Podcasts about customer acquisition costs

Was passiert, wenn ein Startup-Investor die Versicherungsbranche auseinander nimmt – und daraus eine KI-Plattform für Makler baut?In dieser Folge spricht Simon Moser mit Daniel Dierkes, Gründer von SureIn, über die vielleicht größte Transformation der Versicherungsbranche seit der Digitalisierung. Warum verbringen Makler heute noch bis zu 50% ihrer Zeit mit Verwaltung? Weshalb reichen klassische MVPs und CRM-Systeme künftig nicht mehr aus? Und warum könnte KI darüber entscheiden, wer in den nächsten Jahren gewinnt – oder verschwindet?Daniel gibt exklusive Einblicke in:die Entstehung von SureIn & der neuen KI-Plattform Moduswarum Maklerbetriebe heute massiv ineffizient arbeitenwie KI komplette Workflows automatisieren kannweshalb Spezialisierung trotz KI wichtiger wird als je zuvordie Zukunft von Beratung, Service & Skalierung im Maklermarktwarum KI nicht wie ein „Praktikant“, sondern wie ein digitaler COO gedacht werden sollteEine Folge über operative Überforderung, digitale Geschäftsmodelle, KI-Agenten, Wachstumsschmerzen – und die unbequeme Wahrheit darüber, wie sich Maklerarbeit in den nächsten Jahren radikal verändern wird.Für alle Vermittler:innen, Makler:innen, InsurTechs und Entscheider:innen, die verstehen wollen, wohin sich die Branche wirklich bewegt.Schreibt uns gerne eine Nachricht!Folge uns auf unserer LinkedIn Unternehmensseite für weitere spannende Updates.Unsere Website: https://www.insurancemondaypodcast.de/Du möchtest Gast beim Insurance Monday Podcast sein? Schreibe uns unter info@insurancemondaypodcast.de und wir melden uns umgehend bei Dir.Dieser Podcast wird von dean productions produziert.Vielen Dank, dass Du unseren Podcast hörst!

Send us Fan MailGuest: Anthony Nitsos, Founder of SaaS GurusA SaaS company doesn't become fundable because it's growing—it becomes fundable when the financial engine underneath that growth can withstand scrutiny.In this episode of SaaS Backwards, Anthony Nitsos, founder of SaaS Gurus, joins us to discuss what actually makes a SaaS company fundable. Revenue, customer growth, and cash in the bank are all important signals, but they do not always reveal whether the business is healthy, scalable, or ready for diligence.Anthony breaks down the difference between accounting and strategic finance, why ARR and NRR are often misunderstood, and how metrics like cash flow, CAC, and gross margin can give founders a clearer view of their company's health.Key takeaways:Why finance is forward-looking while accounting is backward-lookingThe five SaaS metrics every founder should understandHow ARR can be overstated through discounts, services, or transaction revenueWhy NRR is becoming more important to investors and acquirersHow strong financial infrastructure can improve fundability and valuation---Stalled pipeline? Lost deals? Diagnose your GTM gaps with a free, actionable checkup. 

"70% of stuff never goes sold. So you have to be prepared to interact with that level of rejection." David Hooker is the brand director for both Printify and Printful, which merged in late 2024 to form FYUL. He's got access to the data behind millions of print on demand sellers, and what he's learned is both humbling and useful. The top 1% aren't more talented. They're more consistent. We get into AI-generated mockups that actually look real, why email marketing is still a "print money button," and how community-driven niche selling beats paid ads for customer acquisition in 2025. Also available on YouTube: https://youtu.be/ppYhfdota7k SPONSORS Swym - Wishlists, Back in Stock alerts, & more getswym.com/kurt Zipify - Build high-converting sales funnels zipify.com/KURT LINKS Printify: printify.com Printful: printful.com David Hooker on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/davidhooker/ David Hooker's TEDx Talk on Visual Literacy: ted.com/talks/david_hooker_the_importance_of_visual_literacy WORK WITH KURT Apply for Shopify Help ethercycle.com/apply See Our Results ethercycle.com/work Free Newsletter kurtelster.com The Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.

Your numbers don't have to feel overwhelming or confusing. JobTread founder Eric Fortenberry breaks down a practical 3 step financial framework remodelers can actually use to build a healthier, more profitable business. From forecasting revenue and tracking KPIs to understanding hiring, marketing spend, and cash flow, this conversation is packed with actionable ways to move from reacting to your business… to finally leading it with clarity and confidence.JobTread helps remodelers bring estimating, scheduling, job costing, and invoicing into one connected system, so they can clearly see where jobs stand and what's actually profitable. We've watched members move from guessing to confidently knowing their numbers, which leads to better pricing, planning, and leadership. If you're ready for better systems and better decisions, learn more at jobtread.com.Explore the vast array of tools, training courses, a podcast, and a supportive community of over 2,000 remodelers. Visit Remodelersontherise.com today and take your remodeling business to new heights!Key TakeawaysStrategic Financial MindsetConfidence in ProfitabilityLead Quality and Revenue PredictabilityGross Profit MarginsOverhead and Payroll ManagementDynamic Financial PlanningChapters00:00 Introduction to Financial Management04:30 The Importance of Annual Budgeting07:33 Understanding Budget Components10:27 Creating a Financial Model13:13 Forecasting Revenue and Sales Funnel16:16 Marketing Strategies for Lead Generation23:33 Customer Acquisition Cost and Marketing Efficiency27:29 Building a Revenue Model30:19 Tracking Revenue and Referrals31:45 Understanding Cost of Goods Sold33:43 Gross Profit and Budgeting35:35 Managing Overhead and Payroll40:57 Hiring and Team Management45:36 Controlling Cash Flow and Avoiding Overhiring48:31 Net Profit and Financial Health52:21 Key Performance Indicators and Continuous Improvement58:27 The All-in-One Solution for Remodelers59:17 Introduction to the Remodelers on the Rise Show

"Succeeding with paid was not about how good your ROAS was. What the paid experts did so well was they had built a business model structurally that allowed them to put as much money as they possible into that paid engine." Andrew Youderian surveyed 300 store owners representing $3.5 billion in revenue for the sixth annual eComFuel Trends Report, and the data broke four things Shopify merchants have been told were true. AI adoption is at 72% and producing zero financial edge. Non-AI adopters are growing profits faster than adopters. Amazon's share of revenue is back to 2017 levels while more brands than ever are selling on it. Gross margins hit an all-time high the same year net margins hit an all-time low. In this episode we dig into the paid traffic reversal that changed Andrew's own mind, why 97% of stores now run paid ads, the P&L math that separates winners from losers, and the financial literacy stat that moves net margins by 50%. SPONSORS Swym - Wishlists, Back in Stock alerts, & more getswym.com/kurt Cleverific - Smart order editing for Shopify cleverific.com Zipify - Build high-converting sales funnels zipify.com/KURT LINKS eComFuel 2026 Trends Report: https://www.ecommercefuel.com Financial Mastery for Ecom Store Owners (free course): https://www.ecommercefuel.com/mastery/ WORK WITH KURT Apply for Shopify Help ethercycle.com/apply See Our Results ethercycle.com/work Free Newsletter kurtelster.com The Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.

What happens when the product that made you famous starts holding you back? Kevin Gould co-founded Glamnetic in 2019 with Ann McFerran, launching a magnetic eyelash brand that exploded from $1 million to $50 million in revenue in just one year — fueled by a great product, smart growth marketing, and the COVID-era boom in DIY beauty. But when the tailwinds reversed — iOS 14 updates sent acquisition costs soaring, the lash category contracted, and revenue dipped 25% — Kevin faced a make-or-break decision. Rather than doubling down on what was declining, he pivoted the entire business into press-on nails, a category still in its infancy. Today, Glamnetic is one of the largest press-on nail brands in the world, doing over $100 million a year. In this episode, Kevin gets real about the unglamorous side of hypergrowth: the cash flow crunches that come with scaling too fast, the inventory mistakes that haunt you, and the emotional toll of watching revenue fall when you expected it to double. He shares how he and his team navigated the pivot, why community and brand affinity will always outlast paid acquisition, and why the best advice he can give founders is: don't grow too fast. You'll learn: Why going from $1M to $50M overnight nearly broke the business How to manage cash flow and inventory when you're self-funded The marketing mix that built a real brand — not just an ad machine Why TikTok Shop is the biggest arbitrage opportunity right now How a 40,000-member Facebook community doubles as a product development engine The one hire every founder should prioritize early on What it really takes — personally and professionally — to turn a pivot into a $100M business Subscribe and watch Shopify Masters on YouTube!Sign up for your FREE Shopify Trial here.

Good Girl Snacks built a cult following and landed Whole Foods placement, with $0 spent on ads. Use its TikTok, community, and daily content strategy to scale as a scrappy startup. For more on Good Girl Snacks and show notes click here.  Subscribe and watch Shopify Masters on YouTube!Sign up for your FREE Shopify Trial here.

