Onboarding glossary

Plain-language definitions of the terms that come up when you run customer onboarding.

• ActivationThe moment a customer completes the core actions that predict long-term retention.
• Churn riskSignals that a customer may cancel, often visible during or shortly after onboarding.
• Customer onboardingThe process of getting a new customer from signed contract to successfully using a product.
• Customer Success Manager (CSM)The person responsible for a customer's adoption, retention, and growth after the sale.
• Go-liveThe point at which a customer starts using a product in production for real work.
• ImplementationThe hands-on technical work of configuring and integrating a product for a specific customer.
• No-login client accessLetting customer-side stakeholders view status and complete tasks via a link, without an account.
• Onboarding checklistThe ordered list of tasks a customer and vendor complete to finish onboarding.
• Onboarding kickoffThe first working session that starts an onboarding project and sets the plan.
• Onboarding portalA shared web space where a vendor and their customer track an onboarding project together.
• Time to value (TTV)How long it takes a new customer to reach their first meaningful outcome with a product.
• White-label portalA customer-facing portal that shows the vendor's brand instead of the software provider's.