SaaS Metrics School
Episodes
The Difference Between Booking Date and Revenue Start Date
23 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 264 – The Difference Between Booking Date and Revenue Start Date In episode #264, I tackle a question from a SaaS CEO in Spain. They message...
How to Build Your Metrics Foundation in 2025
12 Jan 2025
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #263, I address the building blocks to your financial transparency. Tired of running financially blind? Know that you can do more with your...
How to Size Your R&D Budget for Next Year
29 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #262, I address 2025 planning and R&D investments. - Calculate your OpEx profile. - Factors influencing your R&D budget - Where to ...
You Can’t Scale without Bookings Data
28 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #261, I address the world of SaaS data. Bookings data is one of the biggest data mistakes that I see in SaaS. With this data, you can forge...
When Should Your Hire a Fractional SaaS CFO?
27 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #260, I address the world of fractional help. I’ll focus on the SaaS CFO but also share other fractional roles that I see in SaaS compani...
Your SaaS Metrics Playbook for 2025
26 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #259 I address the data and metrics required to scale your SaaS business. It’s no accident when SaaS companies achieve big ARR numbers. -...
How Much Are SaaS Companies Raising in Series C and D Rounds?
22 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #258, I address fundraise sizes. Let’s break down common Series C and D round raises. - Series C round sizes - Series D round sizes - Sou...
How Much Are SaaS Companies Raising in Series A and B Rounds?
21 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 257 – How Much Are SaaS Companies Raising in Series A and B Rounds? In episode #257, I address fundraise sizes. Let’s break down common Se...
How Much Capital Should You Ask for in a Pre-seed and Seed Round?
17 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #256, I address fundraise sizes. Let’s break down common pre-seed and seed round raises. - Pre-seed round sizes - Seed round sizes - Sour...
How to Size Your Sales and Marketing Budget for Next Year
05 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #255, I address sales and marketing investments, ROI, and how to call BS on bookings and GTM investments. - Calculate your OpEx profile. - ...
Onboarding is NOT a Sales Cost
04 Dec 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #254, I address a question that comes up often enough from SaaS teams and investors. Let’s address where we code onboarding expenses. - W...
My Top 4 Professional Services Metrics – Services Margins
26 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #253, I address the top four metrics you should calculate and monitor if you have a customer onboarding function. This episode focuses on s...
My Top 4 Professional Services Metrics – Billable Utilization
23 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #252, I address the top four metrics you should calculate and monitor if you have a customer onboarding function. This episode focuses on b...
My Top 4 Professional Services Metrics – Services Backlog in Months
21 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #251, I address the top four metrics you should calculate and monitor if you have a customer onboarding function. This episode focuses on s...
My Top 4 Professional Services Metrics – Services Backlog
20 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #250, I address the top four metrics you should calculate and monitor if you have a customer onboarding function. This episode focuses on s...
My Top 4 Professional Services Metrics
19 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #249, I address the top four metrics you should calculate and monitor if you have a customer onboarding function. - Services backlog - Back...
How Do We Handle Churn When Customers Hit Pause
15 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #248, I address a reader's question. Here’s the question…how can we distinguish churn from a customer freeze (pause services)? - Handli...
Tracking GRR with a V1 to V2 Product Migration
12 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #247, I address a reader question from Andy. Here’s the question…if I create a new version of my product from a 1.0 to a 2.0 and migrat...
My Top 4 Sales and Marketing Efficiency Metrics You Should Be Measuring
05 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 246 – My Top 4 Sales and Marketing Efficiency Metrics In episode #246, I address the must-have GTM efficiency metrics for your SaaS business...
12 Top SaaS Metrics Every CEO Should Measure for Sustainable Growth
02 Nov 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #245, I address 12 top SaaS metrics you should implement in your business. This is from a post at the link below. I love these posts, so le...
How to Measure Your GTM ROI on Tradeshows
30 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #244, I address a student question from my SaaS Metrics Crash course. When we attend tradeshows, how do we measure the ROI? - MQL, SQL, Pip...
Should I Offer 15% Discounts for Annual Subscriptions?
29 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #243, I’m addressing a student question from my SaaS Metrics Foundation course. Should we offer discounts on annual subscriptions? - What...
How Should I Report ARR Bookings in a Multiyear Contract?
24 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 242 – How Should I Report ARR Bookings in a Multiyear Contract? In episode #242, I’m addressing ARR bookings reporting. Bookings data is o...
Should I Use CARR or MRR or Exit ARR in My Reporting?
22 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #241, I’m sharing some MRR reporting fundamentals. Let’s not confuse our Board and investors. It’s easy to suffer from MRR blindness ...