How to Leverage Brand Differentiation for Massive B2B Growth In the increasingly competitive and saturated world of B2B SaaS and tech, clear brand differentiation and strategic positioning are the most overlooked levers for sustainable growth. While often dismissed, these are critical components in helping companies directly shorten sales cycles and lower their customer acquisition costs (CAC). When done the right way, they can transform everything from strategic alignment across teams to campaign effectiveness and sales velocity. So how can B2B marketing teams develop clear brand differentiation strategy that drives measurable revenue? That's why we're talking to Chantelle Little (Founder and CEO, Tiller Digital), who shares her expertise on how to leverage brand differentiation for massive B2B growth. During our conversation, Chantelle discussed why clear brand differentiation and positioning are underrated growth levers for SaaS and tech companies, especially regarding shorten sales cycles and lowering CAC. She also highlighted the importance of strategic alignment and effective positioning, particularly in the face of increasing competition and the market's maturity. Chantelle discussed why understanding customer pain points is crucial, and how to leverage AI for audience insights. She provided advice on conducting competitor analyses, gathering customer feedback, and leveraging metrics like unaided recall and CAC to quantify brand performance. Chantelle also underscored the necessity of aligning product marketing and sales teams for impactful branding and scaling. https://youtu.be/IF4TaI0QAfU Topics discussed in episode: [00:00] Why brand differentiation is a non-negotiable now in the world of SaaS [02:36] Why AI is a double-edged sword: great for starting positioning work, but dangerous if human judgment isn’t layered in [08:40] The pushback founders give (“it’s too early”) and why those that invest early remove friction from fundraising, hiring, and conversion  [11:49] Key pitfalls to avoid regarding brand differentiation (and branding in general) [20:14] How to make brand ROI tangible: work backward from customer lifetime value (CLV), target a specific CAC reduction, and show the revenue math in founder language  [28:34] The 4-step positioning framework:  1) Define your market and competitive alternatives,  2) Gather customer interviews, surveys and competitor audits,  3) Mine for real differentiation beyond table stakes,  4) Operationalize across the website, sales decks and outbound  [39:31] Metrics for proving brand’s impact: unaided recall, branded search growth, direct traffic, CAC trends, conversion rates, sales cycle length, and inbound lead quality Companies and links mentioned: Chantelle Little on LinkedIn  Tiller Digital G2 Transcript Christian Klepp, Chantelle Little Chantelle Little  00:00 One key pitfall I see is just treating brand as a cosmetic exercise, right? So it’s really, especially when people are, you know, not super familiar with brand, not super familiar with marketing. It can be really easy to, you know, associate logo with brand, and it’s, it’s a lot more comprehensive than that. Christian Klepp  00:19 It’s something that tends to get overlooked in the world of B2B SaaS and tech, yet it’s a crucial component in helping companies to shorten sales cycles and lower Customer Acquisition Costs (CAC) I’m talking about clear brand differentiation and positioning. When done the right way, it can transform everything from strategic alignment across teams to campaign effectiveness and sales velocity. So how can B2B Marketing Teams develop clear brand differentiation for growth? Welcome to this episode of the B2B Marketers in the Mission podcast, and I’m your host, Christian Klepp, today I’ll be talking to Chantelle Little, who will be answering this question. She’s the founder and CEO of Tiller Digital that helps B2B, SaaS and tech companies scale through strategic customer centric marketing. Tune in to find out more about what the speed to be Marketers Mission is okay, and away we go. Chantelle Little, welcome to the show. Chantelle Little  01:13 Thanks for having me, Christian. I appreciate it. Christian Klepp  01:15 Great to have you on the show. You know, we had such a great pre interview conversation, and I’m really looking forward to this discussion because, man, this is something that’s so important. And I’m not saying this because I also do branding, but it’s just something that I think is really important. I personally feel from my own experience, it’s something that tends to get overlooked a lot, especially in in the world that you operate in, which is in B2B, SaaS and tech, all right, so I’m going to keep the audience in suspense a little while longer, while I go through the first question. Chantelle Little  01:48 Okay, sounds good. Christian Klepp  01:49 So you’re on a mission to help B2B SaaS teams clarify their story, sharpen positioning, and build websites that drive pipeline. And who doesn’t want that? I think is the better question. But for this conversation, I’d like to narrow it down to the topic of how clear brand differentiation and positioning shorten sales cycles and lower CAC. So for those that don’t know what CAC is, it’s Customer Acquisition Cost. So let’s kick off the conversation with two questions, and I’m happy to repeat them. So question number one, why do you believe that brand differentiation is the most underrated growth lever in B2B? And question number two, as a follow up, where do you see many B2B SaaS companies struggle? Chantelle Little  02:36 Yeah, well, maybe I can kick off with the differentiation and positioning pieces. I think one thought that comes to mind is that differentiation from a branding perspective, perspective has always mattered. But the market has changed a lot in in the last decade, but even in the last 18 months, last two years, it has shifted a lot. One of the things that has changed so much is that the SaaS market in particular has matured a lot over the last number of years. And I love to follow all the stats on what’s happening in the market. And if you just consider that, we’re like mid 2020s, and it’s like the SaaS market is roughly 300, 400 billion. And a lot of you know data out there suggesting that that market could double between now and 2030 so in the next four years, kind of thing, we might see that market reach closer to 700 billion. So I share that, because a decade ago, when people were entering the SaaS market, there were fewer that. There was less competition. There were fewer people to actually compete with. By nature, there were fewer buyers as well, because less companies have shifted a lot in terms of their use of SaaS products in operating their businesses, but the market has shifted so it’s more mature, there’s more competition, there’s higher expectations that come with that as well. And then the other thing you know, in addition to saturation in the market, is that the barriers to entry have dramatically lowered, right? So I think last week, I was reading an article about, yet again, another company that has used lovable to launch a you know, product in market within two weeks and generated millions of dollars of revenue. I’m worried about misstating the facts so, but it was like millions of revenue in a short period of time. So when the barriers are lower, the market is saturated, there’s more of a need for differentiation, and I’m really passionate about that, because if we communicate the same story, and if we communicate sameness, we’re never going to win. AI (Artificial Intelligence), obviously lovable is a good example of an AI platform companies are using, but it also has accelerated the ability to create products, but also it is contributing to sameness, like if you put your your competitors into AI and you ask it to spit out positioning for you and your key messaging, it’s a great start, and I’m actually. A huge advocate of using AI for those those steps, but probably talk about that a little bit later in the podcast too. But it’s really critical that human judgment is layered into that that work. Otherwise, you know, brands will be just spit out from AI, and by nature, they will probably become more similar, not more distinct. So those are a couple to answer. Kind of the first question on why I think it’s underrated. I think if companies can really nail that, it really helps with getting traction, and not just, you know, a little bubble of success, but long term traction and long term performance, which is really key. That’s a that’s a big one for brand. So hopefully that that helps, and then I could go into, like, some of the things where I see companies really struggling. I think there’s a few areas I think that a lot of companies, really, if I’m talking early stage for a moment, a lot of companies that I’ve worked with, or I’ve seen, have really struggled to understand the power of getting those foundational brand pieces figured out. So if I use positioning as an example, if you don’t get your positioning correct, all the money invested after that really might, you know, not work in the way that you’re hoping it will work. So it’s kind of going to that foundational layer, and really making sure the foundation is solid, and then building off of that foundation worth saying, hard to get it right. You know, like the first time, you’re constantly iterating on your positioning, not just in the early stage, but as you scale up, you know, I go back to our positioning as a company every year, if not more frequently than that, and you start to tune and experiment and hone it. But I think the core piece is that if you don’t position yourself, you will be positioned by the market, and it may not be in your favor. So being intentional and strategic about that, it may be seemingly insignificant, but it’s really, really critical in terms of getting momentum. So that’s just kind of one thing is like undervaluing brand, which I know we’re going to talk about more here today. Christian Klepp  07:14 Absolutely, absolutely no thanks for sharing that. And that’s something that like, really, you know, when you brought it up, it makes me clench my teeth and I just, I just like, you know, because every time, I mean, not always, you know, certainly there’s, there’s companies that we work with that, um, they either do get it or they’re open to a different perspective, right? Chantelle Little  07:37 Yeah. Christian Klepp  07:38 But more often than not, especially in B2B, I always find that there’s always got to be somebody down there that pushes back on the whole branding aspect and says that’s a complete waste of our time. Chantelle Little  07:50 Yes. Christian Klepp  07:51 Right? And I feel, and perhaps this has been your experience as well. But not to sound harsh, but you know, ignorance is bliss. Chantelle Little  07:57 Yes. Christian Klepp  07:59 Because, you know, if people don’t understand something the dangerous Well, if I don’t understand it, then perhaps it’s not that important, and nothing can be further from the truth. Chantelle Little  08:11 Yeah. Christian Klepp  08:11 Right. So what’s your take on that? Because, I mean, you must, you know, in your in your day to day dealings with clients, especially in those sectors that you serve, you probably get some pushback on, well, why should we do this foundation piece? Why should we do this branding like, you know, we it just sounds like it’s gonna run up, you know, our costs, it’s, it’s, it’s more investment. Why should we do that? We should focus on generating pipeline instead. But what’s your take on that? Chantelle Little  08:40 Yeah, I definitely have experienced that, so it’s a great question. And have come up that come up against that a lot, and I don’t like generalizations, but generally speaking, a lot of founders that you know, I’ve had the opportunity to speak with and work with over the years are not necessarily coming from a marketing background, and often not coming from a sales background as well. They they usually have a specific area of expertise. It could be domain knowledge, it could be subject matter knowledge, but they’re very focused on the product itself, especially in the SaaS space. So it’s, it’s very product centric. And that’s good, because if, if all you have is sales and marketing and you don’t have a product, then it doesn’t work. Either it’s it’s really about this balance and this, this tension between the two. So the pushback that I often get is that it’s too early to invest in brand. That’s the the one that I hear quite frequently. It’s not worth the investment, or it’s too early, or we need to have 100 customers before we’re going to spend that much money or that much effort. And I think some of it stems from limited data pools. We only have so much data, and we only have so many customers we can speak to that spending money on it. Now we’re making too many hypotheses. So why would we over invest? And like I said, a balance is needed because you don’t want to over invest. But the pattern that I see sometimes downstream is that those founders are sometimes struggling to get investment, struggling to attract top talent, struggling to, you know, convince beta users to convert into paid customers. There there’s some downstream effects that happen and they offer. There’s nuance to its of course, that changes by the nature of the business. But my observation is that founders that are willing to invest, you know that reasonable amount in brand see friction removed from a lot of those different kind of goals that they’re trying to achieve. So I think that that’s, that’s super, super key, is that, you know, proper positioning, proper differentiation, and I mean even going to the visual side of branding as well. Is that credible brand? It really helps, especially in a world where there is a lot of skepticism, right? Like, is that fake? Is that real? Like, am I really going to spend money on that? It concerns compliance, like, the list goes on. You know? How do I know this is credible? And brand plays a really, really big, critical role in that. So I do see that pattern quite a bit, and I’ve seen those that are willing to take the investment, and I’ve seen friction be removed. Christian Klepp  11:30 Yeah, yeah, no, absolutely, absolutely. I’m going to move us on to the next question about key pitfalls. So if we’re talking about marketing teams within B2B SaaS or tech. What are some of these key pitfalls that you would say they should be avoiding, and what should they do instead?   Chantelle Little  11:49 Yeah, so there’s a couple that come to mind. One is, one key pitfall I see is just treating brand as a cosmetic exercise, right? So it’s really, especially when people are, you know, not super familiar with brand, not super familiar with marketing, it can be really easy to, you know, associate logo with brand, and it’s, it’s a lot more comprehensive than that. So I think just remembering that just because you have a nice logo, it doesn’t mean that you’ve clearly positioned yourself. Just because you have a really strong, you know, a nice looking website, it doesn’t mean that the value has been clearly articulated and that you’ve differentiated yourself from, you know, competitors, and that all can go go right through. So it really impacts, you know, sales. If you don’t get those, those P those, those specific foundations in place. So I think you know do instead is you want to start with the positioning as the most critical piece, clarify what market you’re playing in. So this is, like, really practical, but like, clarify what market you’re playing in, because you want to make it easy for buyers to assess you against competitive alternatives. This is really challenging if you’re creating a new category, because the competitive alternatives are less clear. But if you’re entering a market where there are more competitive alternatives, like really making sure that you, you know, figure out what market you’re playing in and what value you’re you’re delivering. So that’s kind of like a couple of key things. So that’s one pitfall. The other one that I definitely could talk about for a while is just over reliance on internal perspective. So this is again challenging, and I see it at different stages, because, you know, I’ve worked with, you know, different founders or leadership teams at variety of different scales, some pre revenue, most in sort of a mid market growth phase, a rate up through it to enterprise. So you see this in different ways, shapes and forms. When you’re in the earlier stages, you have a lot of assumptions that you’re making as an internal team. So the more beta users you can talk to, the more potential customers you can talk to, and if none of that’s available, leverage look alike audiences like get as much input as you can to shape your strategy. It’s quite high risk, and it’s usually ineffective to sit in a room with two people that like your idea, and just brainstorm and build a strategy, because it’s not informed by much other than a couple people’s perspectives. So that’s that’s kind of one at larger scales. This gets really tricky, because if you have an executive team of 10 people, right, and then you have other layers of leadership, so Csuite, and maybe there’s VPs (Vice President) and director levels. It’s really tricky for all those people to get into a room and start to debate what makes sense, because sometimes ego gets in the way. You know, people have their own unique perspective, and then, as a marketer, you’re kind of left with trying to integrate all of that. So I’m a big believer in getting customer feedback, be it interviews, be it surveys, you know, if you’re a B2B tech company or SaaS company, looking at competitor reviews on G2 like, looking for patterns in vocabulary, in how people talk about pain solutions, whatever it might be if you don’t have G2 profiles, like, you know, you can go and get look at your competitors, G2 profiles, and start to look at what people are complaining about and what they’re celebrating about your competitors. And you can mine for patterns there. So that’s, that’s another pitfall is just like over reliance on on internal perspective, and then the the cascading effect of all the assumptions that are made in that in that process as well. Christian Klepp  15:42 Yeah, yeah. No, I was, um, I was kind of having a little bit of a chuckle to myself when you said over relying internal perspective. Because, um, it’s, um, I think, I think they’ve diagnosed this, um, this malaise. It’s um, it’s analysis paralysis and opinion. Chantelle Little  16:00 Oh, nice, yeah, yeah, yeah. Christian Klepp  16:03 Yeah. I tried to say that with a very serious face, yes, but, um, but it’s but it’s so true though, right? Like you just mentioned it, and I’ve been in situations. I’ve certainly been in meetings where there was this constant and very heated, like debate about positioning on what the brand stands for from an internal perspective. And it was usually like, unfortunately, more often than not, the loudest voice in the room at once, right? Chantelle Little  16:30 Yeah. Christian Klepp  16:31 Or, depending on the person’s level of seniority as well. And I would then see that falter when they take it to market. Chantelle Little  16:41 Yes. Christian Klepp  16:41 Because, as you rightfully pointed out, just because they agreed upon it in the meeting room, that doesn’t mean that the market agrees with that person. Chantelle Little  16:49 Yes, yes, yeah. Real balance to to to find, and it’s not easy, but it is also surprising how many companies are reluctant. I mean, I talk to B2B, SaaS companies, day in and day out, and there is a reluctancy to ask the customer for a case study or to ask the customer for an interview or survey. And I think some of it comes from, you know, it takes time and energy, which is a very precious commodity in today’s world. But sometimes, I think deep down, people don’t really want to know because they’re trying to protect something, and that’s really tricky. So I think a growth mindset and being willing to accept that customer feedback can be quite, quite powerful, because it creates an ally and ambassador from the customer, not always, but that’s the vision, that’s the goal, right? So if done properly, it really can create that. And then now we have fuel to put in the marketing engine that will help us go further, faster. And that’s a really exciting thing. Christian Klepp  17:57 It is an exciting thing. It is also a very thin line to walk, because I’ve been in a situation previously where I was a product marketer and I had to go out into the field with salespeople and listen to the way that they would conduct, conduct the meetings with the prospects, and listen to the concerns, the objections and the questions and whatnot, right? And from there to your point is, we can see what the prospect really thinks about the product. Chantelle Little  18:26 Yes. Christian Klepp  18:27 Versus what the you know, sometimes when the sales come back, they say, oh yeah. The meeting, the meeting went well. They said they think about it. But when you’re actually there in the meeting, then you actually hear what their concerns are, it’s like, yeah, they like it however they have, they had all of these different questions and concerns, and if that’s not captured in some shape or form, yeah, then anything that we put out from a marketing perspective might not be relevant to them, might not help them, might not also move the sales closer to to getting a deal. Chantelle Little  19:02 Yeah. Well, and I love that you bring that up Christian, because that kind of reminds me of just the other challenge of scaling brand. It’s at like scaling brand, right? And how it can fracture as you try to scale it. Christian Klepp  19:15 Yeah. Chantelle Little  19:15 And one of the things that you you mentioned is just that alignment between product marketing and sales like that is one of the biggest challenges that companies face as they scale. And so it’s like, if sales isn’t, you know, having these great conversations, they’re getting clear on objections, not feeding that back to marketing. And if marketing doesn’t have that Intel or those inputs, it gets difficult to learn from every opportunity to improve conversion performance and improve performance in general. So, yeah, I love that. It’s, it’s really key. Christian Klepp  19:47 Yeah, yeah, no, for sure. For sure. We already talked about this a little bit, you know, like how to deal with pushback, especially from founders. And you know, more often than not, they’re not from a marketing background. They’re not from us. Sales background. But I think the question that I want to ask you is basically, how do you convince them, or how do you prove to them, I think is the better word. How do you prove to them that brand differentiation and positioning can indeed shorten sales cycles and CAC. Chantelle Little  20:14 Yeah, I think when speaking to founders and early stage leadership teams, I think it’s important to speak their language. So there’s like, when I’m when I’m talking to a CMO of a, you know, $80 million company, you are dealing with different context and perspective and experience. And so you can kind of adjust your your your pitch and your conversation around more common marketing related terminology. But I’d say when you’re talking to founders, it’s really important for them to see this in context of revenue and a context of how it’s going to really, really move the needle. And so there’s a few different things. Like, there’s different ways that you can that you can position it, but I think really understanding there’s a couple things that I love to understand is, I love to understand about average deal size. Like, I like to understand, okay, so how much money do we anticipate we can make off of this customer in one year? But more important than that, how much do we think that you’re going to make off the customer over the course of the lifetime of the customer? So is it three years, you know, lifetime value, five years lifetime value, whatever that might be, whatever the customer lifetime value is. That’s actually more important than the the annual recurring revenue for one year or one month, right? So if, if I know that, then it becomes easier to work backwards and figure out, okay, so if that customer is worth $20,000 to you over the lifetime of the customer, how much would you be willing to spend to get that customer? If, if that customer is worth 700,000 or a million over the lifetime of the customer. How much would you spend there? And kind of get into some of the unit economics of it, and then help them understand what makes sense to spend to acquire that customer. And I think, like, like I said, talking in context of revenue, talking in context of, you know, the cost to acquire the lead is really helpful. And so let’s just, you know, use a simple example. A couple weeks back, I was speaking to someone, they were sharing that their their cack was closer to $1,000 and based on their price point, it just didn’t make sense. Like the economics only work when we run the numbers. It only works if we can get that down to three or $400 so the question is, how do you move the needle from a CAC of 1000 to a CAC of 300 to 400 and there’s different levers we can pull right? But when you know that that’s the target, we have to reduce the cost to acquire the customer down to 300 400 for all the economics to work and for you to put more money into this and to really scale it now we can start to look for all the friction that’s in the process that or that’s in the buyer journey, the user journey, depending on what context we’re talking about, and remove every little bit of friction. And when we start to see that, if, okay, if we remove that friction, if we change the messaging, if we do better message mismatching or better message matching from the ad to the landing page. If we, you know, maybe improve the brand, because right now, you feel early stage, and we could through better visuals, make you, you know, position you better amongst your four competitors that you’re trying to beat. If we start to change those little levers, then we can start to, you know, incrementally bring down that number. And you have to be careful talking about this, because there’s so many other things that are variables, right, that influence costs to acquire a customer that are outside of, you know, our ability to influence. But I think talking about it in context of the numbers is most helpful, because now we have really concrete goals all anchored to trying to achieve something that could be scaled and sometimes the answer might be, you need to increase your price, like I’ve come along that before as well. It doesn’t work, not because the CAC is wrong, but because the price is actually wrong. When I look at the competitive landscape, you could double your price, and, you know, not price yourself out of market. So there’s, there’s different levers, and that’s actually what’s so fun about marketing, is that it’s like being a mad scientist and sitting there with all your beakers and putting different things in there and seeing what you can achieve, like what you can create, in terms of results that that is what it’s it’s like. So I think that’s, that’s really key. So I think, like, just really practically as it relates to sales cycles, if you have weak positioning, it usually leads to confusion. Buyers are confused. You know, now I’m having to give repeated explanations of what we do. There’s the the marketing website, but now the sales team is having to, like, repeat or re explain or re educate or change the prospects perspective, and then objections end up getting rooted in misunderstandings, like in the sales process, right? So if we have strong positioning, the opposite would be true. Now we probably have better self qualification, so the quality of leads in your pipeline would be going up. In theory, that’s what would happen, right? We’d have easier comparison. The competitor can compare you better against competitive alternatives. Like it starts to make more sense, less friction, less cognitive load. And then, you know, it will someone will move through the pipeline with less friction. So usually shorter sales cycles. That really matters, right? If you could turn 60 day sales cycles into 30, like, what would that mean for you from a cash flow perspective, right? So it’s kind of looking at at all of those different variables. Christian Klepp  25:51 I love it. I love it. When you talked about the mad scientist that you know, the thing that came to mind was like, Dr. Frankenstein saying. Chantelle Little  25:59 Yeah, exactly that. Christian Klepp  26:03 But I love how you started out with as contradictory as it sounds, it’s very profound working backwards. Chantelle Little  26:11 Yes. Christian Klepp  26:12 What’s the end game? How much? How much is a customer worth to you, right? And working from there, because if you don’t start out like that, everything is really a guesstimation for for lack of a better description. But going back to something that you said, which I thought is really interesting, because at least I’ve seen this a lot. Do you think a lot of this the issue with differentiation and positioning as it pertains to SaaS and tech, also stems from a, this might sound oversimplified, but it stems from a lack of an actual lack of understanding of who the who the customer is, Chantelle Little  26:53 Yes. Christian Klepp  26:53 And what their pain points are, and how you have the ability to address those pain points, versus like, Oh, look at, look at our platform with all these neat features? Chantelle Little  27:02 Yes, yeah, absolutely. I think it’s, it’s hard, like, really, simply, it’s really hard to serve someone if you don’t know their problem first, Christian Klepp  27:12 Right. Chantelle Little  27:13 Right? And I think that’s why I don’t remember the exact quote, and I should look it up, because I keep misquoting it. Then that whole concept of, like, if I had to solve a problem, I’d spend 90% of the time solving the problem, and then whatever, 10% of the time executing against that to actually solve the problem, something like that, right? It is. It is some of that. It’s kind of like if we don’t know the problem, if we don’t know the pain, it’s really hard to solve it. So I think putting adequate energy into understanding, defining the pain, is really critical. Christian Klepp  27:47 Absolutely, absolutely, okay, you’ve given us quite a bit now, but like, walk us through these steps, right? Like, like, like, without that magic formula of yours, I’m joking. We know. We know that it’s not magic. There’s a lot of hard work that goes into this, right? Chantelle Little  28:02 Yeah. Christian Klepp  28:03 Walk us through these steps that that process, right? That helps B2B SaaS teams find their differentiation and strategic positioning. So what? What steps do they need to take? How? How do they? How can they, I should say, conduct research, generate insights, and move rapidly. I think the name of the game is speed too. Like a lot of these guys, especially founder led, they don’t have five years to prove what they have us working. Chantelle Little  28:31 Yeah. Christian Klepp  28:32 We’re talking about months here, right? Chantelle Little  28:34 Yeah, yeah, no, that’s, that’s such a great question. So I’ll try to do this in a way that’s easy to, you know, kind of explain so, so the first part is really defining the market. So in order for us to do positioning like step one, define the market, a couple key questions you can ask is, what cat or category are you in? Right? That’s, that’s really key. And then, what are the competitive alternatives that exist in the market? I’m a big April Dunford fan. I like, there’s a lot of frameworks that there are a lot of books out there about this, but she uses the language of competitive alternatives. And I’ve really, I’ve really taken that and leveraged that, because I think you want to understand who people what I find is that when you start to ask, what are the competitive alternatives? You might realize that the category you originally said you play in is not quite the right category. So if you ask both questions, you can use them to hone in on the right the right spot for early stage founders. I think narrowing in early is really key, and then you can expand really intentionally and strategically later down the line. So what I mean by that is it’s really hard to get traction with the new product in market when you’re trying to solve 30 problems. You know, we’ve talked, talked to so many founders, where it’s like, well, we can do this, we can do this, we can do this. We’re solving this problem, this problem, this problem, this problem, and and so it gets difficult because you need traction. So it’s either, you know, simplify the number of problems you’re solving, or maybe simplify how many industries you’re trying to go after, like start in your best hypothesis industry, get traction there, and then expand later. But I think it’s just being careful, careful about that from a positioning perspective. So that’s kind of step one, just a couple key questions you can ask. Step two is gathering those inputs. So, you know, for customer interviews, you know that’s something that you can do on your own. You can work with an agency to help you do that. I know that that can be really challenging to get people’s time, but for that, it’s really about designing the right script. It’s about making sure that you kind of maintain some continuity through those through those interviews, so that you start to be able to mine for patterns versus changing up the question set every time, leveraging customer surveys. I mean that that requires that you have an outreach list, but often you can, you know, build a bit of an outreach list from the network of folks on your team. But I would say on that one to be really, really careful about narrowing in on the right persona, like the right person, so that you don’t get, you know, the wrong type of input and the wrong type of data. One other thing that you know is really effective is doing a competitor messaging audit. So if you pull up all your competitor websites, and you can use AI to also help you get a start on it, at least you can pull up those websites and basically try to create a bit of a map, right? So it’s like, what is the positioning of each competitor and then what’s their core value prop? Like, that’s that’s also really helpful, outside of positioning. What’s a core value prop? And then, what are some of the key messages that are being highlighted? And then, what proof are they stating? So, is it case studies? Is it testimonials? Is it data points? Like, if that company is saying, we reduce time by 20% or whatever, like, What is the proof that they’re attaching to the message. And again, if you create a bit of a map of those competitors, you can start to see patterns where there’s overlap, and you can also start to see where there’s open gaps, like places you could play that aren’t directly competing. So it can be quite strategic. It can be a lot of fun. You can leverage AI. You could bring all that data back to your team and analyze it. So that’s another one. The review mining, like looking at G2 reviews, that’s really helpful as well, for looking for patterns, again, for all of these things, I we definitely have, you know, really advanced the way that we use AI to do these things, so doing them, but then also validating, making sure you’re using deep research. Sometimes we use multiple platforms so to see if we’re getting the same data from multiple platforms. But I think when you have all this data, AI can be really helpful for analyzing and looking for patterns. So that’s a really useful, useful case. And then internal workshops. I mean, if you’ve got someone on your team that you know is able to run an internal workshop, then that would be a great way to gather feedback from your team and have some of that necessary dialog to drive alignment and pull from the different perspectives on your team. In a perfect world, it’s great if you have a sales perspective, a marketing perspective, a product perspective, and if you’re unsure how to run these workshops, one that’s really useful is just doing a jobs, pains and gains, type or jobs to be done. Using that framework, even that could be really helpful to try map out, you know, the jobs that you believe your customer is doing. And then you can use customer interviews and surveys to validate some of that. And then, to your point, Christian about speed, we actually were. We’ve, we’ve had this a couple times with some customers that we’ve worked with, and even for our own testing, where we will use third party, you know, B2B platforms to, you know, interview look alike audiences. And there’s a whole science to that. So it’s not as simple as just going paying money and then, boom, you get 50 people’s feedback. You have to be super strategic about how you structure the surveys and the questions and what tests you run. But that’s beautiful, because now, 48 hours from now, you’re getting feedback. Now you’re able to leverage that, put that in AI look for patterns. It can be quite helpful when, when speed is the game. So that’s, that’s another one. So that’s kind of step two, gathering the real inputs. Step three is your mining for that true differentiation. A couple things that I’ll just quickly mention here is like, really try avoid table stakes. I see this time and time again, and even it’s very tempting to say, well, we’re we’ve got great customer service, whatever company is going to claim they do. Now, the customer interviews might say something different, and the customer, the competitor reviews online, might say something different, but like, is that sticky enough as a differentiation? Or like, even when people talk about their brand personality, it’s like, well, we’re professional. Well, that’s table stakes, right? Like, everyone’s expecting a level of professionalism. Christian Klepp  34:58 We hope so. Chantelle Little  34:59 We hope, we hope, right? So it’s like, try avoid that, or try avoid really vague adjectives. Like, get like, really specific. Don’t be satisfied with like, the vague. So here’s, like, the process where, now that you’ve done all that pre work, right now, you’re trying to, like, look for specific strengths and just where that real uniqueness is. And I believe that when it’s really grounded in real customer language, or maybe it’s lookalike audience language, it drives better performance from a marketing perspective. So that’s something to really look for. And step four, of course, like once you’ve actually found the differentiation, now you have to operationalize all of that, right? So that’s a whole other thing. I could go on and on and on, but it’s a whole other thing, because it can’t just live in a slide deck or a pitch deck. Now we have to figure out, how do we change the website, our sales decks, our email, outbound emails, like literally every touch point so that it aligns with that positioning, because everything that’s out of alignment is going to create confusion and potentially introduce friction. So that’s kind of the other part. So I’ll stop there. Does that help? Christian Klepp  36:15 I think you’ve got enough material here for an audio book. Chantelle Little  36:21 So that’s not the first time I’ve been described as robust. Christian Klepp  36:27 But jokes aside. I mean, I think that that was, that was quite comprehensive, and thank you for walking us through that. And by appreciate the amount of detail that you’ve provided here, because it is, again, one of the reasons why we agreed to discuss this topic on, you know, on this episode, is because this is a component, a vital component, that tends to get overlooked because they feel like, like it’s not such a big deal, or it’s something that’s easy to come up with. And now that you’ve met, you know, you’ve put in the effort to, like, walk us through what that actual process looks like. Chantelle Little  37:04 Yeah. Christian Klepp  37:06 We hopefully have dispelled that myth of how easy this is. Because, you know, as you’ve rightfully pointed out, it’s not, I mean, even if you Yes, of course you can use AI. I mean, like, we use it too, but there’s a certain way to use it and leverage it, where it generates, like you said, it helps to aggregate data, it helps to identify patterns, and it helps to generate those insights that also create true differentiation. Chantelle Little  37:34 Yes. Christian Klepp  37:35 None of this nonsense. And you know where I’m going with this, like you know, our true brand, our true differentiation, you know, lies in our people. Chantelle Little  37:43 Right? Christian Klepp  37:44 No, it does not right. Chantelle Little  37:45 Yeah, yeah. Christian Klepp  37:47 It lies in your ability to solve your you know, whatever challenges and problems and pain points your customer is facing, whatever those may be. Chantelle Little  37:56 Yes, yeah, yeah. And I think I love that you said that, because I think we also are living in this like world where outcomes, there’s so much focus on outcomes. So if you have a B in the B2B SaaS space, you know, saying that we have good customer service, saying that we have good people, those are, those are how we create value. They’re not the value. Christian Klepp  38:21 Right? Chantelle Little  38:21 So it’s like the the, you know, old challenge of people that focus on their features versus focusing on the value that they’re creating. And in today’s world, you can’t stand out if you don’t lean into outcomes, Christian Klepp  38:34 Correct. Chantelle Little  38:35 Right? So, Christian Klepp  38:36 I’ll come I’ll come focused, I’ll come driven. Chantelle Little  38:39 Yes, Christian Klepp  38:40 Right? I’m love it or hate it, right? Metrics, you know, at some point, especially in the world of SaaS and tech, which is, you know, very technical. Sorry, I’m trying to, try not to use any puns here, but, like, you know, right? But, but, but you, you will have to, especially if you’re dealing with founders and people that are have a very technical background, they need to be able to, like, grab on to something tangible. Chantelle Little  39:09 Yes. Christian Klepp  39:10 And sometimes, and I hate to say this myself, because I am that person that that lives and breathes branding, but sometimes that’s not something that’s that’s tangible to them, so you have to show them. This is working. We are making progress here. So what kind of metrics would you suggest marketers pay attention to when it comes to differentiation and positioning? Chantelle Little  39:31 Yeah, yeah, it’s a great question, and you’ve already alluded to the fact that measuring brand performance is like the thing that every marketer wishes they could do with higher degrees of precision and accuracy, because when they’re sitting, especially we work with so many mid mark, mid market, you know, marketers, and I hear about them going into the Csuite meetings, the board meetings, and I hear how difficult it is for them to get that approval on brand investments. Because, like everyone wants demand, we want x, you know, pipeline by the end of this year. We want, you know, this many (MQL) Marketing Qualified Leads by, you know, July, whatever it is, right? There’s these high expectations for performance, and usually more tendency to focus on demand investments than brand. So I think there’s a number of metrics like, I could go on and on and probably do an audio book on that one too Christian. But the one that I thought was worth maybe highlighting, because I think it’s not talked about enough, is this concept of unaided recall. And it’s it’s a little bit tricky to measure that as well. But I think what, what conceptually, you know, I try to encourage founders to think about is that at any given point in time, only 5% of your market is, like in market ready to buy. So if we run any demand campaigns, we are focused on converting that 5% into customers, right? But the other 95% we don’t want to alienate them. We don’t want to forget about want to forget about them, because they’re not in market today, but they might be tomorrow. They might be next month, next quarter, next year. So how can we build some mental availability with that 95% so that when they go in market and they become in the category of the 5% they think of your brand first, that’s, that’s the una like the recall piece. So typically, you know, we encourage people to think about what buying triggers, what moments in time happen that essentially prompt someone to move from the 95% that aren’t in market to the 5% that are in market. And then we try build campaigns and marketing around those buying triggers. But the key point is, is that we do that to build mental availability, right? So I think of it like this when you think of this category. So I’ll just use (CRM) customer relationship management. We think of this category of customer relationship management, who comes to mind, right? HubSpot, Salesforce. Christian Klepp  42:00 Yeah, right. Chantelle Little  42:01 So you kind of want to be the one that comes to mind. So it’s about really building that so. So I think measuring, like unaided, unaided recall, maybe aided recognition too. There’s you can. You can use branded search growth to help, you know, figure that out. Sometimes branded search growth, you know, you have to think about that in context. But are we seeing more people directly search for our solution? You know that could be an indication that they are aware of your company and your brand. There could be direct traffic trends that could be measured, but you’re trying to really think about if, if someone was prompted, like, if someone has pain, and that buying trigger happens like I now have pain. Do they think of your brand first, right? And I mean, some people will say, well, that’s hard to achieve because HubSpot Salesforce, they have these huge they have these huge budgets. And I’m not, you know, trying to gloss over that. That is a reality, but I think that there are targeted ways to build brand awareness and that mental availability and measure those metrics and help boards and Csuite understand the value of that so that they will approve brand investments, because when we invest in brand demand, performs better, right? Christian Klepp  43:19 Amen. Amen. Absolutely, absolutely. Oh, gosh, I wish. I wish more people would be saying something like that, but you said something which I thought was like, almost like a key phrase in this conversation, almost like an outcome. It’s like the it’s the logical, like, next step. It’s this building mental availability. Chantelle Little  43:40 Yes. Christian Klepp  43:41 Because that’s really a big part of what this exercise is. Chantelle Little  43:46 Yes. Christian Klepp  43:47 Especially in B2B, as you, as you rightfully pointed out that not everybody’s out there like, oh yeah, I need to get me some of that software. Let me pull up my credit card. Chantelle Little  43:55 Yes. Christian Klepp  43:56 It doesn’t happen that way, right? It usually is a much longer process. It usually involves a buying committee of anywhere between four to six people, maybe even more. Chantelle Little  44:05 Yes. Christian Klepp  44:05 Right? And they they do, you know, they do their own due diligence and research, and what they find online is extremely important. Chantelle Little  44:14 Yes. Christian Klepp  44:16 To your point, about like, not just the review sites, but what you know and what other people are saying, but you know, what are people online commenting, with regards to the software? What’s out there that’s available? Like, okay, if you, if you, if you Google or, or in the this day and age, you do AI search, what is AI saying? Chantelle Little  44:35 Yes, Christian Klepp  44:36 Right? Chantelle Little  44:37 Yeah. Christian Klepp  44:37 All important. Chantelle Little  44:38 Yeah. And I think, obviously, I’d be remiss if I didn’t say, of course, you want to measure measure like branded related metrics, like we’ve talked about. But I think you know, it’s also important to be measuring your your CAC, right? Because, like, some people aren’t even measuring their CAC. Christian Klepp  44:55 That’s right. Chantelle Little  44:56 And so measuring CAC is important, because if we want to prove you. That increased investment in brand reduces cap. We also have to measure CAC right conversion rates like, that’s a that’s another thing that you we can be measuring on the web level and paid campaigns. We can measure sales cycles, whether they’re shortening right. These are things brand influences. So ideally, we and we measure, you know, how brand is performing, and then we measure the things, the things that we’re trying to improve, right? CAC, conversion rates, sales cycles, all that kind of stuff, quality, right? Inbound quality. What’s the sales team say about the quality of these leads? Christian Klepp  45:34 Absolutely. Chantelle Little  45:35 All those pieces could be measured, and it will help us prove that brand is is helping remove friction. Christian Klepp  45:43 That’s absolutely right. Well, Chantelle, we could have gone on for another 10 hours, but like you know, in the interest of time, I’d like to thank you for coming on, and thank you for sharing your expertise and experience with the listeners. So please quick introduction to yourself and how folks out there can get in touch with you. Chantelle Little  45:59 Sure. Thanks Christian for having me. I appreciate it. So I’m Chantelle Little, founder and CEO of a digital marketing agency that serves B2B SaaS companies, and we help B2B SaaS teams clarify positioning, build differentiated brands, and also create websites and campaigns that drive qualified pipeline and ultimately revenue. That’s the key. So, so that’s that’s that in terms of connecting with me, you can check out our agency at tillerdigital.com that’s T, I, L, L, E R digital.com and feel free to connect with me on LinkedIn as well. Christian Klepp  46:35 Perfect and we will drop the links to those all in the show notes when this episode comes out so once again. Chantelle, thank you so much for your time. Take care, stay safe and talk to you soon. Chantelle Little  46:45 Thanks, Christian, see ya. Christian Klepp  46:47 Thank you. Bye for now.

