customer retention rate

Definition

The percentage of customers who continue doing business with you over a specific period, revealing whether your product is good or your churn is just temporarily delayed. The metric that determines if you're running a business or a leaky bucket.

Example Usage

Our retention rate is 85% annually, meaning we only lose 15% of customers per year—a statistic we'll present positively until someone does the math.

Origin

Customer relationship management metrics from the 1980s-90s

Fun Fact

Increasing customer retention by just 5% can increase profits by 25-95%, which is why subscription companies obsess over churn like it's a personal betrayal.

Source: Customer relationship management metrics

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