Can Your SaaS Beat the $1.50 Labor Efficiency Test?
15 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #240, I’m sharing one of my favorite metrics. The ROSE Metric. This metric is key to a sustainable SaaS business, especially if you are s...
What’s the Impact of This Customer Downgrade Scenario?
11 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #239, I’m addressing a reader's question. Thanks, John! Here’s the scenario. The customer books an annual contract at $24K ARR / $2K M...
Don’t Make This Top Mistake in MRR Due Diligence
09 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #238, I’m sharing big mistakes that I see in MRR schedules. And this always happens to pop up in due diligence. This WILL limit your valu...
My Top Critiques of Your 3 to 5 Year Forecast
03 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #237, I’m sharing tips and tricks from coaching calls on long-term forecasting. These are not easy. We have to take a step back and look ...
These Are the Top Billing Solutions in SaaS
01 Oct 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #236, I’m sharing the results of the billing / invoicing category from my 5th annual tech stack report. These are solutions being used in...
How to Calculate Retention with Both Perpetual Licenses and SaaS
25 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #235, I address a student's question. Yes, there are still software companies with the perpetual/maintenance model. As they transition to S...
These Are the Top Rev Rec Solutions in SaaS
20 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #234, I’m sharing the results of the rev rec category from my 5th annual tech stack report. These are solutions being used in SaaS. It’...
You Need a Forecast Model for a Series A and B Raise
15 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #233, I’m sharing some of what I learned from SaaStr 2024. Today, let’s talk about the projections that you need for a series A and B f...
The Metrics that Matter to Investors
12 Sep 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #232, I’m recording this from SaaStr in San Mateo. I watched a great presentation by Christoph Janz of Point Nine Capital. Here’s my re...
How to Handle Resellers and End Users in Your CRM and Metrics
30 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #231, I’m addressing a very common pain point in our data when we have a partner or reseller channel. If not done right, it really screws...
The Big Assumption You’re Overlooking in Your CAC
27 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #230, I’m talking CAC, the ubiquitous SaaS metrics. Seems so simple but there is a big assumption lurking in your spreadsheets that you c...
Can You Pass This Real Go-to-market SaaS Metrics Quiz
24 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #229, I’m testing your knowledge of GTM SaaS metrics. I help a lot of SaaS companies and see a lot of situations. What do you think of th...
Should I Invoice Out of My CRM or Accounting Software
23 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #228, I address invoicing. What software should I use? Based on a recent LinkedIn post (below), this is a hotly debated topic. The landscap...
Your Sales Team Does NOT Own Billing and Collections
21 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #227, I address billings and collections. An experienced SaaS colleague asked this question, and here are my strong thoughts on it. - Does ...
What is a Good Revenue Churn Rate
20 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode 226, I address churn and retention rates. What is good? What is bad? and how do we source these benchmarks? - What is a good customer reten...
What is a Good Customer Churn Rate
19 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #225, I address churn and retention rates. What is good? What is bad? And how we source these benchmarks. - What is a good customer churn r...
Don’t Exit Without Preparing These 4 Key Finance Data Sources
16 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #224, I address a common problem in SaaS companies. Finance data. I see this over and over. You not only need this data to properly scale y...
The Canary in the Coal Mine Subscription Metric
15 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #223, I address a metric that I rarely see tracked. It’s called Renewal Rate. If you sell annual or multi-year customer contracts, this i...
What Churn Metric Do I Use in LTV
14 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #222, I address churn, retention, and LTV. Like any metric, LTV can be made very subjective if we use the wrong inputs. We must the correct...
Should I Code Wages and Benefits to COGS
07 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #221, I address expense coding for tradeshows. This is a great question from a SaaS Metrics School podcast listener. - What departments are...
Where Do I Code Tradeshow Expenses
06 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #220, I address expense coding for tradeshows. This is a great question from a SaaS Metrics School podcast listener. - Scenario: we attend ...
9 Legal Strategies for a $100M Exit – Tactics 7 to 9
03 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #219, I address preparing for an exit. You must prepare ahead of time for an exit. I hosted guest expert Omeed Tabiei, an attorney for SaaS...
9 Legal Strategies for a $100M Exit – Tactics 4 to 6
02 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #218, I address preparing for an exit. You must prepare ahead of time for an exit. I hosted guest expert Omeed Tabiei, an attorney for SaaS...
9 Legal Strategies for a $100M Exit – Tactics 1 to 3
01 Aug 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #217, I address preparing for an exit. You must prepare ahead of time for an exit. I hosted guest expert Omeed Tabiei, an attorney for SaaS...
