Pivoting your startup in a bear market: becoming undeniably bankable

Kraig Swensrud Contributor

Kraig Swensrud is the founder and CEO of Qualified, a pipeline generation platform for Salesforce.

As ​​a founder, it's easy to say, "Sure, we'll pivot!" But in fact, removing a pivot is not an easy task. How are you preparing to succeed in this new world? Which levers should you pull first? How do you ensure that you can secure capital when needed or that your business is undeniably bankable?

By now, becoming undeniably fundable should be every founder's North Star. This indicates that you have built a successful business that will undoubtedly attract attention and funding from venture capital when the time comes.

Highlight and review efficiency KPIs

As you start to become undeniably bankable, you need to prioritize KPIs that represent efficiency. Vanity measures have taken the back seat in this new world, and there will be few paths forward if you don't prove yourself efficient.

Five key performance indicators are important:

In this new chapter, CEOs must think like a CFO.

Growth rate: The rate at which your annual recurring revenue (ARR) is growing. Can you still grow 2x or 3x year over year right now? How should your product evolve? Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Amount of money you need to spend on sales and marketing to acquire a customer. CAC payback period: The time it takes to recoup the cost of acquiring a customer. Film for a period of less than 20 months. Gross Margins: The cost of servicing customers with your technology and staff. The industry standard is around 75%. Multiple Burn: The amount you spend to generate additional ARR. 1x is amazing but less than that is even better. Popularized by David Sacks, this metric has been a guide for my current business because this metric doesn't lie. You cannot hide expenses or hide costs in other departments. It exposes the hard truth about your spending, growth, and cash flow. Examine your business and change your priorities

Once you've got your performance metrics under control, it's time to take action. Regardless of your segment, industry, or type of customer, I believe you need to do the following.

Review your budget and narrow it down to the essentials

As a founder, you have to delve into each department's budget; don't leave it to others. There is no place for fluff.

Take stock of staff costs