SaaS Metrics School - podcast cover

SaaS Metrics School

Ben Murray brings you actionable SaaS metrics lessons that he has learned through years of being in the SaaS CFO trenches. Whether you are new to SaaS or a SaaS veteran, learn the latest SaaS metrics, finance, and accounting tactics that drive financial transparency and improved decision-making. Ben’s SaaS metrics blog consistently rates a 70+ NPS, and his templates have been downloaded over 100,000 times. There is always something to learn about SaaS metrics.
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Episodes

I Rarely See This Metric Tracked in SaaS Companies

In episode #206, I address a non-financial metric that I love. That is NPS or CSAT. But you see a lot of folks who would rather pass on NPS. - Any feedback is good feedback - NPS - Try my NPS tool Join my SaaS community: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/offers/ivNjwYDx/checkout

Jun 18, 20243 min

How to Tackle Your Retention Problem

In episode #205, I address the must-have retention metrics and how to zero in on retention problems. - The 3 retention metrics - Where’s my retention problem? - Cohort vs. aggregate retention Grab my retention templates: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148292708

Jun 17, 20245 min

Do Your VC’s Not Care Anymore?

In episode #204, I address a post by SaaStr about VC’s checking out on current investments. What now? - Set your own financial roadmap - Forecasting - 5 Pillar SaaS Metrics Framework Grab my framework here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148255133

Jun 12, 20245 min

Improving Your DSO and Cash Flow

In episode #203, I address invoicing, cash collections, and cash flow. Cash flow starts with timely and accurate invoicing. - Timely and accurate invoicing - Days Sales Outstanding - Cash collections Grab my DSO guide here: https://www.thesaascfo.com/downloads/dso-guide/ Need help with cash collections automation, book time with me here: https://book.thesaascfo.com/tryextend

Jun 11, 20245 min

Do I Really Have to Code All Expenses to a Department?

In episode #202, I address a reader question about coding expenses. They attended my CAC webinar and had a great question about how far you go with expense coding. - Coding expenses to the department level - Allocating invoices to multiple departments Catch my CAC training replay and templates: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148384654 Some great SaaS events coming up: https://www.thesaascfo.com/saas-events/

Jun 07, 20244 min

How to Segment Your CAC

In episode #201, I address the foundation of CAC and segmentation. It takes a lot of good expense detail to get fancy with our CAC calculations. - New vs. existing allocation - CAC segmentation CAC webinar on May 29th: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148321309

May 28, 20244 min

The Ultimate SaaS Metrics Checklist for Your Business

Episode 200 – The Ultimate SaaS Metrics Checklist for Your Business In episode #200, it’s fitting for episode 200 that I share my 5 Pillar SaaS Metrics Framework. It acs as your guide and roadmap to calculating the correct SaaS metrics for the right stage of your business. - Pillar 1 – growth - Pillar 2 – retention - Pillar 3 – margins - Pillar 4 – financial profile - Pillar 5 - efficiency Grab my framework here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148255133 Join my SaaS metrics training here: ht...

May 25, 20244 min

My ARR when Switching from Long-term Contracts to Consumption Model

In episode #199, I address the tricky question of what is ARR. There are many revenue streams in SaaS and we have to be careful how add up our ARR. - SaaS revenue streams - What is ARR? - Subscription to consumption SaaS metrics course begins July 9th: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/SMF-live-just-the-facts

May 21, 20245 min

You Are Less Than 2M ARR and Want to Exit

In episode #198, I address what you need if you are early-stage and want to exit. I just gave a coaching call on this to someone prepping a smaller SaaS company for sale. - Accounting - SaaS P&L - MRR schedule SaaS metrics course launches July 9th SaaS CFO templates course

May 11, 20245 min

Your MRR Schedule is Worth its Weight in Gold

Episode 197 – Your MRR Schedule is Worth its Weight in Gold In episode #197, I address due diligence and your MRR schedule. Your MRR schedule will ALWAYS be requested in due diligence. - What is an MRR schedule? - How do you create an MRR schedule? - MRR schedules are gold - SaaS metrics course SaaS Metrics course launches July 9th SaaS CFO templates course...

May 10, 20245 min

The Foundation of CAC Part 4

In episode #196, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s talk PLG and SLG. And segmenting your CAC. - SLG and PLG impact on CAC - Don’t forget to segment your CAC The foundation of CAC blog post.

Apr 30, 20244 min

The Foundation of CAC Part 3

In episode #195, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, about the metrics that use CAC as an input. And what’s your prize? - CAC feeds these metrics - What’s your prize? Very important to define Learn more about CAC here!

Apr 25, 20243 min

The Foundation of CAC Part 2

In episode #194, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s talk data sources. Where do we source CAC data? - SaaS P&L - Bookings data or your MRR schedule Foundation of CAC blog post.

Apr 24, 20244 min

The Foundation of CAC Part 1

In episode #193, I address the foundation of CAC in this four-part series. Today, let’s define CAC. It’s not as obvious as it seems. - Begins with your general ledger and your SaaS P&L - Gross CAC, customer acquisition cost Blog post on CAC: https://www.thesaascfo.com/the-foundation-of-customer-acquisition-costs-cac/

Apr 23, 20244 min

What SaaS Metrics Are Relevant When Passing $10M ARR?

