Pete Lamson: 5 Critical Customer Acquisition Metrics Every CEO, CFO, and Sales & Marketing Leader Should Know

A little while ago, I shared “The 5 Critical Questions Every CEO Must Answer Before Scaling Go-To-Market Investment.”

This follow-up dives deeper into the key concepts and metrics every organization should master to build a disciplined, data-driven growth engine.

Let’s assume you’ve already defined your target market, found initial product-market fit, and are seeing early sales traction. Congratulations — that’s no small feat.

Now comes the important part: digging into the numbers.

Because growth alone isn’t enough. The real goal is scalable, repeatable, and capital-efficient growth. And understanding your unit economics is the key to getting there.

What Does “Capital-Efficient Growth” Really Mean?

Capital-efficient growth means building revenue and market share while using as little outside capital (equity or debt) as possible.

Instead of raising and burning through large amounts of money, you focus on generating profits early — and reinvesting those profits to grow.

Done right, this approach creates a resilient business with strong margins and healthy cash flow, while minimizing ownership dilution. It’s about keeping spend in check and ensuring every go-to-market dollar is tightly aligned with results.

What Are Unit Economics?

Unit economics measure the direct revenues and costs of acquiring a single customer. In other words, they help answer:

• Are we acquiring and growing customers in a capital-efficient way?

When measured consistently, unit economics become a roadmap to profitable growth.

The 5 Metrics That Matter Most

1. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

Formula: Total New Customer-Focused Sales & Marketing Spend ÷ New Customers Acquired

CAC shows how much it costs to win a new customer. Count all acquisition-related expenses — salaries, commissions, ads, content, tools, events, travel, etc.

• Pro tip: Focus on the trendline, not a single snapshot.

2. CAC Payback Period

Formula: CAC ÷ Monthly Recurring Revenue per Customer (MRR)

This tells you how long it takes to earn back your CAC.

– 12 months = good
– 6–9 months = great
– The shorter, the better

Startups often take longer pre-PMF — and that’s okay. Just don’t stay there.

3. Customer Lifetime Value (LTV)

Formula: Avg. Annual Revenue per Customer × Gross Margin × Avg. Customer Lifetime (years)

LTV shows how much revenue you can expect from each customer over time. It highlights why retention is so valuable and guides how much you should spend to acquire new customers.

4. LTV to CAC Ratio

Formula: LTV ÷ CAC

This ratio reveals the return you get on every acquisition dollar.

– 3:1 = healthy
– 5:1 = under-investing
– <1:1 = unsustainable

5. The SaaS Magic Number

Formula: (Net New ARR × 4) ÷ Prior Quarter GTM Spend

This goes beyond acquisition. It includes expansion and retention, giving you the true measure of go-to-market efficiency.

– >1 = each $1 spent delivers >$1 in new ARR (green light to scale)

The Bottom Line

Winning go-to-market strategies aren’t just creative — they’re disciplined.

By consistently tracking these metrics, leaders can:

– See which channels and segments deliver the best ROI
– Catch red flags before they become issues
– Make smarter, more confident investment decisions

Growth for growth’s sake is easy. Capital-efficient growth builds enduring companies.

Start tracking. Stay disciplined. Build wisely.

• Next up: How Net Revenue Retention drives enterprise value.