Amanda Engelman is the Director of Product at Shopify leading advertising and channel expansion. She built the Shopify Product Network, a free app that lets other Shopify merchants' products appear on your store. You earn commission on every sale, you keep the customer, and you get category expansion insights without carrying a single unit of inventory. One store earned over $3,000 in commissions in just two months. We dig into how SPN decides what products to show (and how they're solving the "taste" problem), the checkout engineering that makes multi-merchant transactions seamless, and why this might be the lowest-risk growth lever available to Shopify merchants right now. SPONSORS Swym - Wishlists, Back in Stock alerts, & more getswym.com/kurt Cleverific - Smart order editing for Shopify cleverific.com Zipify - Build high-converting sales funnels zipify.com/KURT LINKS Shopify Product Network App: Shopify App Store Shop Campaigns: Shop Campaigns Amanda Engelman on LinkedIn: Amanda Engelman WORK WITH KURT Apply for Shopify Help ethercycle.com/apply See Our Results ethercycle.com/work Free Newsletter kurtelster.com The Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.

Marketing im Kopf - ein Podcast von Luis BinderIn dieser Folge wird über verschiedene Unternehmen gesprochen, da Markennamen genannt werden, handelt es sich um UNBEZAHLTE WERBUNG!In dieser Folge: In der heutigen Podcastfolge von Marketing im Kopf geht's um die Frage, warum Kunden überhaupt eine Beziehung zu Unternehmen wollen und warum sie die auch manchmal ganz bewusst vermeiden. Wir schauen auf den Unterschied zwischen B2B und B2C, auf Themen wie Vertrauen, Risiko, Status und Zugehörigkeit und darauf, warum CRM nur dann funktioniert, wenn ein echter Mehrwert entsteht. Am Ende geht es eben nicht um Nähe um jeden Preis, sondern um Relevanz aus Kundensicht.____________________________________________Marketing-News der Woche:Influencer Marketing wird erwachsen: Studie zeigt klaren ReifeprozessDer aktuelle „State of German Influencer Marketing 2026" macht deutlich: Die Experimentierphase ist vorbei. Budgets steigen, Prozesse professionalisieren sich, und Performance-Kennzahlen rücken klar in den Mittelpunkt. Engagement-Raten allein reichen längst nicht mehr. Entscheidend sind heute Conversion-Raten, Customer Acquisition Costs und Customer Lifetime Value. Unternehmen investieren verstärkt in Tracking-Technologien wie UTM-Parameter, Affiliate-Modelle und serverseitiges Tracking. Der Trend geht außerdem weg von Massenkooperationen hin zu langfristigen Creator-Partnerschaften, weil Glaubwürdigkeit der entscheidende Faktor bleibt.KI im Marketing: Viele nutzen es, wenige nutzen es richtigLaut dem aktuellen State of Marketing Report von Salesforce nutzen bereits 79 % der deutschen Marketingteams KI, aber mehr als drei Viertel setzen trotzdem überwiegend generische Kampagnen um. Das liegt an fragmentierten Daten und isolierten Systemen: 82 % der Marketingfachleute in Deutschland haben weiterhin Schwierigkeiten, zeitnah auf Kundenanfragen zu reagieren. Kurz gesagt: KI, die nur den Status quo automatisiert, erzeugt Effizienz. Echtes Wachstum entsteht erst, wenn KI den Kontext versteht und dafür braucht es saubere Datenbasis und klare Strategie.Markenreputation in der DACH-Region: Vertrauen wird zur WährungLaut der aktuellen Grayling-Trendanalyse 2026 sind sich Entscheider in der DACH-Region einig, dass Konsumenten dem Ruf einer Marke heute mehr Bedeutung beimessen als je zuvor. 63 % bestätigen diesen Trend. Dazu passt: Weltweit sehen 62 % der Befragten erhebliche Reputationsrisiken durch den Einsatz von KI, insbesondere wenn klare Leitlinien fehlen. Das heißt: Transparente Kommunikation ist kein Nice-to-have mehr, sondern ein Wettbewerbsfaktor.Meta ändert die Spielregeln: Was der neue Klick-Begriff bedeutetWer Meta-Kampagnen schaltet, kennt das Problem: Der Ads Manager sagt eine Sache, Google Analytics eine andere. Das liegt daran, dass Meta bislang diverse Interaktionen mit Anzeigen, also auch Likes, Shares und Saves, als „Klick" gewertet hat, obwohl andere Reporting-Dienste nur "echte" Link-Klicks zählen. Das ändert sich jetzt. Ab Ende März wird ein Klick bei Meta ausschließlich der direkte Klick auf einen Link sein. Alles andere (Likes, Teilen, Speichern) fällt dann unter die sogenannte Engage-Through-Attribution. Was das bedeutet: Die Zahlen im Reporting werden sich verschieben, die tatsächliche Kampagnenperformance aber nicht. Es ist mehr Klarheit, keine schlechtere Leistung.____________________________________________Vernetz dich gerne auf LinkedIn: ⁠https://www.linkedin.com/in/luisbinder/⁠ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/marketingimkopf/Du hast Fragen, Anregungen oder Ideen? Melde dich unter: marketingimkopf@gmail.com Die Website zum Podcast findest du hier. [⁠⁠⁠https://bit.ly/2WN7tH5⁠⁠⁠]

"Nobody wants to get rich slowly." Nick Mertz started Pins and Aces with $6,000 and zero outside capital. Today, his golf lifestyle brand does $25 million a year, employs over 40 people, and ships every order from their own warehouse outside Denver. But with customer acquisition costs through the roof, Nick stopped fighting the ad auction and built an omnichannel machine instead. We break down how live selling on Whatnot and TikTok became a serious revenue channel ($400K in December alone on TikTok Shop), why licensing collabs with Coca-Cola and South Park actually boost brand legitimacy, and how wholesale is flipping from 10% to 40% of revenue. Plus: the grab bag strategy that went nuclear, and why Nick runs his family business like a sports team. SPONSORS Swym - Wishlists, Back in Stock alerts, & more getswym.com/kurt Cleverific - Smart order editing for Shopify cleverific.com Zipify - Build high-converting sales funnels zipify.com/KURT LINKS Pins and Aces: https://pinsandaces.com Nick Mertz on Instagram: https://instagram.com/nvmertz Pins and Aces on Instagram: https://instagram.com/pinsandaces Nick's first episode (June 2023): https://unofficialshopifypodcast.com/episodes/[LINK-TO-ORIGINAL-EPISODE] Whatnot: https://whatnot.com TikTok Shop: https://shop.tiktok.com WORK WITH KURT Apply for Shopify Help ethercycle.com/apply See Our Results ethercycle.com/work Free Newsletter kurtelster.com The Unofficial Shopify Podcast is hosted by Kurt Elster and explores the stories behind successful Shopify stores. Get actionable insights, practical strategies, and proven tactics from entrepreneurs who've built thriving ecommerce businesses.

