If you work in B2B sales or marketing, you’ve probably heard that past customers are your best shot at new business. But turning that insight into results? Not so simple. Most CRMs talk a big game about “relationship management,” but actually making them work—especially for mining value from people who left your customer accounts—can feel like wrangling spreadsheets with duct tape.
There’s a new crop of tools claiming to automate this, with Usergems leading the charge. But does it live up to the hype? And do you actually need it, or can you squeeze more out of your regular CRM? If you want honest, real-world answers—and not a sales pitch—this guide is for you.
Why Past Customer Relationships Matter (But Are Hard to Track)
For B2B teams, the logic is simple: people who bought from you once are more likely to buy again, especially if they move to a new company. That’s why “tracking alumni” is a classic sales move. But here’s where things go sideways:
- CRMs aren’t built for this. Most CRMs (Salesforce, HubSpot, etc.) are great at tracking accounts—not humans who leave and pop up somewhere else.
- Data gets stale fast. The moment someone changes jobs, your CRM doesn’t magically update itself. Now multiply that by hundreds of contacts.
- Manual tracking is brutal. Some teams try spreadsheets or calendar reminders. Good luck with that if you have more than a handful of ex-customers to follow.
So the classic “keep in touch” play is often just wishful thinking. That’s where Usergems and a few other tools promise a shortcut. But does it actually work better than doing it the old way?
What Is Usergems, Really?
Usergems is software that tracks your key contacts after they leave a customer company, then tells you when they land somewhere new. The pitch: you get notified, swoop in, and win business thanks to your existing relationship. No more guesswork or missed opportunities.
Here’s what it actually does: - Scans your CRM for contacts you care about (champions, admins, etc.) - Monitors LinkedIn and other sources for job changes - Alerts you when someone lands at a new company, and updates their info - (Optionally) pushes those updates back into your CRM
Sounds slick, right? In theory, it automates what you wish your CRM did out of the box.
How Traditional CRMs Handle Past Customer Relationships
Let’s be honest: most CRMs are just expensive spreadsheets unless your team is disciplined. Here’s how the usual process goes:
1. Manual exports: Every so often, someone pulls a list of “champions” or past buyers out of the CRM.
2. Spreadsheet hell: You track job changes with LinkedIn, Google alerts, or just hoping someone remembers.
3. Occasional updates: When you notice a job change, you might update the CRM, but usually, that data gets out of date fast.
4. No automation: There’s no built-in way to know when a contact leaves. You’re always playing catch-up.
What actually works? - Small, hands-on teams: If you only have a few dozen key contacts, you can do this manually—if you’re disciplined and don’t mind the grind. - High-value accounts: For a handful of really strategic buyers, the manual approach is fine. You can personalize outreach and keep it genuine. - Dedicated roles: Some companies have a “past champions” team or assign BDRs to track alumni. This works, but gets expensive as you scale.
What doesn’t work? - Scaling up: Once you have hundreds or thousands of contacts, manual tracking falls apart. - Relying on CRM automation: Most CRMs can’t spot job changes or update contact info on their own. You’ll need add-ons, custom integrations, or a lot of elbow grease.
Usergems: How It Actually Performs (Not the Hype)
Let’s cut through the marketing. Here’s what Usergems gets right—and where it still falls short.
What Works
- Real-time alerts: You get notified quickly when someone changes jobs. That’s the whole magic—you’re first in line to reach out.
- CRM sync: It can push updated info back into Salesforce or other systems, so your data stays clean.
- Reduces grunt work: No more hunting LinkedIn every week.
What Doesn’t
- Accuracy isn’t perfect: Sometimes job changes are missed, or updates lag behind what you see on LinkedIn. No tool is flawless here.
- Data overload: If you don’t set up good filters, you’ll get too many notifications—lots of low-quality leads mixed in.
- Price: It’s not cheap, especially for small teams. If you’re not actually acting on the alerts, you’re burning money.
- Still needs process: If your team ignores the notifications, nothing happens. Usergems doesn’t close the loop for you.
Pro Tips
- Tighten your target list. Focus on actual decision-makers or champions. Otherwise, you’ll end up chasing every former user who lands at a new job—with little payoff.
- Integrate with your workflow. Make sure alerts go where your reps actually look (Slack, email, CRM tasks).
- Measure results. Track how many meetings or deals actually come from Usergems-triggered outreach. It’s easy to fool yourself with “activity” that isn’t closing business.
Side-by-Side: Usergems vs Traditional CRM Strategies
Here’s how it shakes out if you’re deciding what to use, or whether it’s worth upgrading:
| Feature / Factor | Traditional CRM | Usergems | |----------------------|--------------------------|------------------------------| | Job change alerts| Manual, slow, error-prone| Automated, near real-time | | Contact updates | Manual, often outdated | Automated, but not perfect | | Scalability | Poor (labor-intensive) | Good (once set up) | | Cost | Usually cheaper | Premium pricing | | Setup effort | Low (if manual) | Moderate (needs integration) | | Noise/filtering | You control everything | Needs careful tuning | | Personalization | High, but slow | Medium, can be templatized |
When Traditional CRM Wins
- You have a small list of high-value past customers.
- You care more about genuine, personalized outreach than speed.
- Your team is disciplined about updating records and following up.
When Usergems Is Worth It
- Your customer base is large and constantly churning.
- You can’t afford to have reps hunting LinkedIn all day.
- You have a repeatable process for acting on job change alerts.
What to Ignore (Unless You Like Wasting Time)
- Over-automating outreach: No tool can replace a thoughtful email or call. If you blast everyone with the same “Congrats on the new job!” template, you’ll get ignored.
- Tracking every contact: Not all users or admins are worth tracking—focus on people who influenced the purchase.
- Assuming your CRM does this already: It doesn’t. You’ll need add-ons, integrations, or manual work.
The Real-World Playbook: How to Actually Use Past Customer Relationships
Here’s a practical, no-BS process that works—whether you’re using Usergems, your CRM, or just grit.
- Define your “champions.” Figure out who actually drove past deals. Don’t just pull every user—pick the real decision-makers.
- Build (and clean) your alumni list. Export them from your CRM and sanity-check the info.
- Pick your tracking approach:
- If it’s <50 people, a manual spreadsheet and LinkedIn monitoring is fine.
- If it’s hundreds or more, look at Usergems or similar tools.
- Set a regular cadence. Monthly is plenty for manual checks; Usergems will tell you as it happens.
- Personalize your outreach. Don’t just send a template. Reference your past work together, offer relevant help, and keep it short.
- Track your results. Log every meeting, deal, or reply that comes from a past customer landing at a new job. If you’re not seeing real results, adjust your approach.
Pro Tip: Don’t let this become “set it and forget it.” Tools are only as good as your follow-up. If outreach isn’t happening, it’s time to rethink.
Bottom Line: Keep It Simple, Iterate, and Don’t Buy Hype
Chasing after past customers at their new jobs is smart B2B sales—if you do it right. Usergems can help, but it’s not a magic bullet. For small lists, discipline and a spreadsheet can get you 80% of the way there. If you’re scaling up, automation saves time, but you still need to focus on quality over quantity.
Don’t get distracted by shiny features. Start simple, measure what actually works for your team, and tweak as you go. The best tool is the one your reps actually use.