Ignore Your Accounting Pay the Price Later
31 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #216, I address poor accounting data. This is SO common in early-stage SaaS, even later stage. But it can easily be avoided. - The pillars ...
I’m Struggling with Your Bookings Data
24 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #215, I address bookings data from our CRM. This is one of the four key finance data sources. And one that we get wrong. - What is a bookin...
What to Do When Your Accounts Receivable and Aging Are Out of Control
17 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #214, I address cash flow. Plain and simple. Don’t collect on your open invoices and you’ll soon be out of business. - What is AR? - Wh...
How Late is Late for a Late Payment?
16 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #213, I address a student question from my SaaS metrics community. As a CFO, this question is near and dear to my finance heart. - What is ...
Not All CARR is Created Equally
15 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #212, I address Contracted Annual Recurring Revenue (CARR). This can get really tricky when everyone is defining ARR differently. And CARR ...
Your Accounting Team Needs a Close Calendar Checklist
02 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #211, I address your accounting foundation. Like it or not, accounting data is so important and feeds the SaaS finance process. - SaaS acco...
Parent Child Relationships Can Cause a Big Metrics Mess
01 Jul 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #210, I address the parent-child relationship—and I’m not talking about the relationship with your teenager. If not done right, it can ...
Founder / Investor Fit is Critical for Fundraising Success
29 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #209, I address fundraising tips and tricks. This tip is one that is always mentioned when I interview SaaS founders about their fundraisin...
Is LTV to CAC Dead as a Metric?
28 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #208, I address social media posts that attack LTV to CAC. Don’t believe the blanket statements that you read about SaaS metrics. - What ...
How Do We Track Retention When We Offer Multi-year Contracts
27 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #207, I address retention in a multi-year contract environment. Should we use only classic retention analysis? - The 3 retention metrics - ...
I Rarely See This Metric Tracked in SaaS Companies
18 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #206, I address a non-financial metric that I love. That is NPS or CSAT. But you see a lot of folks who would rather pass on NPS. - Any fee...
How to Tackle Your Retention Problem
17 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #205, I address the must-have retention metrics and how to zero in on retention problems. - The 3 retention metrics - Where’s my retentio...
Do Your VC’s Not Care Anymore?
12 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #204, I address a post by SaaStr about VC’s checking out on current investments. What now? - Set your own financial roadmap - Forecasting...
Improving Your DSO and Cash Flow
11 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #203, I address invoicing, cash collections, and cash flow. Cash flow starts with timely and accurate invoicing. - Timely and accurate invo...
Do I Really Have to Code All Expenses to a Department?
07 Jun 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #202, I address a reader question about coding expenses. They attended my CAC webinar and had a great question about how far you go with ex...
How to Segment Your CAC
28 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #201, I address the foundation of CAC and segmentation. It takes a lot of good expense detail to get fancy with our CAC calculations. - New...
The Ultimate SaaS Metrics Checklist for Your Business
25 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 200 – The Ultimate SaaS Metrics Checklist for Your Business In episode #200, it’s fitting for episode 200 that I share my 5 Pillar SaaS Me...
My ARR when Switching from Long-term Contracts to Consumption Model
21 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #199, I address the tricky question of what is ARR. There are many revenue streams in SaaS and we have to be careful how add up our ARR. - ...
You Are Less Than 2M ARR and Want to Exit
11 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #198, I address what you need if you are early-stage and want to exit. I just gave a coaching call on this to someone prepping a smaller Sa...
Your MRR Schedule is Worth its Weight in Gold
10 May 2024
Contributed by Lukas
Episode 197 – Your MRR Schedule is Worth its Weight in Gold In episode #197, I address due diligence and your MRR schedule. Your MRR schedule will A...
The Foundation of CAC Part 4
30 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #196, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s talk PLG and SLG. And segmenting your CAC. - SLG and PLG imp...
The Foundation of CAC Part 3
25 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #195, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, about the metrics that use CAC as an input. And what’s your prize?...
The Foundation of CAC Part 2
24 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #194, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s talk data sources. Where do we source CAC data? - SaaS P&...
The Foundation of CAC Part 1
23 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #193, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s define CAC. It’s not as obvious as it seems. - Begins with...
What SaaS Metrics Are Relevant When Passing $10M ARR?
16 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #192, I address the relevant SaaS metrics when hitting the big $10M ARR milestone. If you are a founder who is still far away from 10M, it’...
What Metrics and Data Do Acquirors Want to See ASAP?
12 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #191, I address the data that is worth its weight in gold. You will always be asked for this data when buyers are evaluating your SaaS busi...