In episode #192, I address the relevant SaaS metrics when hitting the big $10M ARR milestone. If you are a founder who is still far away from 10M, it’s good to understand what you’ll need at that point. - Do SaaS metrics matter? - What financial metrics do I need? - The 4 key finance data sources Grab my 5 Pillar Framework here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148255133

Apr 16, 20243 min

What Metrics and Data Do Acquirors Want to See ASAP?

In episode #191, I address the data that is worth its weight in gold. You will always be asked for this data when buyers are evaluating your SaaS business. - The golden data - Where do you source this data? Grab my resource to create your MRR schedule here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148292708

Apr 12, 20243 min

Do I Really Need to Use SaaS Metrics Benchmarks?

In episode #190, I address SaaS benchmarks and metrics. Benchmarks act as important guideposts for our business. - Do I really need benchmarks? - What benchmarks does Ben use? - Important for due diligence My 5 Pillar Framework: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148255133

Apr 11, 20242 min

How Do I Count Reactivation MRR in My Metrics

In episode #189, I address reactivation MRR and counts. This is a common layer of MRR in self-service SaaS (low price point, high customer volume) business. - impact on revenue retention - impact on logo retention Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’s SaaS community...

Apr 10, 20242 min

Calculating CAC When You Have SLG and PLG Motions

In episode #188, I address today’s reality with our go-to-market motion and CAC. You must segment your CAC if you run a PLG and SLG motion. - new vs. existing CAC allocation - SLG vs PLG allocation - what to do with R&D Subscribe to Ben’s short SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’...

Apr 05, 20244 min

Don’t Do This When Allocating Your CAC Expense

In episode #187, I address an important concept when trying to allocate CAC expenses between new and existing business. This came up again on a coaching call so it’s time to address it. - how not to allocate - how to properly allocate CAC - another good way to allocate CAC My 5 Pillar SaaS Metrics Framework: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148255133

Apr 04, 20243 min

Can CAC Be Calculated Per Product Line?

In episode #186, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. CAC by segment. This is often harder than it appears. - Isolating bookings and revenue - Isolating expenses by product line - Expense structure Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ ...

Mar 26, 20243 min

Should We Include Customer Success Cost in Our CAC?

In episode #185, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. Where does customer success belong? - What role does Customer Success play? - Should CS be in both COGS and OpEx? Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’s SaaS community here...

Mar 25, 20242 min

Sales Cycle Impact on S&M Efficiency Metrics

In episode #184, I address an important nuance in calculating your S&M efficiency metrics. - How do you measure your sales cycle? - Impact on S&M metrics measurement Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’s SaaS community here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/of...

Mar 22, 20242 min

Bookings Data is Finance Data Source 1

In episode #183, I address the four key sources of SaaS finance data. This data feeds our forecast, SaaS metrics, financial analysis, Board reporting, and more. We must implement a clean monthly data process. - What is a booking? - Data sources for bookings - Feeds our S&M metrics Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics...

Mar 13, 20244 min

Contracted MRR vs P&L MRR

In episode #182, I address the nuances of MRR. We could be talking about an accounting number, a CRM number, and a number from who knows where. - What is MRR? - Accounting MRR - Contracted MRR Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’s SaaS community here: https://www.th...

Mar 12, 20242 min

Please Code Your Expenses to the Department Level

In episode #181, I address an all too frequent accounting problem. Department coding. Save yourself headaches down the road by coding expenses to the department level. - Pure-play SaaS departments - COGS vs. OpEx - Why this matters Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Be...

Mar 08, 20243 min

Founders You Must Be Profitable on Your Services Revenue

In episode #180, I address professional services revenue. PS revenue required to set up, configure, onboard, and train your customers. And essential department when selling mid-market and enterprise software. - What is professional services? - What are standard margins on services revenue? - The battle between Sales and PS - You must make margin! Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi...

Mar 01, 20245 min

How Do I Calculate Retention if I Have Consumption Revenue?

In episode #179, I address revenue retention and variable revenue streams. This can be tricky if our variable revenue offers no consistency. Period of measurement is key. - Variable revenue streams - Period of measurement - Cohort analysis - Month 13 Grab my retention template in this free course: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/pl/2148292708

Feb 29, 20244 min

How I Use the Rule of 40 When You Are Less Than 10M ARR

In episode #178, I address the proper time to use the Rule of 40. There are a lot of opinions here on when to implement this metric. Some say above 25M in ARR. Some say 50M ARR. - What is the Rule of 40? - Your funding environment matters - When to use this metric - When is it a red flag Rule of 40 post: https://www.thesaascfo.com/rule-of-40-saas/

Feb 27, 20243 min

Pass 90% of Your SaaS Peers with These 4 Finance Steps

In episode #177, I address the 4 things you can do to pass 90% of SaaS peers in financial maturity. - Your Chart of Accounts - The Proper SaaS P&L - Department Coding - Revenue Recognition Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS metrics newsletter: https://saasmetricsschool.beehiiv.com/subscribe Subscribe to Ben’s SaaS monthly newsletter: https://mailchi.mp/df1db6bf8bca/the-saas-cfo-sign-up-landing-page SaaS Metrics courses here: https://www.thesaasacademy.com/ Join Ben’s SaaS community here: https://www.th...

Feb 23, 20243 min
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