The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: The Metrics That Matter in SaaS Today; Why CaC Payback is Flawed & CAC Ratio is Better, Why You Need to Hire Three Sales Reps at a Time, How to Forecast in 2024 & Biggest Mistakes Made Forecasting & How to Make Customer Success Sell More with Dave K

Jan 31, 2024

Dave Kellogg, former CMO of Business Objects and CEO of multiple companies, discusses the flawed nature of CAC payback period and the effectiveness of CAC ratio. He also talks about the importance of gross revenue retention and the biggest mistakes founders make with metrics. Additionally, he shares insights on building and scaling sales teams, CFOs buying new tech, winning renewals, and the strategy of hiring sales reps. The podcast covers topics such as ideal customer profiles, power structures, sales and marketing distinctions, measuring growth, customer success, sales reviews, vertical expansion, AI sales tools, and workflow simplification.

01:10:23

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Episode guests

Dave Kellogg

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Quick takeaways

Identifying and understanding the ideal customer profile (ICP) helps businesses align their sales and marketing efforts for successful conversions and retention.

Tracking key metrics like CAC payback period, gross retention rate, and sales and marketing efficiency ratio is essential for assessing business health and making informed growth decisions.

Proactive customer success efforts, understanding power dynamics, and effective negotiation strategies are crucial for churn management and successful customer retention.

Deep dives

Importance of Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

The podcast episode highlights the significance of identifying and understanding the ideal customer profile (ICP). The ICP starts as an aspiration and evolves over time. It helps in determining who the target customers are, what problems they need to solve, and which solutions they are more likely to buy. By focusing on the ICP, businesses can align their sales and marketing efforts to attract customers who fit the profile, increasing the chances of successful conversions and retention.

Metrics That Matter in SaaS and the Importance of Simple Metrics

02:21

The Importance of Listening to Sales Calls

01:52

The value of customer success management in enterprise accounts

00:53

Selling through Curiosity: The Power of Asking Questions

01:19

Introduction

3min

Career Highlights, Understanding Power Structures, and Differences Between Sales and Marketing

2min

Measuring Efficient Growth in Sales Companies

12min

The Role of Customer Success in SaaS Companies

13min

Debating the Strategy of Hiring Sales Representatives in the Early Days

2min

The Importance of Sales Reviews and Deal Slips

16min

Vertical Expansion Strategy in SaaS Business

13min

AI Sales Tools and SaaS Founders

6min

AI Tools for Workflow Simplification and Cost Reduction

3min

Dave Kellogg is one of the OGs of Saas. Among his many accomplishments, Dave was the CMO of Business Objects where he helped scale the business from $30M to $1BN in revenue. Dave has also been a CEO twice, once scaling the business from $0 to $80M and the other business from $8M to $50M before selling it. Dave is also an advisor to some of the best including GainSight, Logickull, MongoDB, Pigment, Recorded Future, and Tableau.

In Today's Episode with Dave Kellogg We Discuss:

1. What are the Metrics That Matter:

Why is CAC payback period such a flawed metric?
What is CAC ratio? Why is it more effective than understanding payback?
Why is gross revenue retention more important than net revenue retention?
What are the single biggest mistakes that founders make when using metrics today?

2. How to Build and Scale the Best Sales Teams:

Why should founders hire three sales reps at one time? What is the benefit?
What are the three different types of sales calls all teams must have?
What should all CEOs and Heads of Sales ask of their sales team in forecasting?
What is the single biggest mistake most companies make in forecasting?
How should a CEO/board member respond to a sales team that lets a deal slip to next quarter?

3. Are CFOs Buying New Tech and How to Win Renewals:

Are CFOs open for business? How has the top down sales process changed in the last year?
Why is the way that startups think about renewals completely broken?
What are the three different types of customer success teams we have today?
What is the core role of customer success? How can we incentivise them to sell more?

4. Mastering Product Marketing, Customer Profiles and Crossing the Chasm:

How can we use product marketing to increase sales velocity?
What is the single biggest risk in product marketing today?
What does Dave mean when he says "an ICP starts as an aspiration and becomes a regression?"

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The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: The Metrics That Matter in SaaS Today; Why CaC Payback is Flawed & CAC Ratio is Better, Why You Need to Hire Three Sales Reps at a Time, How to Forecast in 2024 & Biggest Mistakes Made Forecasting & How to Make Customer Success Sell More with Dave K

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Importance of Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

Metrics that Matter in SaaS

Dealing with Churn and Customer Success

Effective Sales Forecasting and Negotiations

The Importance of Targeted Account Strategy over Outbound Activities

Founder Challenges in Expanding into Enterprise and Hiring Sales Teams

Metrics That Matter in SaaS and the Importance of Simple Metrics

The Importance of Listening to Sales Calls

The value of customer success management in enterprise accounts

Selling through Curiosity: The Power of Asking Questions

Get the Snipd
podcast app

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

Save any
moment

Share
& Export

AI-powered
podcast player

Discover
highlights

The Twenty Minute VC (20VC): Venture Capital | Startup Funding | The Pitch

20VC: The Metrics That Matter in SaaS Today; Why CaC Payback is Flawed & CAC Ratio is Better, Why You Need to Hire Three Sales Reps at a Time, How to Forecast in 2024 & Biggest Mistakes Made Forecasting & How to Make Customer Success Sell More with Dave K

Episode guests

Podcast summary created with Snipd AI

Quick takeaways

Deep dives

Importance of Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)

Metrics that Matter in SaaS

Dealing with Churn and Customer Success

Effective Sales Forecasting and Negotiations

The Importance of Targeted Account Strategy over Outbound Activities

Founder Challenges in Expanding into Enterprise and Hiring Sales Teams

Metrics That Matter in SaaS and the Importance of Simple Metrics

The Importance of Listening to Sales Calls

The value of customer success management in enterprise accounts

Selling through Curiosity: The Power of Asking Questions

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