Metrics that Matter, by Paul Silva

What are the Metrics That Matter for your venture? No… not the vanity metrics that so many of us were taught to pay attention to.  What are the metrics that actually show you if your venture is on the right track?

I watch my students struggle with this a great deal.  I’d like to offer some patterns that can serve as a starting point to anyone considering these questions.

  1. Cost to acquire/get a customer helps you evaluate different channels for their relative value, shows you when your website is doing a terrible job of converting visitors into contacts, steers you towards labor-efficient/scalable techniques, etc.
    Somesubmetrics:
    1. Sales & marketing costs: out-of-pocket + labor (assume a market-rate labor cost so you do not underestimate labor-intensive marketing channels)
    2. # of hits to your website, # of cold calls
    3. % that convert to contact you, % that meet with you
    4. % that purchase
  2. Cost to keep/retain a customer helps you spot when you are using unsustainable customer service / product delivery procedures.
    Somesubmetrics:
    1. Cost of customer service team, returns, refunds, etc.
    2. # of customers
  3. Lifetime value of a customer helps you think about customer retention and how to grow revenue from existing customers by keeping them longer or by solving other problems for them via new products.
    1. % of customers who renew
    2. Revenue per customer

These three metrics, while not all-inclusive, are a fantastic starting point.

A Few Seats Left for Lean Launchpad Demo Day

There are only a few tickets left for next week's Lean Launchpad: Pioneer Valley Graduation Celebration & Demo Day.  Because of space (and wine :)) seats are limited and only those who RSVP can attend.  So if you'd like to join us, RSVP here.

Who is attending: primarily angel investors, mentors, and entrepreneurs who want to see first-hand the results of Lean Launchpad training.  Get more details here.

You’re Invited! Lean Launchpad: Pioneer Valley Graduation & Demo Day

If you’ve been following this blog you know that the Lean Launchpad is the #1 entrepreneurship curriculum in the country.  It has proven it can dramatically increase startups’ odds of success by accelerating their ability to find a repeatable, scalable business model before they run out of ramen noodles (or spousal patience :)).  

WE INVITE YOU TO COME SEE FOR YOURSELF.

The latest cohort of Western Massachusetts teams to complete the Lean Launchpad curriculum is graduating on 4/28 @ 5pm and giving their final presentations.  No spin-ridden investor pitches will be shown this night.  Instead the audience will hear how the companies developed their ideas, field tested them with real customers, changed (often radically) their businesses, and did the whole process over and over again until they got it right or ran out of time.  You’ll see how they learn and how they adapt.  You’ll also see how the Lean Launchpad curriculum is so different.  

And after the presentations… then there will be wine :).

You must RSVP to attend as space (and wine!) is limited.  We would love to have you join us.

BusinessWest Exclusive On Click

Our thanks to George O'Brien of BusinessWest for his wonderful article on Click!

Excerpt:

“There are collisions — and lots of them,” said Silva, adding quickly that these developments take many forms, such as individuals collaborating on an idea that becomes a business concept. Or an entrepreneur finding an angel investor that can provide the capital to get an idea off the ground. Or a writer making the acquaintance of a social-media expert who has some suggestions on how she can better communicate with her readers.

All these scenarios and countless others have played out at a unique facility in Northampton called Click Workspace, or simply ‘Click,’ as most members call it. It is one of the more recent manifestations of a trend toward coworking, a style of work that involves a shared environment, said Silva, the nonprofit facility’s president, noting that it was inspired by much larger projects such as the Cambridge Innovation Center and the Innovation Pavilion in Colorado, which was founded by serial entrepreneur Ali Usman, who would later help start Click..."

Read full article here.