I jumped on a call with their director and led with three new Firefly features that had shipped since the original pitch. Figured showing progress was faster than apologizing. They renewed, though at a reduced seat count.
Misreads a trust breach as a product gap; pivoting to features skips the accountability the customer needed.
I inherited a similar situation at my last company — four accounts flagged as at-risk. I spent the first two weeks just listening, no pitch. Scheduled calls, asked what went wrong, took notes. One account renewed. Two others churned anyway.
Disciplined listening-first instinct, but process-heavy with no sharp decision moment visible.
I called the director directly, didn't send an email. I said the previous promises weren't met and I wasn't there to paper over that. We talked for 40 minutes. She pushed the renewal out 90 days, but she stayed in the conversation.
Correctly diagnoses a trust problem, chooses honesty over pitch, and preserves the relationship deliberately.