Do I Really Need to Use SaaS Metrics Benchmarks?
11 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #190, I address SaaS benchmarks and metrics. Benchmarks act as important guideposts for our business. - Do I really need benchmarks? - What...
How Do I Count Reactivation MRR in My Metrics
10 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #189, I address reactivation MRR and counts. This is a common layer of MRR in self-service SaaS (low price point, high customer volume) bus...
Calculating CAC When You Have SLG and PLG Motions
05 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #188, I address today’s reality with our go-to-market motion and CAC. You must segment your CAC if you run a PLG and SLG motion. - new vs...
Don’t Do This When Allocating Your CAC Expense
04 Apr 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #187, I address an important concept when trying to allocate CAC expenses between new and existing business. This came up again on a coachi...
Can CAC Be Calculated Per Product Line?
26 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #186, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. CAC by segment. This is often harder than it appears. -...
Should We Include Customer Success Cost in Our CAC?
25 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #185, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. Where does customer success belong? - What role does Cu...
Sales Cycle Impact on S&M Efficiency Metrics
22 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #184, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. - How do you measure your sales cycle? - Impact on S&am...
Bookings Data is Finance Data Source 1
13 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #183, I address the four key sources of SaaS finance data. This data feeds our forecast, SaaS metrics, financial analysis, Board reporting,...
Contracted MRR vs P&L MRR
12 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #182, I address the nuances of MRR. We could be talking about an accounting number, a CRM number, and a number from who knows where. - What...
Please Code Your Expenses to the Department Level
08 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #181, I address an all too frequent accounting problem. Department coding. Save yourself headaches down the road by coding expenses to the ...
Founders You Must Be Profitable on Your Services Revenue
01 Mar 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #180, I address professional services revenue. PS revenue required to set up, configure, onboard, and train your customers. And essential d...
How Do I Calculate Retention if I Have Consumption Revenue?
29 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #179, I address revenue retention and variable revenue streams. This can be tricky if our variable revenue offers no consistency. Period of...
How I Use the Rule of 40 When You Are Less Than 10M ARR
27 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #178, I address the proper time to use the Rule of 40. There are a lot of opinions here on when to implement this metric. Some say above 25...
Pass 90% of Your SaaS Peers with These 4 Finance Steps
23 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #177, I address the 4 things you can do to pass 90% of SaaS peers in financial maturity. - Your Chart of Accounts - The Proper SaaS P&L...
How I Assess the Setup of Your SaaS P&L
21 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #176, I address the structure of your SaaS P&L. This is my top requested coaching session from founders and finance teams. You must get...
Where Does Customer Success Expense Belong on Your SaaS P&L
20 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #175, I address the hotly debated topic of customer success expense. Where do we code wages and bonuses? To get this right, we must first d...
Does Expansion MRR or ARR Include Renewals?
19 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #174, I address bookings, renewals, and expansion. These data points can get confusing if we don’t define them correctly. - When is a ren...
What is the Impact of Gross Revenue Retention on Valuation?
18 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #173, I address a student question this week in my SaaS Metrics Foundation course. We must understand our GRR, benchmarks, and how third pa...
What Revenue Streams Should Be Included in Our MRR Schedule?
16 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #172, I address revenue streams and MRR schedules. This is no joking matter. Our metrics and valuation depend on clean data. - Common SaaS ...
What is the Source of Truth for Bookings Data?
14 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #171, I address the number one SaaS data mistake. Poor or no tracking of bookings data. Check out episode #25 for a bookings breakdown. - W...
Can We Treat One-time Purchases as Variable Revenue?
13 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #170, I address revenue classifications on our SaaS P&L. We must keep clear and distinct revenue categories. - SaaS revenue categories ...
If You Can’t Close Your Books Timely This is What Happens
08 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #169, I address the financial close process. AKA, closing your books. This must be done timely and accurately every month. If not, you lose...
4 Mistakes When SaaSifying Your Accounting Foundation
07 Feb 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #168, I address the four common mistakes with your accounting. I see this over and over in my client and coaching base. Learn from their mi...
I’m Running Financially Blind and I Don’t Know What to Do
31 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #167, I address a common founder issue. Running financially blind. I’ve seen a lot of bad data and financials lately. Even after reviewin...
Who Should Track Time In Your SaaS Company
30 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #166, I address a common discussion lately. Time tracking. It’s important to get your headcount roster coded correctly. However, we don’...
This is the Tech Being Used in SaaS Companies
29 Jan 2024
Contributed by Lukas
In episode #165, I address the tech stack being used in SaaS companies. I just released my 5th Annual SaaS Tech Stack Report. It covers 21 software ca...