Podd #247: Tillväxtmodellen I detta avsnitt av Sälj- och marknadspodden dyker Lars Dahlberg och Anders Hermansson djupare in i vad som egentligen krävs för att lyckas med tillväxt i det moderna B2B-landskapet. Med inspiration från en färsk undersökning bland VDar och tillsammans med insikter från David Tegenmark, diskuteras de vanligaste frustrerande hindren för tillväxt – och, viktigast av allt, hur man överbryggar dem. Avsnittet presenterar en modern tillväxtmodell som bygger på två maskiner: en för att skaffa nya kunder och en annan för att långsiktigt utveckla lönsamhet och värde i befintlig kundbas. Genom hela samtalet betonas vikten av samarbete mellan sälj, marknad och produkt – ”treenigheten” som måste jobba mot samma mål för att skapa verklig affärsnytta. Lyssna om du vill få grepp om… – Vad Lifetime Value (LTV) och Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) egentligen innebär för hela affärsmodellen. – Hur tydliga funnels och mätbarhet kan optimera sälj- och marknadsinsatser. – Varför verklig tillväxt kräver att sälj, marknad och produkt trivs och samarbetar. Missade du att mäta det som faktiskt skapar tillväxt i din egen verksamhet? Då är det här avsnittet för dig! Boka ett möte för en GAP-analys. Vi sa 15 minuter i podden, men det är värt att lägga 30 på detta! Läs transkribering Lars Dahlberg [00:00:06]: Hej och välkomna till ännu ett avsnitt av Sälj- och marknadspodden. Det här är podcasten för dig som vill ha ny inspiration och kunskap om hur man marknadsför och säljer till den moderna business-to-business-köparen. Jag som sitter i studion idag heter Lars Dahlberg och med mig har jag min kära vapendragare Anders Hermansson. Anders Hermansson [00:00:26]: Tja Lasse! Lars Dahlberg [00:00:28]: Det är spännande. Vi ska göra ett nytt spännande avsnitt ihop, du och jag, kring lite nya tankar och idéer. Anders Hermansson [00:00:36]: Ja, exakt. Vi har gjort en undersökning där vi pratade med vdar om deras frustration kring tillväxt och nu har vi klurat här och kommit fram till hur man ska lösa hela problemet. Lars Dahlberg [00:00:49]: Precis, så vi har kallat det här lite grann för någon sorts modern tillväxtmodell och vi ska väl också nämna att det har varit en annan viktig person inblandad i det här arbetet som heter David Tegenmark som driver företaget Certus Growth. Så mycket krudos till David här kopplat till de tankar och idéer som vi tänkte vi skulle ger. Om vi skulle rulla tillbaka lite till den här undersökningen, den här rapporten, så landade väl den egentligen i att det var tre större, vad kan man kalla det för, frustrationer. Det ena handlade väldigt mycket om att vdn var i någon sorts epicentrum kring den här tillväxtfrågan och hade väldigt svårt att hantera den situationen. En annan handlade mycket om det här med att man inser att den här intäktsmaskinen eller tillväxtmaskinen är väldigt oförutsägbar. Och den tredje delen av den här rapporten handlar mycket om att det finns en massa strukturella hinder för att man ska kunna skala och driva tillväxt som man vill. Och det är mycket inspiration nu från den här undersökningen som ligger till grunden för att ta fram det här. De här tankarna och idéerna kring den här tillväxtmodellen som vi ska prata om nu och som du också har nämnt i början. Lars Dahlberg [00:02:03]: Så jag tänkte så här, vi börjar väl lite med, vad är egentligen rotorsaken, Anders skulle du säga, till att det här är ett problem? Anders Hermansson [00:02:15]: Ja, jag tycker så här, jag försökte knåda de här resultaten av den här undersökningen och det jag tycker man kan härleda saker till, det första är att det liksom inte Man ser inte på det här som en riktig process på samma sätt som till exempel en onboarding process med kund. Det är nog en ganska standardiserad process där många olika personer vet vad de ska göra för att det ska bli bra i slutänden. Men man har liksom lite grann känslan av att sälja marknaden nästan som en experimentlåda där man gör saker lite grann med goda avsikter såklart. Man har inte fått till en process. Lars Dahlberg [00:02:55]: Nej, exakt. Det har vi pratat om många gånger att det är för lite process på marknaden. Även på produkt skulle vi vilja säga att det inte finns någon riktigt bra sammanhållen process som involverar alla de här tre parterna för att man ska kunna få fokus på de här tillväxtfrågorna. Anders Hermansson [00:03:13]: Nej, precis. Och sen är det väl det här. Det stormar ju där ute med massa erbjudanden och massa quick fixes. Folk lovar guld och gröna skogar med massmejl. Oj, genererade wow-saker. Det finns mycket shiny objects där ute att testa. Och det gör att det blir ännu rörigare. För man vet inte, man har liksom inget bra sammanhang att sätta in de där små olika testgrejerna. Anders Hermansson [00:03:41]: Vissa grejer kan ju vara jättebra, men just när det bara är en massa lösa tester av grejer som man kör en gång och inte är tillräckligt uthållig för att veta om de egentligen är något nytt eller inte, då blir det ju väldigt svårt att få ordning på saker och ting. Lars Dahlberg [00:03:54]: Ja, jag skulle vilja säga också att det är fortfarande väldigt märkligt, men det är en viktig orsak till de här problemen är att man tänker alldeles för mycket inifrån sig själv istället för att tänka utifrån och in och verkligen anpassa sig efter det, utifrån perspektivet både produkt, marknad och sälj. Och det kanske låter märkligt när vi har pratat om det så många gånger i den här podden, men det är väldigt mycket fortfarande ett grundproblem. Anders Hermansson [00:04:22]: Ja, men jag tror det. Det känns som en mänsklig grej. Det är väl det som håller igång typ 70 procent av all konsultverksamhet. Att det är svårt att se sin egen verksamhet utifrån. Man är liksom, man älskar den och man är ett med den. Och då blir det rätt lätt ett internt perspektiv. Lars Dahlberg [00:04:41]: Och sen var det ju också väldigt tydligt i de här undersökningarna att det här världsläget vi befinner oss i och den här konjunkturen och allt sånt där skapar en väldig massa Massa stress som gör att det blir utmaningar med de här grejerna. Och du och jag pratade bara om det här om dagen, att det faktiskt ser ut som det finns lite ljusglimtar på himlen, i alla fall för det svenska näringslivet. Så det känns ju lovande, för det var länge sedan man hörde. Anders Hermansson [00:05:08]: Verkligen. 2,26 tillväxt under 2026. Det är stor skillnad. Det vore kul om konsumtionen kom igång och att det tripplar över på bit-och-bisidan. Vi får väl se. Lars Dahlberg [00:05:21]: Jag tror ändå att det handlar om att vänja sig vid det här röriga, osäkra läget. Höga risknivåer kommer att fortsätta ändå, även om det ser lite ut och lutar åt rätt håll när vi spelar in den här podden i början på februari 2026. Men du, ska vi hoppa in lite grann på det här med hur man gör då? Det finns ju ett grundläggande tänk här som är väldigt viktigt och som väldigt många inte riktigt har tänker på, tänker jag. Anders Hermansson [00:05:50]: Vill du börja? Om man ska slänga en massa akronymer, men alltså livstidsvärde för en kund, LTV, Lifetime Value och sen hur mycket det kostar att få in en ny kund, alltså Customer Acquisition Cost eller CAC som man då slänger sig med ibland. Min erfarenhet är att det kommer in långt i efterhand så att man inte ser vad det blev, om man tänker så. Istället för att ha det som utgångspunkt i sin strategi och planering. Man måste ha en ekonomisk syn på hela den här processen, vad den ska leverera för någonting och vad den får kosta. Och hur mycket cash den kräver för att hållas igång, så att säga. Det handlar ju om att man ska ju naturligtvis generera nya kunder så man får en ny sån här vad heter det, om man nu har en abonnemangsaffärsmodell så man får in månadsintäkter, årsintäkter, monthly recurring revenue och så. Och sen så handlar det om en annan viktig nyckelpost som har mer att göra med kundbasen, nämligen hur växer intäkten på en kund av sig själv, alltså det här net revenue retention då. Det vi pratar om här är en modell för att… Anders Hermansson [00:07:02]: att man ska få tillväxt. Så det handlar inte bara om nya livs på nya kunder utan det kan mycket väl vara så att den största potentialen man har det är att öka sin net revenue retention, att få mer försäljning på befintlig kund som gör att man växer. Sen så kommer man ju alltid behöva skaffa nya kunder naturligtvis, man har en viss churn såklart. Men det är liksom en första grundläggande sak att man börjar i den änden, i den ekonomiska änden och försöker modellera saker där utifrån. Lars Dahlberg [00:07:29]: Jag brukar säga att det handlar om att tänka att det är två olika maskiner. Den ena som ska skapa nya kunder och som har en kostnad för att göra det. Som också ska generera intäkter kopplat till nya kunder. Och en lönsamhet kopplad till nya kunder. Och det ska finansiera att du skaffar dig nya kunder. Sen när du har kunder. Då ska du ha en annan maskin som skapar lönsamheten i bolaget och hanterar alla andra kostnader i bolaget som utvecklar kunder och utvecklar värdet med kunderna över tid på något sätt. Det kan bli rätt sunt att tänka så. Anders Hermansson [00:08:10]: Och där finns det ju tricket kan man säga. Det är inte en lösning för alla bolag. Men just om man säljer stora komplexa lösningar så är det väldigt intressant att se om man kan få fram en instegsaffär. Och det man ska tänka på prissättning på den här instegsaffären. Den ska täcka kacken. Kostnader för att få in den här instegsaffären. Så att man får plus minus noll resultat där. Man behöver inte gå med jättemycket vinst på den. Anders Hermansson [00:08:36]: För sen måste man ju ha en gedigen process för att konvertera då kunder som har köpt Instex affären till full kunder så att säga så man får den här Lifetime Value som du pratar om och tjäna pengar på sikt. Lars Dahlberg [00:08:47]: Därför att det är det här som väldigt mycket blir grunden i att skapa en ökad lönsamhet i bolaget och att kunna bevisa att man har en process som gör att man kan ta hand om fler kunder in och utveckla fler kunder för att skapa mer kunden över tiden. Och som då i sin tur också på något sätt driver värdet av bolaget. Anders Hermansson [00:09:14]: Nu är det inte alla bolag som är ägardrivna, men jag tycker det finns en sundhet i att tänka som ägare. Att varje kund vi får in här som kommer att växa av sig själv är värd så mycket och beroende på P-tal och andra saker så sätter det ett värde på bolaget. Kan man dessutom först visa att man har en lönsam verksamhet som växer Och sen kan man visa att den gör det på grund av att man har en skalbar modell som går att beskriva och inte bara beroende på att ägaren springer runt som en gallning och gör allting. Då kommer värderingen på bolaget att gå upp väldigt mycket. Lars Dahlberg [00:09:54]: Och det här är väldigt mycket grunden till framgång kopplat till den här modellen nu som vi kommer att prata mer om. Men för att man ska kunna landa i det här som vi precis har pratat om så gäller det att göra ett jobb med sitt erbjudande så att man har liksom ett erbjudande och produkter och ett erbjudande som gör det möjligt att göra det på det här sättet som vi precis har beskrivit. Det har vi pratat om i många andra avsnitt och är en väldigt viktig grund. Man är väldigt noga med att definiera sin idealkund baserat på var man kan addera max värde nånstans. Definiera de personer som man behöver påverka för att det ska bli en affär för en. Och förstå vad det är för grundläggande problem som vi kan lösa med hjälp av en första affär eller instegsaffär. Där vi kan bevisa oss, skapa maximalt värde snabbt och se det mera då kunna ha en grund i att utveckla kunden ifrån. Och det är också liksom en väldigt viktig princip att man tänker så när man då ska leverera sin första affär, sin instegsaffär, att den ska inte bara leverera ett värde utan den ska ju också skapa behov av att vilja köpa mer så att man har goda förutsättningar att kunna utveckla kunden och värdet av kunden långsiktigt över tid och ha en låg körn, alltså en lågt antal förlorade kunder helt enkelt. Anders Hermansson [00:11:24]: Det kan man säga är någon sorts test på om man har lyckats med den här matchen mellan sitt erbjudande och sin ICP-persona. Om man har misslyckats, det vet man, om man ständigt är utsatt för enorm prispress och det är väldigt många konkurrenter som hävdar att de kan erbjuda precis samma sak som dig, då kan man säga, då har du inte gjort ditt jobb när det gäller din målmarknad ICP och ditt erbjudande ur ett värdeperspektiv. Lars Dahlberg [00:11:47]: För att laborera lite runt det här erbjudandet, det är ju en paketeringsfråga. Du har din produkt eller din tjänst och den kanske är samma många gånger när du ska leverera, men du paketerar den på ett väldigt attraktivt sätt och gör ett erbjudande av den. tydligt kopplad till kombination av ICP-personer och tydlig problem och verkligen lägger manken till att få det här att bli så bra och attraktivt som möjligt så att du ska kunna så lätt som möjligt vinna rätt typ av kunder med minsta möjliga motstånd om man säger så. Anders Hermansson [00:12:24]: Exakt. Lars Dahlberg [00:12:25]: Så att det här hur man gör det här och alltihopa ska vi inte doktorera i nu men det är återigen viktiga grundparameter för att få hela den här modellen att fungera och att kunna göra den här typen av beräkningar som vi precis pratade om nyss då med KAK och NetKak Payback och LTV och de här olika kombinerna. Anders Hermansson [00:12:45]: Exakt. Lars Dahlberg [00:12:47]: Ja Anders, nu har vi pratat lite om grunden här och vi har varit inne på det här med erbjudandet lite. Jag tror att det är dags att vi kommer in på en annan väldigt viktig princip för att man ska få den här moderna tillväxtmodellen att fungera och det handlar om att man behöver implementera ett koncept som vi kallar för fandels och man behöver skapa tydliga fandels och de här måste jobba ihop mot samma mål och målet i det här fallet är ju då att styra mot det vi verkligen vill det vill säga att få till de här inställnings affärerna och få till våra nya kunder kopplat till dem för att vi ska kunna utveckla dem så att Det är det det handlar om, men jag tänker att vi kanske måste beskriva det här med Fannes lite närmare först. Hur skulle du definiera det, Anders? Anders Hermansson [00:13:37]: Den stora skillnaden tycker jag är att man… Man tänker efter innan om vad saker och ting ska leda till i nästa steg. Det är ju ganska ofta man hör talas om att man faktiskt är med också. Ja, nu måste vi köra Google Ads liksom. Och så slänger man upp Google Ads och kastar pengar på det och skickar folk till första sidan på webben. Ganska värtlöst. Och man tänker inte på vad som ska hända i nästa steg. Och samma sak också, nu är vi på mässa och så träffar vi folk och sen åker vi hem och glöm bort att vi var på mässa. Anders Hermansson [00:14:09]: Alltså det är så här som här med funnels, det handlar om att rita upp flödet väldigt grafiskt, snyggt och prydligt så man förstår vad en aktivitet ska leda till i nästa steg. Ända till så att det står pengar på banken. Då får man riktiga flöden som man kan laborera med och exekvera på. Det är själva konceptet. Lars Dahlberg [00:14:34]: Vi kan komma in på lite mer exempel sen när vi har pratat om det här lite mer. Du pratade om en sak i inledningen på den här podden och det du då sa det var så här att många provar och hoppar på olika grejer och testar sig fram. Det här blir mer liksom tydlig metod att vi har ett antal olika funders som ser ut på det här sättet och som fungerar på det här viset och de hänger ihop på det här sättet och ska leda till det här. Och så jobbar man som tålmodigt med att se till att de faktiskt fungerar och leder till det vi verkligen vill inte hoppa runt och prova hit och dit utan ett mer systematiskt approach. Anders Hermansson [00:15:14]: Absolut. Man kan ha experimentfunnels. Det är klart att man ska testa nya grejer, men då ska man veta vad det är man testar och förstå hur länge man behöver testa någonting för att veta om det funkar eller inte. Och man ska redan innan man sätter igång och testar definiera om det där funkar. Vad betyder det funkar? Lars Dahlberg [00:15:34]: Just det. Och då kommer man in på det att varje sån här funnel i sig behöver mätas, så man behöver kanske sätta mål på den. De olika ska vara med och bidra på olika sätt och summan av vad fandeln ska bidra till ska leda till målet. I den bästa världen har man x antal olika fandeln som jobbar ihop och man optimerar var och en för sig för att skapa en effektiv helhet. Och då behöver man också kanske sätta lite budget på de här grejerna och förstå vad det faktiskt innebär kopplat till kostnader och sådana saker och vad man förväntar sig att respektive ska resultera i för att man ska kunna slå ihop allihopa och att det ser det mer ledigt i de mål vi har satt upp och som vi har gjort beräkningar runt när det gäller vår kost och hur vi ska konvertera nya kunder på det här och så vidare. Anders Hermansson [00:16:29]: Man blir ju mer mer avancerad naturligtvis börjar ju inte och mäta allting och definiera allting och så där, men vartefter man vänjer sig vid vid att jobba datadrivet kan vi säga och får igång sina processer på ett vettigt sätt, då kan man bli mer och mer avancerad i och hur noga man är och mäter saker och ting och det gör ju att man får ju olika kakt då beroende på olika funnels och då vet man ju efter ett tag vad de här olika investeringarna i både sälj och marknadstid ger i ROI, så att säga. Så då kan man optimera sin resursallokering efter det. Lars Dahlberg [00:17:07]: Ja, jag tycker att många jag har träffat genom åren som håller på och jobbar och försöker själva för att få ordning och fart på sin affärsgenerering och marknadsföring, försäljning och så vidare, att man helt plötsligt inte har koll på vad som faktiskt är orsak och verkan och vad som driver och ger rena och ger andra och så där och man har helt enkelt oordning så man har inte gjort det här jobbet med att rita upp sina fannas och strukturera upp det på det sättet som vi beskriver så struktur här är ju liksom A och O och då gäller det ju också att ha liksom det som sitt fokus och det är ju så det finns ju väldigt mycket teknik och tech och olika typer av grejer runt det här Så man kan tänka sig testa. Det viktiga är att man har koll på strukturen först och sedan så får man se vad man ska applicera för teknik på den, tänker jag. Anders Hermansson [00:17:58]: Exakt. Man ska inte gå på alla löften om alla fantastiska teknikplattformar kan göra och sedan försöka modellera sin process efter det, utan tänk till först, designa flödena först och sedan applicera den teknik som kan hjälpa dig att uppnå det du vill. Lars Dahlberg [00:18:14]: Ja, men sen en grej till, jag tänker att vi skulle lägga till lite kring det här fannestänket, för det är väl ändå här kanske det rör hemma bäst, det är att när man så att säga skapar sin kommunikation och ska driva det här, att man tänker mer B2C än B2B, att man ska träffa människor i maggropen, snarare än att det ska vara relevant utifrån företagets perspektiv som den här specifika personen vi kommunicerar på jobbar på. Anders Hermansson [00:18:40]: Just det, för det är så många som lovar saker som är lite glider unna lätt, alltså mer lids eller kortare tid här, spar lite tid där. Ja, men egentligen, om jag nu känner att jag vill spara tid, då är jag antagligen för att jag är jättestressad eller något sånt där. Då vill man hellre bli av med sin stress, så att säga, istället för att det är lite grann akademiskt att spara tid. Lars Dahlberg [00:19:07]: Ska vi ge några exempel på några vanliga funnels inom Svenska mindre medelstora bolag som jobbar med programvaruteknik och tjänster och sånt. Anders Hermansson [00:19:21]: Ja, men man kan väl… Det finns lite olika sätter att gruppera på, men det finns ju funnels som är direkt to offer. Om man har en sofistikerad marknad som letar efter det man har att sälja, då kan man ju faktiskt ha funnels som går direkt till offer. Lars Dahlberg [00:19:41]: Ja, och för att komplettera det då så kan vi ha en founder som går direkt till någon form av lidmagnet, någon form av väldigt värdefull content man har satt upp som man vill marknadsföra och får man människor bli intresserade och inspirerade av det där och tycka att det är kul så kan ju det sedumera då leda till ens offer, till exempel. Anders Hermansson [00:20:01]: Ja, då kallas det för en indirekt founder. Lars Dahlberg [00:20:04]: Ja, det är väl två exempel. Anders Hermansson [00:20:08]: Vi kanske ska Det är bra om vi tar fler exempel som har med säljare att göra. Det som säljare gör, till exempel en LinkedIn funnel, när man som säljare går ut och letar reda på folk på LinkedIn och försöker skapa dialog och bygga förtroende där, som sedermera då bör leda till möte där man Ja, kanske starta en säljprocess eller göra en discovery meeting eller något sånt. Så det är ju lika mycket säljaktiviteter som också ska beskrivas i den här, i form av funnels. Så man kan mäta konvertering i olika steg i den processen. Lars Dahlberg [00:20:47]: Exakt, det tycker jag också var ett bra exempel du tog upp där, för det är någonting som man gör för lite av, den här typen av relationsskapande funnels. som väldigt ofta är långsiktigt. Ja, här skulle vi kunna sitta och dra massa exempel. Jag tänker att vi går vidare lite grann, för att vi har en väldigt viktig punkt kvar kring det här, som handlar om det här med hur man definierar roller, ansvar och process då, runt hela tänket som vi har pratat om här nu. För lyckas man inte med det, då kommer man inte att nå resultaten, helt enkelt. Anders Hermansson [00:21:23]: Ja, just det, exakt. Så man kan ju säga så att de De tre discipliner som vi ser är väldigt centrala i den här processen för att skapa nya affärer. Det är ju säljmarknad och produkt. Produktutveckling i ett tjänstebolag, tjänsteutveckling, tjänstepaketering, vad det kan vara för någonting och de som knåpar på själva företags erbjudande. Det som man ska leverera för att skapa värde hos kund. Så produkt, sälj och marknad är som en trenighet som måste definitivt gå i takt. Det finns lite utmaningar med det här för att de här tre olika har vant sig vid att tänka lite olika tidsperspektiv när man tänker olika långsiktigt. Det är inte för att någon är bättre än den andra utan det är för att deras traditionella jobb ser ut så. Anders Hermansson [00:22:09]: Men här behöver de här tre komma ihop sig. Lars Dahlberg [00:22:15]: Ja, verkligen. Och det är också när man kombinerar de här tre kompetenserna som man verkligen kan få till också det här som vi har pratat om tidigare, det här med ICPS-personas och verkligen definiera vassa erbjudanden och sådana saker. För den man behöver, den kombinationskompetensen för att lyckas få till den biten skulle jag säga också. Det finns ingen snack om den saken. Man måste beaka att man har olika typer av erfarenheter och kompetenser som behövs. Säljarna vet ofta väldigt mycket om kunderna. Marknaden vet mycket om hur man kommunicerar och skapar bra erbjudanden på många sätt och produkt kan ju faktiskt erbjudas enligt grundprodukten som ska paketeras. Ja, men vad ska man säga så här? Det är liksom lite två huvudprocesser, va Anders, eller? Anders Hermansson [00:23:02]: Ja, exakt. För vi kan ju säga så här, nej men se till nu att produkt, sälj och marknad jobbar ihop. Ja, det var ju lättare sagt än gjort så att säga, eftersom alla de här tre har ju sina viktiga jobb inom sina discipliner. Men om man tittar på, man försöker liksom skära det här på andra ledden, då finns det två huvudprocesser egentligen som vi diskuterar här. Och det är i de här processerna som de här tre disciplinerna ska samarbeta. Och det är då vi kan ta dem i ordning kontent processen alltså den process där man ska ta fram det kontent som krävs för att föda alla fanns som man har designat just det. Lars Dahlberg [00:23:39]: Och kontent hade ju verkligen din vida bemärkelse. Allting egentligen som man behöver för att kommunicera med alla aspekter i alla faser. Anders Hermansson [00:23:48]: Ja precis och det är ju man kan ju säga att majoriteten av digitala assets då det kan vara filmer det kan vara text och lite allt möjligt, men även då om man kör live-webinars så är det ett content och så vidare. Så att allting, precis som du säger, och det här ska vara ett samarbetsprojekt för just när de här tre disciplinerna samarbetar kring det här, det är då man får till den här riktiga kvaliteten i content som krävs för att det ska liksom göra någon skillnad och engagera människor. Så det är den ena processen om man kanske inte behöver gå in vidare på den, men det finns liksom en poäng med att Den här är en lite fristående process som jobbar i batchvis, så man inte hela tiden jobbar med knivet på strupen och bara måste få ut någonting till nästa nyhetsbrev som ska ut i Marbitti, utan man har liksom artiklar på lager och så vidare i bästa fall då. Så det är en annan, så att säga, puls kring den här content-processen. Den andra processen är då promotion, alltså hur man får ut detta content med en massa olika kanaler enligt definitioner som man har gjort i sina funnels. Och där kan man ju säga att där ligger ju tyngdpunkten av arbete på marknad och sälj. Men det finns många sätt, beroende på bransch, det finns många sätt som produkt också kan vara med i promotion processen. Ett exempel är att man till exempel bygger in funktionalitet om man nu är en SaaS. Anders Hermansson [00:25:10]: att man bygger in funktionalitet i produkten som informerar befintliga kunder om nya funktioner till exempel, då är ju det en growth hack då som där produkt är synnerligen involverade i att skapa en möjlighet till promotion. Lars Dahlberg [00:25:25]: Och sen tycker jag det är viktigt att se det här lite grann som att promotion är det som skapar behov av content. Så man skapar content kopplat till de behoven som man definierar kopplat till det där. Inte bara skapa content på någon sorts random sätt. Anders Hermansson [00:25:40]: Exakt. Lars Dahlberg [00:25:41]: Utan det är liksom det som är grunden till behovet. Exakt. Och därmed också förstår man ju också mycket mer om vilken takt och vad som behöver komma ut först och vad som behöver komma ut sen när man väl har bestämt sig för hur man ska jobba med sina fannels och hur de ser ut så att säga. Anders Hermansson [00:25:56]: Ja exakt jag vet när jag pratar med David om det här på Certus så pratar man om att dimensionera upp sin content-maskin baserad på hur många fannels man har och hur intensiva de är så att man vet att man ska producera flera bloggposter i månaden till exempel för det krävs för att vi ska få ut vårt nyhetsbrev och sådana där saker och det ska Så man är väldigt målinriktad på det här sättet då. Det är också så att, det har ju vi märkt du och jag, eller erfarit under alla åren Lasse, att contentprocessen är lite såhär styrmodigt behandlad. Man klämmer ur sig någonting när man har tid typ. Nu krävs det en stor förståelse för att om den där contentprocessen inte funkar, då kommer maskinen att stanna. Lars Dahlberg [00:26:36]: Ja, och om man gör allt det här rätt från grunden och använder AI på ett smart sätt så blir det ju också lättare att producera det här innehållet med bra kvalitet faktiskt, så att man ska kunna klara av att hänga med med produktionen av det innehåll som faktiskt behövs för att stötta det här. som är en väldigt viktig framgångsfaktor. Men när man sen tänker sig vidare, så vi touchar lite grann på den med optimeringen av själva fanden, så optimeringen av själva processen. Vi måste också tänka optimering med sitt content och mäta och se hur content faktiskt fungerar. Och sen så behöver man ju också optimera erbjudandet hela tiden. Och inte bara ligga på latsidan där, utan hela tiden ifrågasätta hur man ska utveckla det och förbättra det och vässa det och skapa kanske nya då som man kanske måste testa och sådär. Anders Hermansson [00:27:29]: Exakt, och det här är viktigt att säga då, kanske sagt det förut, men erbjudandet är ju inte själva produkten. Tänk att man löser några olika problem med sin produkt så omvärlden och livet hos den här ICP eller personen som man vill hjälpa. med sin produkt. Deras verklighet förändras ju, så det kanske är något nytt problem som dyker upp för dem som de prioriterar högst numera. Vi kanske inte var för ett halvår sedan, men nu är det jätteviktigt med compliance helt plötsligt. Ja, då är det ju det problemet vi då lyfter fram i vårt erbjudande. Även om vi har kunnat lösa det hela tiden så var inte det högst prioriterat förut, men nu är det det, så att säga. Man måste hitta olika vinklar för att träffa rätt på ett högt prioriterat problem som man kan lösa hos sin ICP-person. Lars Dahlberg [00:28:23]: Ja, att mäta vad datadriven, det har vi ju pratat om i många år kopplat till det här, men det är ju verkligen A och O för att man ska lyckas och implementera den här modellen. Och går man tillbaka då och tittar på sina beräkningar som man då har gjort kring CAC och NETCAC, Payback och hur man ska utveckla Customer Lifetime Value och sådana saker, så är det ju några grejer som är jätteviktiga. Man måste ju kunna simulera vad man har för konverteringsgrader från en första kontakt på något sätt till ett lid. Man måste förstå vad det kostar att skapa ett lid. Man måste förstå vad det är för konverteringsgrad från ett lid till en steg dessutom kanske till ett första möte och se det med den enda framtiden på sin instegsaffär så att man kan förstå effekten av det här och hela tiden justera sina beräkningar så att de stämmer mer och mer överens med verkligheten. För när man gör det här från första gången då blir det mycket antaganden och sånt förstås. Men sen när man kör på riktigt så lär man sig vad det är för data som det blir och vad man sen då måste kunna räkna med. Anders Hermansson [00:29:31]: Och nu har du sagt en massa saker som man måste göra här och grejen är den att. att prata med någon häromdagen. Jag sa det att om man nu vill ha reda på om man har feber eller inte. Då måste man göra sig omaket och köpa en febertermometer. Alltså investera i någonting som gör att man kan mäta. Och sedan måste man stoppa in den där jäkla febertermometern i fritt valt hål för att sedan använda den så att man kan mäta. Det här gäller samma sak här. Man måste investera så att den här processen blir mätbar och sedan fortsätta investera i de resurser som krävs för att ständigt mäta det här. Anders Hermansson [00:30:05]: Annars är man i det där landet igen när man testar och kastar bollar och lite åt alla håll och kanter, liksom, och ser vad som träffar. Lars Dahlberg [00:30:13]: Ja, i princip kan man säga så här, om du säger att du är vd och lyssnar på det här, som är någon sorts ytterst ansvarig för den här verksamheten, om man inte kan liksom mäta det här och visa på hur det ska leda till de resultaten vi vill, så är det ju faktiskt ingen idé att hälla på en massa pengar på det. Anders Hermansson [00:30:28]: Nej, det är ju väldigt stor chansning då. Det är ju hög risk att man häller pengar på fel ställe. Lars Dahlberg [00:30:35]: Och sen är det liksom en arbetsmetod för att driva processen framåt med lite olika typer av möten. Det här bör man inte nödvändigtvis exakt implementera på det här viset, men det här är i alla fall ett sätt att implementera det på som kommer kunna fungera för väldigt många. Vi har pratat om David här och han har ju varit mycket involverad i att definiera den här grundprocessen. Och den skulle jag säga, den börjar ju med någonting som är extremt centralt. Det är att man tänker growth meeting. Och man verkligen har ett möte som tydligt, så att säga, tittar på hur den här maskinen är designad och hur den fungerar. Och vad den levererar för resultat för att identifiera de områden där man måste göra någonting annorlunda för att få den att fungera bättre. Och den här personen har liksom på något sätt då det övergripande ansvaret för att de här tre ska funka ihop, det vill säga produkt, sälj och marknad och att man hela tiden ska optimera sig i rörelse mot målen. Anders Hermansson [00:31:45]: Ja, precis. Och det här mötet är ju inte ett strategiskt möte, utan det är ner Ner och kolla på dashboards och ner och grotta runt i data och sedan så bestämma hur man ska förändra då en funnel eller lägga till en ny exponent funnel till exempel till sin karta och driftsätta den och man har de här mötena typiskt varje eller varannan vecka. Lars Dahlberg [00:32:10]: Just det, och sen pratar vi om det här med content och att det är så himla viktigt, så man behöver ha kanske ett eget forum då, där man pratar om det och har väldigt mycket fokus på det för att se till att man producerar det som, det som så att säga, maskinen behöver då. Och det kanske man behöver också ha en gång eller varannan vecka, beroende lite på. Anders Hermansson [00:32:31]: Ja, det är också om man ska producera content världsvis, då kanske det är så att man får på något sätt Beställningar från Growth-teamet då som har Growth-mötena, sen kan det vara samma individer, det behöver inte vara en hel horde med människor, men man liksom lägger upp to dos när man har Growth-mötet för att man måste ha ett visst behov av content. Sen kan det ju vara så att den här content-processen som sagt att man gör saker i batch, då kan det mycket väl vara så att ett sådant här content-mässan, det är en synnerligen kreativ session, där alla som ska vara med sedan och skapa content brainstormar tillsammans om hur man ska kunna hitta olika vinklar och sådana där grejer. Och sen så går man ju åt varsitt håll då och gör, producerar texter och andra saker. Men den här processen är ju supercentral för att, som vi sa förut, att maskinen inte ska stanna. Så det gäller att ha kontinuerliga möten. Det är en mötesdriven process det också. Lars Dahlberg [00:33:26]: Sen skulle jag säga att man behöver ha ett mötesform som man kan kalla för Sales Execution Meeting. Beroende lite på vad man har för förutsättningar med halvkomplex till komplex B2B så är det otroligt viktigt att titta på processen från första Discovery Meeting till order förstås. Men det kan också vara att man måste titta specifikt på processen från att ett lead uppstår tills det att ett lead är kvalificerat och det blir ett discovery meeting. Alltså leads management hanteringen. Det är det sak man måste prata om separat och jobba med separat för att få till rätt process och rätt beteenden hos dem som ansvarar för att göra det här. Anders Hermansson [00:34:10]: Ja, jag skulle komplettera det här med att om det är så att man har en outbound, vad heter det, aktivitet som säljarna ska göra, till exempel hänga på LinkedIn eller vad om ni ska göra kallringar för den delen, så ska man gå igenom även de aktiviteterna här så att folk gör det de ska i den volym som krävs och med den kvalitet som krävs då för att se vad man kan skruva på även i den processen. Lars Dahlberg [00:34:33]: Sen är det någon form av styrgrupp eller advisory meeting där man verkligen tittar på de övergripande målen, om de behöver justeras och hur vi lever upp till dem. Själva strategin i sig, erbjudandet definitivt om det behöver skruvas på eller läggas till eller ändras på och att man håller sig inom de givna budgetramarna man har satt upp. Anders Hermansson [00:34:57]: Det här är ju typiskt ett möte som man har lite mer sällan skulle jag säga kvartal kanske och här är det superviktigt att man är med och synka med produkt planerna. För det kan ju vara sådana konkreta saker som att det är någonting som ska lanseras till exempel. Eller vad det nu kan vara för någonting som gör att det kan till exempel vara så att nu ska vi gå in mot ett nytt segment och då kommer ju det om man tar det seriöst och inte bara måla läppstift på grisen utan då kanske det innebär att man behöver tweaka saker i sin produkt. Så det här måste ju synkas naturligtvis. Precis. Lars Dahlberg [00:35:32]: Och om man då skulle försöka sammanfatta det här lite grann. Vad är det egentligen som är är kanske mer viktigt att ta fasta på som är annorlunda nu när vi beskriver det här mot vad många kanske tänker sig att man ska göra eller kanske gör i viss mån för att få det här att funka. Vad skulle du säga Anders i någon sorts sammanfattning på det som är verkligen annorlunda. Anders Hermansson [00:35:56]: Jag tänker mer konkret blir en skillnad rent konkret blir till exempel att man designar sina funnels och beskriver dem utgår från den här kartan när man diskuterar sälj och marknad och hur man ska skapa nya affärer helt enkelt. Det är en väldigt konkret annan aktivitet jämfört med förut. Lars Dahlberg [00:36:20]: Och sen verkligen ta det här med att sätta, på något sätt det är säkert produkt och marknad och sälj. ihop lite grann på något vis, men att man verkligen tar det på allvar och sätter alla i samma process och driver allting gemensamt på samma mål och utnyttjas i gemensamma kompetenser. Det har ju många år pratats om att sälj och marknad inte sitter i samma båt, men här är det ju liksom verkligen också att införa produkt och att se till att det är en verkligt viktig del i att få det här att funka. Det är som tre enheten som är en kritisk som inte många tror jag kanske tar på riktigt allvar. Anders Hermansson [00:36:58]: Ja just det och lösningen på det där ständiga problemet just det är ju att skära den här processen på andra ledden kring en promotion och en kontentprocess då så att det handlar inte om en marknadsprocess, en säljprocess och en produktprocess för det har man ju redan. Det här samarbetet handlar om att skära på andra ledden så att alla blir engagerade i de här två grejerna istället. Lars Dahlberg [00:37:20]: Sen skulle jag nog säga att det för väldigt många är väldigt annorlunda att tänka kring erbjudandet på det sättet som vi beskriver här med en väldigt tydlig instigsaffär som ska lösa ett väldigt tydligt problem för en väldigt tydlig ISP och persona och skapa värde och sedan generera intäkter, absolut, som ska återinvesteras men som framförallt ska skapa grunden för att kunna utveckla rätt kunder med en lönsamhet och en tillväxt över tid. Anders Hermansson [00:37:48]: Och det här med erbjudandet kort bara det är ju om man ska tänka vad betyder skillnaden där och vad är skillnaden med skillnaden? Det är ju ofta så när man tänker på sitt erbjudande så tänker man man börjar meningen med vi har. Om man tänker istället du får så har man kommit en liten bit på vägen i alla fall när det gäller paketering av erbjudandet. Lars Dahlberg [00:38:06]: Precis. Ja, det är väl en bra sammanfattning på de viktigaste skillnaderna. Som vanligt, det kanske låter lite självklart, men det är ju alltid det kritiska framgångsfaktorn i själva exekveringen. Att se till att sätta de här grejerna på plats, men sen att också jobba med att exekvera det konsekvent och fördela roller och ansvar för att få det här att hända. Anders Hermansson [00:38:31]: Och inte gå totalt bananas från dag ett och bara tro att man ska mäta allting i minsta detalj. slänga allt gammalt över bord och sånt utan det här är en förändringsprocess. Det är ett lite nytt sätt att tänka och det kluriga med det är att det finns alltså den stora förändringen och skillnaden här det är liksom små nyansskillnader i tänk. Det är inte något helt nytt revolutionerande. Ungefär som när vi började läsa när man gick liksom från vad heter tejprulle och sax när man höll på med marknadsföring till digitalt. Det var så det var så här det är väldigt binärt. Antingen är man digital eller inte. Här är det inte lika tydligt. Anders Hermansson [00:39:08]: Det finns ett antal nyckelaktiviteter och nyckeltankar man ska ha i huvudet för att det här ska flyga. Lars Dahlberg [00:39:17]: Ja, och jag skulle säga så här att det här med att de som oftast är svagast på ett bolag kopplat till ett procestänk, det är ju ofta marknad, sälj och produkt faktiskt. Jag tror kanske produkt kanske är bäst när det gäller process. Men det är en utmaning att att stöpa det här i liksom ett process, strukturerat process, tänk. Men det är ändå extremt viktig framgångsfaktor att få till. Anders Hermansson [00:39:48]: Om man skulle faktisera vårt erbjudande så är det så här, vi har en metod här, en modell, men du får alltså sinnesro och lite kontroll, lite koll på läget helt enkelt, om vad dina olika marknader och sälj, vad heter det, investeringar ger för utfall och du får liksom ett beslutsunderlag och och kunna styra det här på ett professionellt sätt helt enkelt? Lars Dahlberg [00:40:12]: Ja, vi brukar försöka kläcka ut oss något så här konkret tips att göra. Vi tänker lite spontant tänker jag. Jag tänker så här att det gäller att samla produkt och marknad och sälj såklart. Och då är det ju liksom den här grundsynen på det här med hur vi bygger ihop mixen av det här med idealkund, persona, produkt och erbjudande. Att vi har samma syn på det. Det tror jag ändå är en grundparameter på något sätt. Anders Hermansson [00:40:43]: Ja precis, vi har ju faktiskt en assessment eller inventering man kan göra om man vill boka ett kort möte med oss så kan vi gå igenom hur man tar tempen på nuläget helt enkelt. Vad man har de här olika sakerna som bör vara på plats, om de är inte alls på plats eller om de är lite på plats eller om de är fantastiska. Då får man en liten startpunkt för vilken ända man ska börja. Lars Dahlberg [00:41:08]: Precis. Kan du höra av er till oss så kan vi hjälpa er med temperaturtagningen. Ska vi göra som vanligt då att vi ska försöka tipsa dem om det där vi alltid brukar tipsa dem om när vi avslöjar. Anders Hermansson [00:41:24]: Vi har ju ett riktigt bra tips. Lars Dahlberg [00:41:27]: Det är ju det vi alltid kör på. Men vad ni än gör där ute så ska ni vara relevanta. Anders Hermansson [00:41:34]: Hej då! The post Podd #247: Tillväxtmodellen appeared first on Business Reflex.

