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6 Types of Active Customers

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Active customers are customers who regularly contribute to your revenue. This has several common variations:

Recent Purchases

Customers who have made a purchase recently. The definition of recently differs by industry. A common definition is at least one purchase within the past 12 months. Durable goods may define a longer period.

Loyal Customers

Customers who make frequent purchases. The definition of loyal customer differs by industry, organization and product category. For example, a fast moving consumer goods firm might define a loyal customer as 5 purchases in 6 months.

Support & Service

Customers who pay for a period of support, service and/or maintenance. For example, a mobile device with a 3 year support plan. A customer who has separately paid for support remains an active customer for the duration of the support.

Product Subscriptions

Products that are automatically purchased on a subscription basis such that they represent recurring revenue. For example, an ecommerce company that allows consumers and businesses to purchase basic goods on a monthly recurring subscription.

Service Subscriptions

Service subscribers who make automatic payments until they decide to cancel the service.

Contacts

Contractual purchases such as a consulting contract. This is the most stable form of active customer as they may face penalties for canceling the service. Contacts are most common amongst business-to-business services.

Calculation Notes

Active customers is calculated as the total number of unique customers who made a purchase in the trailing 12 months. The growth rate of active customers can be calculated as:
active customer growth = ((end - start) / start) * 100
Where end is your active customers at the end of a month and start is your active customers at the start of the month. For example, a firm with 1300 subscribers at the start of a month and 1443 at the end has an active customer growth rate of
active customer growth = ((1443-1300) / 1300) * 100 = 11%
Overview: Active Customers
Type
Definition (1)
Customers who regularly contribute to your revenue.
Definition (2)
Customers who have made at least one purchase in the trailing 12 months.
Definition (3)
Customers who have paid for a product or service delivered within the trailing 12 months.
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This is the complete list of articles we have written about customer metrics.
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