’s newsletter This is Growth! is a must-read head here.

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Listen on Spotify

Watch the full episode on YouTube

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FAQs

How does HubSpot blend digital and high touch for large accounts?
By combining targeted digital enablement for thousands of users with CSMs focused on strategy, multi-threading and high value conversations.

What is the single biggest lever to prevent churn? Deliver value quickly, especially through strong onboarding and consistent product usage, then track value metrics and forecast risk six months out.

Should CSMs own upsell quotas?

Daphne prefers CS to generate Success Qualified Leads while Sales closes. It preserves specialisation and protects the long term health of the customer base.