In corporate development and finance, the excitement of an acquisition often masks the underlying risks. Financial Due Diligence (FDD) is the structured investigation into a company's total financial health. It is the crucial "forensic" step that moves a deal from celebration to investigation, determining whether a transaction is a winning strategy or a multi-billion dollar mistake.The 5 Pillars of Financial Due DiligenceTo assess risk and validate value, finance teams focus on five critical areas in the financial data room:1. Quality of Earnings (QoE)This is the bedrock of FDD. It separates "accounting profits" from repeatable, sustainable core performance. Teams look for Normalization Adjustments, stripping away one-time legal settlements or non-market salaries to find the true Adjusted EBITDA.2. Revenue and Customer AnalysisHigh revenue numbers can be deceiving. Analysts dig into:Customer Concentration Risk: If one customer accounts for 40% of revenue, the valuation must be discounted due to instability.Churn Rates: Understanding why customers leave and how long they stay.Revenue Quality: Differentiating between recurring contracts and one-time projects.3. Working Capital and Cash Flow HealthThis pillar determines if paper profits convert to usable cash. Red flags include:Accounts Receivable Aging: Customers paying slower and slower, masking potential bad debt.Inventory Turnover: Massive buildups that suck cash out of the business without guaranteed future sales.4. Debt and Off-Balance Sheet ItemsLurking "landmines" can blow up deal economics. Analysts search for:Pending litigation or unknown tax exposures.Underfunded pension liabilities.Environmental cleanup costs.5. Forecast AssessmentEvery target company presents a "conservative" growth story. FDD stress-tests these assumptions by modeling the unit economics (e.g., Customer Acquisition Cost vs. Lifetime Value) and building conservative "downside" scenarios.The Role of FP&A: The Bridge to IntegrationIf you are in FP&A, your role is pivotal. You are the bridge between historical numbers and the forward-looking plan. Your team must:Tear apart growth claims: If a company claims 20% growth, what is the required hiring plan and CapEx?Scrutinize Synergies: Cost synergies (office closures) are reliable; revenue synergies (cross-selling) are highly speculative and should be heavily discounted in models.Final Strategic ThoughtFDD is not a box-checking exercise; it is the firewall that protects shareholder value. Master it by prioritizing the Quality of Earnings and never letting deal enthusiasm override forensic investigation.

As the year wraps up, we are replaying some of our favorite conversations from 2025, including this one!Customer lifetime value is a critical KPI, but with customer acquisition costs rapidly rising, what can brands do to successfully build long-term value for the business?Agility requires seeing past vanity metrics to the durable value hidden in customer relationships. When customer acquisition costs climb and privacy affects easy targeting, only nimble brands—those that align teams, data, and KPIs around lifetime value—stay ahead.All of this (and a few more things) are discussed in the recently-released Klaviyo B2C Report. To discuss it, I'd like to welcome Jamie Domenici, CMO at Klaviyo. About Jamie Domenici Jamie is Chief Marketing Officer at Klaviyo, the only CRM built for consumer brands. She has served as the Chief Marketing Officer since August 2023. With more than 20 years of experience in SaaS Marketing, Jamie has become a pioneer in SMB Marketing and a champion for small businesses. Prior to Klaviyo, Jamie served as the CMO of GoTo, a provider of SaaS and cloud- based remote work tools for collaboration and IT management, and before that, she held various marketing leadership positions at Salesforce for over ten years. Jamie holds a B.A. in International Relations from California State University, Chico. Jamie lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two daughters. Jamie Domenici on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdomenici/ Resources Klaviyo: https://www.klaviyo.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/ Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://ratethispodcast.com/agileConnect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

As the year wraps up, we are replaying some of our favorite conversations from 2025, including this one!Customer lifetime value is a critical KPI, but with customer acquisition costs rapidly rising, what can brands do to successfully build long-term value for the business?Agility requires seeing past vanity metrics to the durable value hidden in customer relationships. When customer acquisition costs climb and privacy affects easy targeting, only nimble brands—those that align teams, data, and KPIs around lifetime value—stay ahead.All of this (and a few more things) are discussed in the recently-released Klaviyo B2C Report. To discuss it, I'd like to welcome Jamie Domenici, CMO at Klaviyo. About Jamie Domenici Jamie is Chief Marketing Officer at Klaviyo, the only CRM built for consumer brands. She has served as the Chief Marketing Officer since August 2023. With more than 20 years of experience in SaaS Marketing, Jamie has become a pioneer in SMB Marketing and a champion for small businesses. Prior to Klaviyo, Jamie served as the CMO of GoTo, a provider of SaaS and cloud- based remote work tools for collaboration and IT management, and before that, she held various marketing leadership positions at Salesforce for over ten years. Jamie holds a B.A. in International Relations from California State University, Chico. Jamie lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two daughters. Jamie Domenici on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdomenici/ Resources Klaviyo: https://www.klaviyo.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Palm Springs, Feb 23-26 in Palm Springs, CA. Go here for more details: https://etailwest.wbresearch.com/ Enjoyed the show? Tell us more at and give us a rating so others can find the show at: https://ratethispodcast.com/agileConnect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company

What does it take to bootstrap a B2B SaaS company to tens of thousands of users and adapt to the changing landscape of lead generation? In this episode of Predictable B2B Success, serial entrepreneur Besnik Vrellaku, founder and CEO of Salesflow, joins Vinay Koshy to discuss the strategies and lessons that drove his company's rapid growth. He shares insights on overcoming stagnation, fostering a culture of experimentation, and the challenges of scaling without external funding. He explains the importance of monitoring customer acquisition costs, how his approach to product development and customer feedback has evolved, and how experimentation is integrated across all departments at Salesflow. The discussion also covers the impact of multi-channel outreach, data-driven decisions, and AI-driven personalization on B2B sales, as well as the value of learning through challenges. This episode offers transparent insights and actionable takeaways for founders, sales leaders, and anyone interested in growth strategies. It encourages a fresh perspective on building predictable B2B success from the ground up. Some topics we explore in this episode include: B2B Lead Generation & SalesFlow.io's Multi-Channel ApproachBootstrapping and Resourcefulness in SaaSGrowth Experimentation and Rapid IterationBalancing Customer Feedback vs. Product VisionProduct Development & Tech Adoption (AI, Multi-Channel)Resource Prioritization Between Maintenance and InnovationLeveraging AI and Data for Campaign OptimizationAutomation's Impact on SDR RolesCreating a Culture of ExperimentationOutbound Messaging, Channel Selection, and Emerging PlatformsAnd much, much more...

Thanks to our partners Promotive and Wicked FileHow much does it really cost your shop to win a new customer, and is it worth it?Most shop owners don't realize they're spending hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars just to bring in a single new face, and in some cases, they're losing money on every “win.”In this episode, Hunt Demarest, CPA with Paar Melis and Associates, breaks down the real cost of customer acquisition and why understanding Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) and Lifetime Customer Value (LTV) can make or break your business.Hunt exposes the hidden math behind flashy ad campaigns that fail to pay off, showing how every dollar spent should be tied to measurable, long-term value. Whether you're trying to grow your car count or cut wasted marketing spend, this episode will help you see what your customers are truly worth and how to make every one count.What you'll discover…(00:15) Why CAC and LTV are key to making sense of your marketing spend(02:30) Why percentage-based ad budgets often fail auto repair shops(05:05) What happens when you expect your ads to “pay off in one visit”(07:10) How to calculate Customer Acquisition Cost (11:15) Understanding Lifetime Customer Value (16:20) Analyzing CAC and LTV for smarter business decisions(20:20) Proven strategies to improve CAC and LTV in your shop(24:35) Why word-of-mouth shops can have zero acquisition cost and massive lifetime valueThanks to our partner PromotiveIt's time to hire a superstar for your business; what a grind you have in front of you. Introducing Promotive, a full-service staffing solution for your shop. Promotive has over 40 years of recruiting and automotive experience. If you need qualified technicians and service advisors and want to offload the heavy lifting, visit https://gopromotive.com/Thanks to our Partner WickedFileTurn chaos into clarity with WickedFile, the AI for auto repair shops. Transform invoices into insights, protect cash flow, and stop losing parts, cores, or credits to maximize your bottom line. visit https://info.wickedfile.com/Paar Melis and Associates – Accountants Specializing in Automotive RepairVisit us Online: www.paarmelis.comEmail Hunt: podcast@paarmelis.comText Paar Melis @ 301-307-5413Download a Copy of My Books Here:Wrenches to Write-OffsYour Perfect Shop The Automotive Repair Podcast Network: https://automotiverepairpodcastnetwork.com/Remarkable Results Radio Podcast with Carm Capriotto: Advancing the Aftermarket by Facilitating Wisdom Through Story Telling and Open DiscussionDiagnosing the Aftermarket A to Z with Matt Fanslow: From Diagnostics to Metallica and Mental Health, Matt Fanslow is Lifting the Hood on...

Want a free scaling workshop for your business? Schedule a call now to see if you qualify: coltivar.com/schedule-your-call Not sure what your numbers are telling you? Get a free review: coltivar.com/financial-review Most business owners spend thousands on sales and marketing, but few know if it's actually paying off.Steve breaks down how to measure the real return on your sales and marketing spend using three simple checks. He explains how to evaluate the effectiveness of your funnel, calculate your LTGP-to-CAC ratio, and use cash collection formulas to fuel growth without burning through cash. This episode will help you finally connect sales, marketing, and cash flow so you can scale with confidence._______________________________________Disclaimer:The views expressed here are those of the individual Coltivar Group, LLC (“Coltivar”) personnel quoted and are not the views of Coltivar or its affiliates. Certain information contained in here has been obtained from third-party sources. While taken from sources believed to be reliable, Coltivar has not independently verified such information and makes no representations about the enduring accuracy of the information or its appropriateness for a given situation.This content is provided for informational purposes only, and should not be relied upon as legal, business, investment, or tax advice. You should consult your own advisers as to those matters. References to any securities or digital assets are for illustrative purposes only, and do not constitute an investment recommendation or offer to provide investment advisory services. The Company is not registered or licensed by any governing body in any jurisdiction to give investing advice or provide investment recommendations. The Company is not affiliated with, nor does it receive compensation from, any specific security. Please see https://www.coltivar.com/privacy-policy-and-terms-of-use for additional important information. LinkedIn | YouTube coltivar.com

How do you know if you're charging the right fees, tracking the right numbers, or investing enough in marketing to grow your clinic? Join Dr. Stephen and Dr. Josiah Fitzsimmons of Lucro to answer those exact questions and share a clear path to building a profitable, purpose-driven practice. Together they walk through the numbers that matter most—lifetime value, customer acquisition cost, conversion rates, and schedule capacity—and show how to use them as tools for confident decision-making. Dr. Josiah's journey went from scaling to $15M, weathering a steep drop to $5M, and rebuilding stronger than ever with a $7M practice and a mission-driven model. Taking this experience and new found appreciation of REALLY knowing your numbers: his new book-keeping business, Lucro, is helping other chiropractors simplify their data and find profit margins they can reinvest into people, technology, and marketing. By combining structure with purpose, you'll discover how to grow without guesswork and create a patient experience that drives both retention and impact.In this episode you will:Learn a quick break-even ROAS rule using your true profit margin. See why most clinics underspend on marketing and how to set CAC targets with confidence. Find the conversion-rate “sweet spot” that signals it's time to raise prices. Calculate real schedule capacity and close the gap between potential and actual volume. Upgrade the care experience to increase PVA and lifetime value. Episode Highlights02:35 See how structure, KPIs, and accountability create the foundation for a scalable clinic.03:30 Understand the five business domains and how removing one constraint unlocks expansion.04:33 Hear how early discipline and work ethic shaped Josiah's leadership journey.05:28 Discover how visiting more than 50 clinics before opening led to a seven-figure first year.06:42 Find out what other industries taught Josiah about structure, metrics, and scalability.07:34 Learn how applying the TRP operating system turned frustration into growth and momentum.08:58 Understand why knowing your numbers matters less than knowing what to do with them.09:51 See the difference between operational metrics and financial metrics and why both are essential.12:12 Explore the four Ps of a successful clinic—purpose, product, people, and profit.14:27 Learn how profit creates freedom to invest in marketing, people, and technology.16:38 Understand why undercharging limits impact and weakens your ability to serve.19:17 Discover how to calculate and use the LTV-to-CAC ratio for smarter marketing decisions.22:50 Learn a simple formula that shows your break-even return on ad spend.25:21 See how using data instead of emotion builds clarity and calm in decision-making.27:16 Understand how your conversion rate reveals when it's time to raise prices.30:04 Learn how to measure schedule utilization and close the gap between potential and reality.32:45 See why most clinics run at only a fraction of capacity and how to change that.34:18 Discover how retention, education, and value delivery increase lifetime patient relationships.35:33 Learn how to design a “Disney Experience” that makes care memorable and personal. Resources MentionedTo learn more about the REM CEO Program, please visit:  http://www.theremarkablepractice.com/rem-ceoBook a Strategy Session with Dr. Pete - https://go.oncehub.com/PodcastPCPrefer to watch? Catch the podcast on YouTube at: https://www.youtube.com/@TheRemarkablePractice1To listen to more episodes, visit https://theremarkablepractice.com/podcast or follow on your favorite podcast app.

In this episode of The Roofer Show, host Dave Sullivan draws on his 30+ years in the roofing industry to share some hard-earned wisdom. Instead of just chasing fast growth, Dave stresses how important it is to build a solid business foundation first. He breaks things down with his "three-legged stool" approach: selling the work, doing the job, and keeping score. He points out how easy it is to overlook systems and profitability along the way. Dave gives practical tips for improving your sales process, following up with customers, and making the most of tools like CRMs. Today, Dave encourages contractors to focus on profit, consistency, and accountability, and even invites listeners to check out his mentoring program if they want more help building a sustainable, profitable roofing business.What you'll hear in this episode:The "three-legged stool" concept: selling work, doing work, and keeping scoreRisks of focusing solely on growth without profitabilityNeed for consistent systems, processes, and accountabilityCustomer acquisition cost and improving sales processesStrategies for effective follow-up and customer engagementImportance of financial clarity and tracking key performance indicators (KPIs)Building repeatable systems for sales and productionThe role of mentorship in business successActionable steps for contractors to improve their business operations and profitabilityResources:Connect with DaveFree Strategy CallWant to grow a more profitable roofing business? Book a free strategy call with Dave here → davesullivan.as.me/free-strategy-callFree ResourceDownload your FREE 1-Page Business Plan for Roofing Contractors → theroofershow.com/planWatch on YouTubeSubscribe for weekly tips and full episodes → @DaveSullivanRooferShowTrusted & Vetted SponsorsRuby Receptionists – US-based professionals who answer your phones live, leave a great first impression, and tee up the sale. Get $150 off your first month → theroofercoach.com/ruby.ProLine – Automate your follow-up and close more jobs with text, email, and CRM integration. Try it FREE + save 50% off your first month with code DAVE50 → useproline.com.SMA Support – Roofing-specific virtual assistants who know the business. Free up your time by outsourcing admin, marketing, and customer service tasks → smasupport.us.

In this episode of Remodelers On The Rise, Kyle Hunt sits down with Spencer Powell, CEO of Builder Funnel, to unpack the marketing math remodelers need. You'll learn how to set a practical budget, track lead sources, and focus on ROI so you know exactly what you can afford to spend to acquire clients. Spencer walks you through Builder Funnel's “attract → convert → nurture → measure” framework, and they share actionable wins you can implement immediately—whether that's smarter offers on your website or follow-up strategies you may be skipping. Plus, if you're ready to do more than just listen, hear how you can work with Builder Funnel: start by visiting builderfunnel.com/rotr. ----- Today's episode is sponsored by Builder Funnel! Click here to learn more about how Builder Funnel helps remodelers and home builders grow through strategic digital marketing. ----- Takeaways Surrounding yourself with the right people is crucial for success. Networking and peer groups can significantly impact your business. Understanding how much to spend on marketing is essential for growth. Investing in marketing should be viewed as a long-term strategy. Knowing the value of a customer helps in determining marketing spend. A marketing engine consists of attracting, converting, nurturing, and measuring leads. Tracking and measuring marketing efforts is often overlooked by remodelers. Quick wins can be achieved by reaching out to past clients and leads. Building a marketing strategy takes time and consistency. The importance of playing the long game in marketing efforts. ----- Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Wisdom Sharing 03:40 The Importance of Networking and Peer Groups 06:47 Understanding Marketing Spend for Remodeling Businesses 09:40 The Value of Customer Acquisition Costs 12:37 Investment Mindset in Marketing 15:37 Calculating Customer Value and Marketing Ratios 18:31 Building a Marketing Engine: Attract, Convert, Nurture 21:35 Strategies for Attracting Clients 29:18 Lead Generation Strategies 31:01 Nurturing Leads Effectively 33:01 The Importance of Measurement 36:42 Tracking Marketing Success 40:45 Understanding Customer Acquisition Costs 44:40 Quick Wins for Remodelers 49:35 Creating a Marketing Through Line 51:43 The Long Game in Marketing  

From texting workflows and estimate calculators to Google's four-result “Monopoly board,” Phil shows how better ops beat “more leads.” We dig into retargeting your ignored database, the five metrics that matter, and how AI/LLM authority content will shape the next decade. Whether you run HVAC, plumbing, gutters—or manage 1,800 units—these tactics turn chaos into pipeline. Watch to level up your home service marketing today.Connect with Phil RisherWebsite: https://phlashconsulting.com/ Chapters:00:00 – Introduction 07:19 – Two big fixes: ROAS visibility + lead management 09:11 – Text-first workflows that boost response & bookings 13:37 – Chat-to-text widgets & estimate calculators that convert 22:10 – Google “Monopoly board”: LSA, Search Ads, Map Pack, SEO 24:26 – Content flywheel from real customer calls (They Ask, You Answer) 27:21 – AI search & becoming the local authority with content 38:28 – Scaling ladder & PE honey holes (retargeting) 44:45 – Gino Wraps it Up We're here to help create multifamily entrepreneurs... Here's how: Brand New? Start Here: https://jakeandgino.mykajabi.com/free-wheelbarrowprofits Want To Get Into Multifamily Real Estate Or Scale Your Current Portfolio Faster? Apply to join our PREMIER MULTIFAMILY INVESTING COMMUNITY & MENTORSHIP PROGRAM. (*Note: Our community is not for beginner investors)

"Send me a text"This episode gives you step-by-step guidance specifically for increasing CAC strategically rather than just accepting AOV/CAC relationships.Explores how higher CAC (Customer Acquisition Costs) can:Unlock premium marketing channelsAttract higher-quality customersCreate competitive advantagesEnable faster scalingImprove market positioningAfter working with dozens of dietary supplement brands I've uncovered the three critical funnels needed for success. Click here to discover the 3 funnels that can help your health supplement business succeed.If you're interested in working with me one-on-one to improve your supplement business. You can learn more at https://creativethirst.com If you're interested in working with me one-on-one to improve your supplement business. You can learn more at my website https://creativethirst.comGetting people to your sales page or funnel is how you grow a direct-to-consumer supplement company. But how do you get them there?The quickest way to do that is through paid advertising.Buying buyers with ad dollars to scale is how all the supplement businesses do it.Now you can discover the strategies and tactics that work in supplement advertising.For just $7.Click here to grab your copy of the Health Supplement Ad Swipe Guide.

What is your customer acquisition cost? What it's costing you to acquire each customer is probably way more than you think! Reduced customer acquisition costs would mean more profitability for your business, which is a win-win for your bottom line. In this episode, Dave and his guest discuss improving your close rate, focusing on better quality leads, and a sure way to get more referrals. Join us to learn more!Brad Akers from Brad Grows Businesses developed The Built Right program to create scalable systems around sales and marketing for roofers and other home service professionals. His mission is to provide expert consulting and marketing services with a customized growth plan for each client. What you'll hear in this episode:Brad's background story: how he learned business and marketing through a hands-on approach to entrepreneurshipThe #1 problem for small contractors in getting the right leads: not focusing on quality conversationsUnderstanding a true lead–and what it costs to get a true customer“Developing better sales skills may be solving for the wrong problem.”Understanding the “control panel” in your business and which knobs and levers to turn for the desired resultsA look at ad spend, SEO, Google ads, and where your marketing dollars are really goingWhat is each qualified lead actually costing you? (Hint: Your estimated closing rate is probably WAY off!)Brad explains the concept of compounding.Brad's process in generating three additional appointments from every jobThe benefits of compounding are maximized by providing a great customer experience and offering amazing rewards for referral partners.Follow the process!An overview of Brad's program, The Built Right Contractor, along with group masterminds and one-on-one servicesResources:WebsiteThe Built Right Contractor, and (832)-275-0581Free Strategy CallWant to grow a more profitable roofing business? Book a free strategy call with Dave here → davesullivan.as.me/free-strategy-callFree ResourceDownload your FREE 1-Page Business Plan for Roofing Contractors → theroofershow.com/planWatch on YouTubeSubscribe for weekly tips and full episodes → @DaveSullivanRooferShow Trusted & Vetted SponsorsRuby Receptionists – US-based professionals who answer your phones live, leave a great first impression, and tee up the sale. Get $150 off your first month → theroofercoach.com/rubyProLine – Automate your follow-up and close more jobs with text, email, and CRM integration. Try it FREE + save 50% off your first month with code DAVE50 → useproline.comSMA Support – Roofing-specific virtual assistants who know the business. Free up your time by outsourcing admin, marketing, and customer service tasks → smasupport.us

Also available on YouTube: youtu.be/0HHJ5tONfVoMost Shopify store owners are doing growth completely wrong. They're trying to lower ad costs, make prettier websites, and rush customers to buy. Devyn Merklin from X-Scale flips all of this on its head with counter-intuitive strategies that actually work.In this episode, you'll discover why the biggest mistake seven-figure brands make is racing to the bottom on customer acquisition costs instead of learning to outbid competition. Devyn shares how one brand tripled subscription revenue from $6K to $22K MRR in just 45 days using gamification instead of discounts.You'll learn the psychology behind giveaway strategies that actually build qualified prospect lists, why ugly websites convert better than pretty ones, and the empathy-driven approach to customer journey optimization that most brands completely miss.Sponsors:Swym (getswym.com/kurt) – Wishlists & back in stock alertsCleverific (cleverific.com/unofficial) – Smart order editingZipify (zipify.com/KURT) – High-converting sales funnelsKey takeaways include the LTV vs CAC mindset shift that separates big brands from struggling stores, the month 4 subscription churn fix that prevents customer dropout, and why your landing pages are probably bleeding money without you knowing it.If you're tired of following conventional wisdom that doesn't work, this episode reveals the contrarian strategies that actually drive results.Guest: Devyn Merklin, X-Scale (thexscale.com)Links:Apply to work with Kurt: ethercycle.com/applyKurt's newsletter: kurtelster.comFree growth mastermind: thexscale.com

Most bars have no idea what it really costs to bring in a new customer. And if they are tracking it, they're usually missing half the expenses. This episode breaks down a simple way to calculate your true customer acquisition cost so you're not just guessing.  

00:00 - Customer Acquisition costs 21:00 - Lab grown diamonds 26:40 - Staff Profit Share options Today's Sponsor: Netwealth: ⁠www.netwealth.com.au⁠/contrarians Vanta: ⁠www.vanta.com/contrarians⁠ Thanks for listening! Join us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-contrarians-with-adam-and-adir-podcast Subscribe on YouTube for all our video content: https://https://www.youtube.com/@ContrariansPodcast Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/contrarianspod Follow us on TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@contrarianspodSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In the kickoff to our Don't Be Afraid of the Numbers mini-series, Peter and Emily break down the Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)—the single, powerful metric that ties together your marketing spend and sales performance into one clear, no-fluff number.You'll learn how to calculate CAC step-by-step, why it matters more than you think, and how it reveals the health of your marketing and sales pipeline. Peter shares real-world examples (including a 10-year client success story) and gives practical advice on reducing your CAC through smarter ad spending, better sales follow-up, and even pricing strategy. Plus, we share a free CAC tracking tool to help you take action immediately.If numbers make you nervous, this is your safe zone. Tune in, get empowered, and start making data-driven decisions with confidence.

Customer lifetime value is a critical KPI, but with customer acquisition costs rapidly rising, what can brands do to successfully build long-term value for the business?Agility requires seeing past vanity metrics to the durable value hidden in customer relationships. When customer acquisition costs climb and privacy affects easy targeting, only nimble brands—those that align teams, data, and KPIs around lifetime value—stay ahead.All of this (and a few more things) are discussed in the recently-released Klaviyo B2C Report. To discuss it, I'd like to welcome Jamie Domenici, CMO at Klaviyo. About Jamie Domenici Jamie is Chief Marketing Officer at Klaviyo, the only CRM built for consumer brands. She has served as the Chief Marketing Officer since August 2023. With more than 20 years of experience in SaaS Marketing, Jamie has become a pioneer in SMB Marketing and a champion for small businesses. Prior to Klaviyo, Jamie served as the CMO of GoTo, a provider of SaaS and cloud- based remote work tools for collaboration and IT management, and before that, she held various marketing leadership positions at Salesforce for over ten years. Jamie holds a B.A. in International Relations from California State University, Chico. Jamie lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two daughters. Jamie Domenici on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdomenici/ Resources Klaviyo: https://www.klaviyo.com https://www.klaviyo.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brandsDon't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Customer lifetime value is a critical KPI, but with customer acquisition costs rapidly rising, what can brands do to successfully build long-term value for the business? Agility requires seeing past vanity metrics to the durable value hidden in customer relationships. When customer acquisition costs climb and privacy affects easy targeting, only nimble brands—those that align teams, data, and KPIs around lifetime value—stay ahead. All of this (and a few more things) are discussed in the recently-released Klaviyo B2C Report. To discuss it, I'd like to welcome Jamie Domenici, CMO at Klaviyo. About Jamie Domenici Jamie is Chief Marketing Officer at Klaviyo, the only CRM built for consumer brands. She has served as the Chief Marketing Officer since August 2023. With more than 20 years of experience in SaaS Marketing, Jamie has become a pioneer in SMB Marketing and a champion for small businesses. Prior to Klaviyo, Jamie served as the CMO of GoTo, a provider of SaaS and cloud- based remote work tools for collaboration and IT management, and before that, she held various marketing leadership positions at Salesforce for over ten years. Jamie holds a B.A. in International Relations from California State University, Chico. Jamie lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two daughters. Jamie Domenici on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jdomenici/ Resources Klaviyo: https://www.klaviyo.com https://www.klaviyo.com The Agile Brand podcast is brought to you by TEKsystems. Learn more here: https://www.teksystems.com/versionnextnow Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brandsDon't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.showCheck out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company

One of the most-listened and shared episodes of 2024 - an episode that multiple people reached out months later to say "this single episode helped me launch my business." So, that's cool. It's on standing out in a crowded market, and it's on mice. Specifically, the guy who got rid of ours. There are four lessons, a framework, Customer Journey Mapping and the Feature Fold. TackleboxIdea to Startup NewsletterIdea to Startup BotSugar (but it stinks)00:30 Intro02:00 We've Got Mice05:15 The Mouse Man's Funnel07:50 Smooth Jazz08:21 One - Build Your Funnel to Match Customer Emotion11:45 Good Questions For Your Funnel12:30 Two - Contrast from the Feature Fold14:30 Saving your Customers a Decision15:53 Three - Take Yourself Seriously19:14 Four - The Things Other People Stink At22:14 The End22:50 Recap of the Four Lessons

In this episode of Confessions of a B2B Entrepreneur, Tom Hunt and Boobesh Ramadurai of LatentView Analytics explore how AI is revolutionising B2B marketing. Discover how enterprises can leverage AI for media mix modelling to optimise spend, significantly reduce customer acquisition costs, and boost lifetime value. The episode covers the pivotal shift from SEO to "generative engine optimisation" and the power of combining diverse data for deeper insights. Learn practical applications of generative AI for creative content and prototyping, plus insights into personalised B2B content and audio-first marketing intelligence. Essential listening for marketers keen to enhance ROI and adapt to the evolving digital landscape.

When was the last time you really looked at your numbers? I'm not talking about follower count or how many likes your last reel got. I mean the real numbers in your business. The ones that actually tell you if your subscription box is healthy, sustainable, and built to grow. If the idea of diving into your numbers makes you want to run and hide, this episode is for you! Because today, I'm walking you through the five most important metrics every subscription box owner needs to track. I'll break down what they are and how to calculate them, and explain what they mean for your business and how to use them to make smarter decisions starting today. Whether you're brand new or scaling toward your next milestone, these numbers will give you clarity, confidence, and control. Don't feel like you have to track everything all at once.Pick one number and start there. Maybe this month, you track your retention rate. Next month, add Customer Acquisition Cost. Then plug in your numbers for LTV. In this Friday Fuel episode, I'm breaking down the 5 metrics that matter most and how to start tracking them (without the overwhelm). Don't ignore your numbers because they feel confusing or overwhelming. Because clarity? That's power. Mentioned in This Episode: Free Retention Rate Calculator Box Budget Worksheet Launch Your Box Training Library (members only) Inside Launch Your Box, we take this even further, teaching you how to track, interpret, and use these numbers to scale your subscription box business. If you're ready to stop guessing and start making decisions based on data, we're here to help. Join me in all the places:     Facebook Instagram Launch Your Box with Sarah Website  Are you ready for Launch Your Box? Our complete training program walks you step by step through how to start, launch, and grow your subscription box business. Join the waitlist today! 

Brent Vartan is Managing Partner and Co-Founder at Bullish, a unique hybrid combining a branding agency and a consumer-focused venture fund. With decades of experience in brand strategy, Brent and his team have been early investors and builders behind some of the most iconic DTC and consumer brands of the past decade, including Peloton, Warby Parker, Casper, Harry's, Hu, Bubble, and more.In this episode of DTC Pod, Brent shares his perspective on what it takes to build generational consumer brands from the earliest stages. He discusses Bullish's hands-on investment approach, the importance of brand strategy as a growth mechanism, and what differentiates brands that become household names. Brent also breaks down real playbooks from companies like Sunday Lawn and Nom Nom, providing founders concrete advice on what it takes to build brands worth talking about—and worth buying.Interact with other DTC experts and access our monthly fireside chats with industry leaders on DTC Pod Slack.On this episode of DTC Pod, we cover:1. Bullish's hybrid brand agency and VC model2. What it means to invest as “first money” and why it matters3. The difference between building a business and building a brand4. Why customer lifetime value (CLV) trumps CAC and COGS5. Product-market fit: moving from awareness to lifetime value6. How Bullish supports brands like Harry's and Nom Nom in their earliest days7. Tactical advice for founders on capital raising and allocation8. Building brands for acquisition vs. IPO9. The playbook for becoming an acquisition target (what buyers actually want)10. The underrated power of innovation and product launches11. The role of cultural relevance in DTC brand building12. Real-world examples from Sunday Lawn, Peloton, Bubble Beauty, and more13. How great DTC brands focus on AOV, CLV, and brand loyalty14. Pitfalls to avoid around capital structure and loss of momentumTimestamps00:00 Introducing Brent Vartan and Bullish03:49 Bullish's track record and notable investments05:22 What makes Bullish different10:10 Investing as “first money,” how Bullish evaluates concepts13:19 Patterns Bullish looks for in breakout DTC brands16:09 Deep dive: Sunday Lawn's growth and strategy18:36 Positioning Harry's and building a hundred-year business21:04 Timelines, capital, and operational realities for breakout brands23:37 Building for acquisition vs. IPO: how strategies diverge28:57 What buyers are really seeking in DTC acquisitions31:47 Nom Nom's Mars acquisition and the power of niche audiences33:59 The importance of cultural relevance and taking creative “shots”35:32 Bubble Beauty: case study in innovation and customer engagement38:27 Finding the right capital structure and maintaining founder equity41:06 The risks of stalling momentum and overplanning43:33 Where to allocate raised capital: innovation vs. marketing46:20 Where to find Bullish, Brent's socials, and their newsletterShow notes powered by CastmagicPast guests & brands on DTC Pod include Gilt, PopSugar, Glossier, MadeIN, Prose, Bala, P.volve, Ritual, Bite, Oura, Levels, General Mills, Mid Day Squares, Prose, Arrae, Olipop, Ghia, Rosaluna, Form, Uncle Studios & many more.  Additional episodes you might like:• #175 Ariel Vaisbort - How OLIPOP Runs Influencer, Community, & Affiliate Growth• #184 Jake Karls, Midday Squares - Turning Your Brand Into The Influencer With Content• #205 Kasey Stewart: Suckerz- - Powering Your Launch With 300 Million Organic Views• #219 JT Barnett: The TikTok Masterclass For Brands• #223 Lauren Kleinman: The PR & Affiliate Marketing Playbook• ​​​​#243 Kian Golzari - Source & Develop Products Like The World's Best Brands-----Have any questions about the show or topics you'd like us to explore further?Shoot us a DM; we'd love to hear from you.Want the weekly TL;DR of tips delivered to your mailbox?Check out our newsletter here.Projects the DTC Pod team is working on:DTCetc - all our favorite brands on the internetOlivea - the extra virgin olive oil & hydroxytyrosol supplementCastmagic - AI Workspace for ContentFollow us for content, clips, giveaways, & updates!DTCPod InstagramDTCPod TwitterDTCPod TikTokBrent Vartan - Managing Partner & Co-Founder of BullishBlaine Bolus - Co-Founder of CastmagicRamon Berrios - Co-Founder of Castmagic

Guest: Google's NotebookLMIn this special episode of SaaS Backwards, we handed the mic to AI.We took our newest ebook on reviving inbound marketing—coming soon for download—and ran it through Google's NotebookLM to see what kind of podcast it could generate. The result? A surprisingly sharp—if occasionally cheesy—take on how B2B SaaS companies can reimagine their go-to-market strategies for today's buyer. You be the judge.The episode explores why the traditional inbound playbook is falling short and what CROs and CMOs must do to adapt. From the collapse of predictable revenue models to the rise of buyer-centric marketing, we break down how to align sales and marketing, test messaging organically, and coordinate campaigns across email, ads, and outreach.Key Takeaways:The old predictable revenue model no longer works in today's B2B SaaS landscapeBuyers now do deep independent research before ever talking to salesMarketing and sales alignment must happen before the formal buying process beginsJobs to Be Done and qualitative ICPs help create relevance and resonanceOrganic testing (especially on LinkedIn) is essential before scaling paid campaignsEmail, ads, and SDR outreach must be tightly coordinated around buyer triggersIf you're a SaaS leader looking to modernize your inbound strategy and connect with today's buyer, this episode offers a bold, practical roadmap—created by AI, guided by strategy.---Not Getting Enough Demos? Your messaging could be turning buyers away before you even get a chance to pitch.

In this episode, we tackle the concept of margin erosion and how it impacts scaling businesses. I share insights on how growing your sales doesn't necessarily equate to growing your profits. We dive into common culprits like hiring rates, customer acquisition costs, and overhead, providing practical solutions to maintain healthy margins. You'll learn the importance of knowing your fixed vs. variable costs, adjusting your pricing structure, and implementing standardized processes without compromising customization. I'll also emphasize the necessity of regularly reviewing your finances to ensure sustainable profitability. Tune in to gain actionable strategies to improve your margins, ensuring that your business growth translates into increased profitability.   What You'll hear in this episode: [00:50] Understanding Lifestyle Creep in Business [01:15] The Concept of Margin Erosion [02:50] Warning Signs of Margin Erosion [03:40] Customer Acquisition Costs [06:45] Diagnosing Margin Erosion [09:00] Improving Margins and Scaling [10:05] Standardization and Customization [13:10] Financial Oversight and Cash Flow Management   If you like this episode, check out: Smart Cash Management for Business Owner Start with This Financial Metric (Financial Priority Formula Part 1) Early Warning Signs of a Cash Flow Crisis   Want to learn more so you can earn more?  Visit keepwhatyouearn.com to dive deeper on our episodes  Visit keepwhatyouearncfo.com to work with Shannon and her team  Watch this episode and more here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMlIuZsrllp1Uc_MlhriLvQ  Connect with Shannon on IG: https://www.instagram.com/shannonkweinstein/   The information contained in this podcast is intended for educational purposes only and is not individual tax advice. Please consult a qualified professional before implementing anything you learn.

Customer Acquisition Cost efficiency continues to be challenged in the B2B SaaS environment, while alignment across the Go-to-Market organization continues to be a topic of conversation. So, Dave "CAC" Kellogg a long time Marketing executive and Ray "Growth" Rike, a long time Sales executive decided to take on the the topic of Marketing and Sales alignment from their respective experiences as department executives. Topics discussed include:What is Marketing and Sales AlignmentWhat isn't Marketing and Sales AlignmentTop 3 Ideas to Achieve Marketing and Sales AlignmentHow Metrics Can Impact Marketing and Sales AlignmentThe Impact of AlignmentIf you are a CEO depending on the productivity of an aligned Go-to-Market organization, or the head of Marketing or Sales in a B2B SaaS company, this conversation is full of interesting ideas, stories and approaches to increasing revenue growth efficiency.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

HOLY hat innerhalb kürzester Zeit eine Fanbase aus Hunderttausenden für ihre Softdrink Alternative gewonnen. Mitgründer Mathias Horsch gibt einen Einblick in die Erfolgsgeschichte hinter der Direct-to-Consumer-Marke, die in nur vier Jahren von der Idee auf über 60 Millionen Euro Umsatz gewachsen ist.  Mathias teilt, wie Holy mit Gaming-Energy-Drinks gestartet ist und sich heute als internationale Better-for-You-Softdrink-Marke etabliert hat. Er spricht über die Herausforderungen beim Aufbau einer Marke, den Weg zu profitablen Unit Economics, und wie Holy durch Community Building, Influencer Marketing und klare Wachstumsstrategien zum Marktführer wurde. Was du lernst: Von der Idee zur Marke: Wie Holy als pulverbasierter Gaming-Energy-Drink begann und sich schnell zu einer breiteren Softdrink-Marke entwickelte Warum „Naivität“ und schnelles Handeln der Schlüssel zum Start waren Die drei Wachstumshebel von Holy: Internationalisierung: Wie Holy früh Märkte wie Frankreich und UK erschlossen hat Distribution: Vom Direct-to-Consumer-Geschäft zum strategischen Einstieg in den Handel Produktexpansion: Erweiterung von Energy-Drinks auf Hydration und Eistee, um neue Zielgruppen zu erreichen Community und Influencer-Marketing: Wie Holy mit kreativen Test-Programmen und Mikro-Influencern eine loyale Fangemeinde aufgebaut hat Warum Authentizität und direkter Kundenkontakt entscheidend für den Erfolg sind Effizientes Wachstum: Wie Holy mit nur 50 Mitarbeitenden über eine Million Euro Umsatz pro Person erzielt Warum der Fokus auf Partner für Produktion und Logistik das Unternehmen schlank und skalierbar hält Die Zukunft von Holy: Wie Holy den Einstieg in den Handel skaliert und gleichzeitig die Online-Community weiter ausbaut Warum Brand-Marketing, Sampling und innovative Kampagnen wie Seven vs. Wild die nächste Wachstumsphase prägen ALLES ZU UNICORN BAKERY: https://zez.am/unicornbakery  Mehr zu Mathias: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathiashorsch/  Website: https://de.weareHOLY.com/  Join our Founder Tactics Newsletter: 2x die Woche bekommst du die Taktiken der besten Gründer der Welt direkt ins Postfach: https://www.tactics.unicornbakery.de/  Marker: (00:00:00) Go-o-Market von Holy: Was alles schief lief (00:07:12) Markenaufbau von Holy (00:19:04) Teamaufbau Pre-Launch (00:21:32) Unit Economics & Customer Acquisition Costs (00:26:39) Gesunde Retention Rates einer D2C Firma (00:32:08) Holy's Wachstumsstrategie (00:39:15) Teamentwicklung after-Launch (00:44:23) Wertschöpfung bei Holy: Inhouse Team vs. externe Dienstleister (00:51:06) Herausforderungen, das Momentum zu erhalten (00:58:45) Kanäle für Akquise & Kundenbindung, Herausforderungen im Retail (01:12:38) Zusammenfassende Tipps für erfolgreiche erste Viralität des Produkts

In this episode of Grow a Small Business, host Troy Trewin interviews Marissa Seeley, co-founder of By Design Physio, a physiotherapy business based in Hobart, Australia, providing high-quality physiotherapy services with an emphasis on personalised care, injury rehabilitation, and ongoing physical wellness built around consistency in team culture and service delivery, ensuring that every client receives a top-tier experience.   Other Resources: Marketing Funding Flywheel eBook Why would you wait any longer to start living the lifestyle you signed up for? Balance your health, wealth, relationships and business growth. And focus your time and energy and make the most of this year. Let's get into it by clicking here.   Troy delves into our guest's startup journey, their perception of success, industry reconsideration, and the pivotal stress point during business expansion. They discuss the joys of small business growth, vital entrepreneurial habits, and strategies for team building, encompassing wins, blunders, and invaluable advice.   And a snapshot of the final five Grow A Small Business Questions: 1. What do you think is the hardest thing in growing a small business?   One of the hardest things in growing a small business is scaling without losing quality or company culture. Finding and retaining the right people is a major challenge, as is managing cash flow during rapid growth. Additionally, the emotional ups and downs of entrepreneurship can be difficult to navigate.   2. What's your favorite business book that has helped you the most?   One of Marissa's favorite business book is The Code of the Extraordinary Mind by Vishen Lakhiani. It talks about the 12 elements of life. And if you can fill all of the buckets, then you'll feel whole, which is really nice.   3. Are there any great podcasts or online learning resources you'd recommend to help grow a small business?   Marissa says “Build with Leila Hormozi”is always in her ears all the time. She says it is very helpful to anyone that has staff because she simplifies all concepts into manageable, bite sized pieces that you can apply literally that day, so that you're not just listening, you're actually applying.   4. What tool or resource would you recommend to grow a small business?   One of the most effective tools for growing a small business is leveraging Google Reviews and SEO to improve online visibility. Customer relationship management (CRM) software like HubSpot or ActiveCampaign can help manage customer interactions and automate marketing. Automation tools like Zapier can streamline operations and save time by connecting different apps and services.   5. What advice would you give yourself on day one of starting out in business?   If I could give myself advice on day one, I would emphasize the importance of focusing on building systems rather than just working hard. Patience is key—success doesn't happen overnight, and consistent effort pays off in the long run. Networking and building relationships early on can open doors to new opportunities. Lastly, keeping a close eye on finances from the beginning can prevent many future challenges. Book a 20-minute Growth Chat with Troy Trewin to see if you qualify for our upcoming course. Don't miss out on this opportunity to take your small business to new heights! Enjoyed the podcast? Please leave a review on iTunes or your preferred platform. Your feedback helps more small business owners discover our podcast and embark on their business growth journey. Quotable quotes from our special Grow A Small Business podcast guest:   “Growth isn't just about numbers—it's about building a team and culture that delivers consistently, every single day.” - Marissa Seeley   “Google Reviews became one of our biggest game-changers. We didn't just rely on word of mouth; we made sure potential clients could see real results before they even walked through the door.” - Marissa Seeley   “The best investment we made wasn't just in marketing or operations—it was in ourselves. Learning from mentors and refining our leadership changed everything.” - Marissa Seeley

Why you should listenDiscover how ExpandAP fills a critical gap in Salesforce by providing spend intelligence that ties your marketing investments directly to sales opportunities, campaigns, and customer lifetime value.Learn about a native Salesforce solution that can finally help marketing and sales leaders prove ROI on campaigns and customer acquisition costs—a persistent challenge for tech consultants.Paul Wnek shares valuable insights from 12 months of bringing this solution to market.Are you struggling to track the true costs of acquiring and maintaining your clients within Salesforce? In this episode, I talk with Paul Wnek from ExpandAP about their native Salesforce solution that bridges the gap between your sales data and spending intelligence. Whether you're running campaigns, traveling to meet prospects, or managing client projects, ExpandAP provides visibility into what you're actually spending to win and maintain business. Paul explains how this solution evolved from his experience implementing ERP systems and seeing the consistent challenge of expense tracking and attribution across organizations. If you've ever wondered about the real ROI of your marketing efforts or the true profitability of specific clients, this conversation reveals how bringing spend data directly into Salesforce can transform your business decision-making.About Paul WnekPaul Wnek is the founder and CEO of ExpandAP and a 15x certified Salesforce B2B solutions architect. Paul is an expert in complex business systems management, integration and implementation and is well versed in CRM, ERP, PSA, payment systems, subscription billing and CPQ and how to connect workflows for a holistic view of business outcomes.Resources and LinksExpandap.comPaul's LinkedIn profileBook a demo here!Previous episode: 600 - From Bootstrap to 7 figures: Building a NetSuite Powerhouse Through Marketing with Nathan GaringCheck out more episodes of The Paul Higgins ShowSubscribe to our YouTube channel: @PaulHigginsMentoringThe Tech Consultant's RoadmapJoin our newsletterSuggested resources

HoldCo Bros are back! In this episode, Nik and I, Chris, talk about the power of the middleman business model as a great way to start a low-risk business today. We discuss the core idea of connecting buyers and sellers without dealing with inventory or providing services directly. I share the concept of a "Never Touch Plastic" marketplace, similar to Etsy, but focused on environmentally conscious consumers. We also talk about building an affiliate marketing website for plastic-free products. We also discuss how the United States Postal Service represents a government-subsidized marketing method that entrepreneurs can leverage for cost-effective outreach.Learn more about Nik here: http://linktr.ee/cofoundersnikShare your ideas with us:Nik@cofounders.comChris@cofounders.comTimestamps below. Enjoy!---Watch this on YouTube instead here: tkopod.co/p-ytAsk me a question on or off the show here: http://tkopod.co/p-askLearn more about me: http://tkopod.co/p-cjkLearn about my company: http://tkopod.co/p-cofFollow me on Twitter here: http://tkopod.co/p-xFree weekly business ideas newsletter: http://tkopod.co/p-nlShare this podcast: http://tkopod.co/p-allScrape small business data: http://tkopod.co/p-os---00:00 Government Subsidies and Marketing Channels02:59 Innovative Business Ideas and Trends05:52 Sourdough Starter and Microplastics08:48 Leveraging the Postal Service for Business12:09 Customer Acquisition Cost and Marketing Strategies15:04 Monetizing Government Distribution Channels17:58 Driving for Dollars and Real Estate Opportunities20:51 AI and Survey Data Monetization24:02 Plasma Transfusion and Health Innovations

Erica Gessert, CFO of Upwork, and former Senior Vice President of Finance & Analytics at PayPal, joins CJ for this episode. They discuss Erica's experience with forecasting models at PayPal, emphasizing the need for adaptable models that change with economic conditions. Delving into her role at Upwork, Erica explains the company's approach to customer acquisition costs, the significance of network effects in marketplace businesses, and Upwork's take rate strategies. The conversation covers Upwork's investment in R&D, how the company maintains platform trust in the face of bad actors, and the impact of AI. Apart from explaining how Upwork gained 20 points of EBITDA in just three quarters, Erica also sheds light on their North Star metrics, how they balance growth and profitability, their approach to M&A, and her experience reporting to Masayoshi Son during her time at Sprint. —SPONSORS:Planful is a financial performance management platform designed to streamline financial tasks for businesses. It helps with budgeting, closing the books, and financial reporting, all on a cloud-based platform. By improving the efficiency and accuracy of these processes, Planful allows businesses to make better financial decisions. Find out more at www.planful.com/metrics.MUFG is the largest bank in Japan and a global banking powerhouse with a focus on empowering Growth and Middle Market stage companies in North America and Europe. MUFG provides comprehensive banking services for VC-backed, PE-backed, and public companies with revenues starting at $40M. The bank combines its global capabilities with deep operational understanding to help companies accelerate their growth trajectory. Contact group head Bob Blee at bblee@us.mufg.jp to find out more.Brex offers the world's smartest corporate card on a full-stack global platform that is everything CFOs need to manage their finances on an elite level. Plus they offer modern banking and treasury as well as intuitive expenses and accounting automation, bill pay, and travel. Brex makes it easy to control spend before it happens, automate annoying tasks, and optimize your finances. Find out how Brex can help you make every dollar count at brex.com/metrics. Vanta's trust management platform takes the manual work out of your security and compliance process and replaces it with continuous automation. Over 9000 businesses use it to automate compliance needs across over 35 frameworks like SOC 2 and ISO 27001. Centralize security workflows, complete questionnaires up to five times faster, and proactively manage vendor risk. For a limited time, get $1,000 off of Vanta at vanta.com/metrics. Tropic is an intelligent spend management solution that consolidates your spend data and processes into one unified offering, enabling insights and decisive action. It doesn't just show you where the problems are—it helps you solve them. From spotting hidden optimization opportunities, like duplicative spend, to automating those painful procurement workflows, to giving you the best market data that turns every vendor negotiation in your favor. Tropic combines smart insights with real human expertise to keep you ahead of the curve. Visit tropicapp.io/mostlymetrics to learn howRightRev automates the revenue recognition process from end to end, gives you real-time insights, and ensures ASC 606 / IFRS 15 compliance—all while closing books faster. Whether it's multi-element arrangements, subscription renewals, or complex usage-based contracts, RightRev takes care of it all. That means fewer spreadsheets, fewer errors, and more time for your team to focus on growth. For modern revenue recognition simplified, visit rightrev.com and schedule a demo.—FOLLOW US ON X:@cjgustafson222 (CJ)—TIMESTAMPS: (00:00) Preview and Intro(02:30) Sponsor – Planful | MUFG | Brex(06:17) Budgeting at PayPal(10:23) Forecasting Methodologies at PayPal(13:15) The Impact of the Calendar on Forecasting(15:01) Forecasting and Macroeconomic Indicators(16:29) Planning Will Take as Long as the Time You Allot for It(17:56) Surprising Insights About Freelancers(19:26) Sponsor – Vanta | Tropic | RightRev(24:55) Upwork's Customer Acquisition Cost(27:59) Freelancers and AI Adoption(29:07) Network Effects in Upwork's Model(31:14) Upwork's Take Rate Strategies(34:49) R&D Investing at Upwork(38:36) Selling Trusted Transactions(41:12) Upwork's North Star Metrics(42:59) Recognising the Potential of AI(44:05) How Upwork Gained 20 Points of EBITDA in Three Quarters(45:29) Balancing Growth and Profitability(46:41) Upwork's M&A Strategy(48:35) Long-Ass Lightning Round: A Big Career Mistake(50:55) Reporting to Masa from SoftBank(52:49) Advice to Younger Self(54:18) Finance Software Stack(54:55) Craziest Expense Story Get full access to Mostly metrics at www.mostlymetrics.com/subscribe

Are you leaving money on the table, or are you overspending on marketing efforts that aren't giving ROI? You won't know unless you track these seven key metrics.  In this episode, I break down the essential numbers every service-based business owner needs to monitor to scale smarter—covering everything from sales conversion rates to cash flow. I'll also share how my background in data reporting transformed my approach to growth strategies and why my clients are seeing major shifts by keeping a close eye on these numbers. Stay tuned to learn how to make data-driven decisions that fuel sustainable success!

In this episode, we dive into the essential metrics every business owner should track to close out 2024 strong and prepare for a thriving 2025. Data-driven decisions are the backbone of successful businesses, and Kerri breaks down five key areas of measurement: Revenue and Profitability Metrics: Understand growth and manage expenses with metrics like Year-over-Year Revenue Growth and Net Profit Margin. Customer Acquisition and Retention Metrics: Balance bringing in new customers with keeping existing ones happy through insights like Customer Acquisition Cost and Lifetime Value. Operational Efficiency Metrics: Identify bottlenecks and optimize processes with tools like Revenue Per Employee and Utilization Rates. Marketing and Sales Performance Metrics: Maximize ROI by tracking Lead Conversion Rates and Return on Marketing Investment. Employee Engagement and Productivity Metrics: Foster a high-performing team by monitoring Employee Turnover Rates and Engagement Scores. If you're new to tracking metrics, don't worry—Kerri shares actionable insights to get started and explains how these measurements can help you make smarter, more informed decisions for the year ahead. Tune In to Hear: Why metrics are essential for making data-driven decisions. Five key areas every business should measure and why they matter. Simple steps to start tracking if you're currently flying blind. Insightful tips to improve profitability, retention, efficiency, and team engagement. How to use the chaos of the end of the year as the perfect opportunity to reset your approach. Resources mentioned: Starting an email list? If not, you should! Need a great tool to get you started with beautiful emails that is super simple to use? Check out Flodesk. Right now, they are giving our listeners 50% off their first year which is an amazing deal! To learn more, visit their website at https://flodesk.com/c/KERRIR or use the code KERRIR at checkout. Are you an employer who wants to use science to make stronger, data-backed decisions across the entire employee lifecycle? Using Predictive Index will help you create a people-focused strategy and provide a clear understanding of how to improve candidate experience, employee morale and performance, leading to higher productivity and better business results. Stop wasting time and money by churning through candidates, employees, and missed business goals. PI is here to help you lift your business by making better people decisions. And, luckily for you, at Salt & Light Advisors we are a certified PI Partner. Go to saltandlightadvisors.com/predictiveindex to learn more. Join our weekly newsletter: • HR and operations insights for business professionals: https://www.saltandlightadvisors.com/contact • Women looking to expand professionally and personally: https://www.saltandlightforwomen.com/contact Connect on IG: https://www.instagram.com/saltandlightadvisors https://www.instagram.com/saltandlightforwomen https://www.instagram.com/dontwastethechaos Check out Don't Waste the Chaos on YouTube: https://youtube.com/@dontwastethechaospodcast Visit our website: www.dontwastethechaos.com

Sergio Tache is the Founder and CEO of Dossier, a perfume house for the next generation, where French craftsmanship meets innovation, enabling universal access and self-expression for the many. With Dossier, Sergio helps to set a new standard within the industry––removing pretenses, like the designer brand name tax and use of elitist marketing practices, namely celebrity endorsements, that drive up luxury fragrance prices. Dossier aims to help customers focus on a product's quality, not a desired perception. All Dossier products are made in France, just without the price gouging. Sergio launched the company with its now-hero collection of Dossier Impressions, a collection of designer-inspired fragrances available for 70-85% less. With their success, he leveraged the company's learning from experience to develop Dossier Originals (a collection of in-house exclusive fragrances) and Dossier Home (a line of room diffusers and candles with scents from customer-favorite Impressions). As of 2024, Tache has successfully helped the company expand outside of the U.S. to Mexico, Canada, and Australia and acquired Amazon and Walmart as retail partners. Before building Dossier, Tache held several CEO roles within the digitally-native beauty space––working within the haircare and skincare industries after leaving the finance industry. Sergio holds an MBA in Finance from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania with his Master's and Bachelor's degree from Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management (in Belgium, where he grew up).In This Conversation We Discuss:[00:41] Intro[01:54] Challenging unfair high margins in beauty products[02:53] Blending craftsmanship with affordability[03:37] Finding the right perfume supplier[05:18] Validating concepts without overspending[06:51] Redefining luxury perfume with accessible choices[07:59] Navigating MLQs and supplier roadblocks[10:16] Embracing boring execution for long-term success[10:44] Episode sponsors: StoreTester and Intelligems[13:56] Mastering go-to-market strategies for growth[14:58] Focusing on what works for your brand[15:49] Executing clear product messaging for success[17:00] Avoiding the shiny object syndrome[19:04] Managing cash flow in startup struggles[20:15] Understanding the urgency of financial planning[21:46] Finding value in mentorship for entrepreneurs[22:36] Choosing between self-funding and VC support[24:02] Emphasizing daily reviews of key financials[25:15] Simplifying ecommerce with key formulas[26:20] The power of boring but effective execution[27:08] Explore Dossier and connect with SergioResources:Subscribe to Honest Ecommerce on YoutubeFair-priced French perfumery crafted for the next generation dossier.co/Follow Sergio Tache linkedin.com/in/sergiotache/Book a demo today at intelligems.io/Done-for-you conversion rate optimization service storetester.com/If you're enjoying the show, we'd love it if you left Honest Ecommerce a review on Apple Podcasts. It makes a huge impact on the success of the podcast, and we love reading every one of your reviews!

What is your customer acquisition cost? What it's costing you to acquire each customer is probably way more than you think! Reduced customer acquisition costs would mean more profitability for your business, which is a win-win for your bottom line. In this episode, Dave and his guest discuss improving your close rate, focusing on better quality leads, and a sure way to get more referrals. Join us to learn more!Brad Akers from Brad Grows Businesses developed The Built Right program to create scalable systems around sales and marketing for roofers and other home service professionals. His mission is to provide expert consulting and marketing services with a customized growth plan for each client. What you'll hear in this episode:Brad's background story: how he learned business and marketing through a hands-on approach to entrepreneurshipThe #1 problem for small contractors in getting the right leads: not focusing on quality conversationsUnderstanding a true lead–and what it costs to get a true customer“Developing better sales skills may be solving for the wrong problem.”Understanding the “control panel” in your business and which knobs and levers to turn for the desired resultsA look at ad spend, SEO, Google ads, and where your marketing dollars are really goingWhat is each qualified lead actually costing you? (Hint: Your estimated closing rate is probably WAY off!)Brad explains the concept of compounding.Brad's process in generating three additional appointments from every jobThe benefits of compounding are maximized by providing a great customer experience and offering amazing rewards for referral partners.Follow the process!An overview of Brad's program, The Built Right Contractor, along with group masterminds and one-on-one servicesResources:Connect with Brad Akers: Website, The Built Right Contractor, and 832-275-0581 Check out our YouTube channel and be sure to subscribe:https://www.youtube.com/@DaveSullivanRooferShowSet up a FREE strategy call with Dave and get a few tips on how you can improve your business: https://davesullivan.as.me/free-strategy-callInterested in learning more about our 1-on-1 coaching, mastermind groups, or fractional CFO services? Email me or send me a text at (510) 612-1450.No Plan? No problem. Download our FREE 1-Page Business Plan For Roofing Contractors: https://theroofershow.com/planThe Roofer Show's Vetted SponsorsHave RUBY answer your phones and tee up the sale by leaving a great first impression. Use this link to get up to $150 off your first month's service: http://get.ruby.com/roofershow.SMA Support Services fills a need by empowering contractors to simplify and optimize their operational processes with virtual assistant services. Explore what a virtual assistant can do for your contracting business. Let SMA do the hiring, training, and onboarding. Check out SMA Support Services! (Tell them Dave sent...

Get ready for a deep dive into what really makes customers stick around or peace out. Professor Daniel McCarthy unravels the myths around churn rates and why a low number isn't always a high-five moment for businesses. If data drives your decisions, this episode is an indispensable resource for anyone navigating the complexities of subscription businesses.Show LinksRetention SpreadsheetPPT DeckYouTube Video Series:First Video (One Segment Model)Second Video (Two Segment Model)Third Video (Beta Geometric Model)LinkedIn: Daniel McCarthyTwitter: @d_mccarChurn Fallacy PaperSponsorsFree 30-day trial of Zipify OCUFinale InventoryGrowth CollectiveNever miss an episodeSubscribe wherever you get your podcastsJoin Kurt's newsletterHelp the showAsk a question in The Unofficial Shopify Podcast Facebook GroupLeave a reviewSubscribe wherever you get your podcastsWhat's Kurt up to?See our recent work at EthercycleSubscribe to our YouTube ChannelApply to work with Kurt to grow your store.

(Watch the YouTube video of this episode HERE)“This becomes a business that you can scale endlessly and becomes an incredibly attractive business.” Today, Alex (@AlexHormozi) explores seven essential investing concepts that drive business growth and financial success. Through real-life examples, Alex simplifies complex financial metrics, including Lifetime Gross Profit, Customer Acquisition Cost, Return on Invested Capital, Payback Period, and Total Adjustable Market. Gain valuable insights on measuring and interpreting these indicators to make informed investment decisions, while also understanding the importance of these concepts for business scaling and risk management.Welcome to The Game w/Alex Hormozi, hosted by entrepreneur, founder, investor, author, public speaker, and content creator Alex Hormozi. On this podcast you'll hear how to get more customers, make more profit per customer, how to keep them longer, and the many failures and lessons Alex has learned on his path from $100M to $1B in net worth.Timestamps:(0:48) - Concept #1: LTGP:CAC(1:47) - Concept #2: LTGP (Life Time Gross Profit)(8:18) - Concept #3: CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)(11:13) - Concept #4: ROIC (Return On Invested Capital)(15:54) - Concept #5: Payback Period(19:03) - Concept #6: Sales Velocity x LTGP(21:14) - Concept #7: Sales Velocity / Churn(23:22) - Concept #8: Total Adjustable Market (TAM)Follow Alex Hormozi's Socials:LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | Twitter | Acquisition