The hottest ROI Substack posts right now

And their main takeaways
Category
Top Business Topics

Cost of Acquisition (CAC) trap.

Elena's Growth Scoop • 1022 implied HN points • 12 May 23
💼 Business Marketing Metrics ROI Customer Acquisition Product Development
  1. Focus on optimizing payback period instead of just reducing CAC to improve ROI.
  2. Consider the profitability and long-term value of different acquisition channels before shutting them down based solely on CAC.
  3. The payback period is a superior metric for acquisition that focuses on reinvesting returns and optimizing various aspects like CAC, conversion rate, ARPU, and conversion time.

How VCs Evaluate & Make High-Quality Investment Decisions?

Venture Curator • 179 implied HN points • 23 Jun 23
💰 Finance Investment Startup Venture Capital ROI Financial forecasting
  1. To understand VC investment decisions, consider the Venture Capital Method, where earnings and market support determine the firm's future value.
  2. Investors aim for successful exits with specific returns and use metrics like ROI and IRR to evaluate startup potential.
  3. Negotiations between VC firms and founders often involve ownership percentages based on future valuations and return expectations.
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Measuring Marketing Performance

Making Connections by Jax • 137 implied HN points • 12 Jun 23
💼 Business Marketing Advertising ROI Data Analysis Digital Advertising
  1. Marketing attribution is becoming more challenging due to privacy regulations like Apple's App Tracking Transparency.
  2. Marketing Mix Modelling (MMM) provides a top-down approach to understanding ROI by analyzing historical data and external influences.
  3. Lift tests offer a bottom-up method to prove causation in marketing effectiveness, requiring experimentation with test and control groups.

The Bull Case for Alternative Data

The Data Score • 59 implied HN points • 11 Apr 23
💰 Finance Investing Data Analysis Financial Markets ROI Network Effects
  1. The Alternative Data industry is currently facing challenges but has the potential for long-term success by emphasizing clear client outcomes and building network effects.
  2. Understanding the value clients gain from data insights is crucial, as insights drive decisions and financial outcomes.
  3. Creating network effects and aligning data teams with critical client outcomes are key factors for the Alternative Data industry to move towards sustained growth and productivity.

Your ultimate guide to affiliate referrals for B2B SaaS

Startup Business Tips 🚀 • 17 implied HN points • 16 Mar 24
💼 Business Marketing Growth Strategies ROI
  1. Affiliate referrals in B2B SaaS can be a cost-effective and scalable way to boost product visibility and credibility, leading to targeted leads and conversions.
  2. There are two main types of affiliate referrals: affiliate content creators and affiliate hubs, each with its own pros and cons.
  3. Setting up a successful affiliate referral program involves defining incentives, preparing a program landing page, sourcing the right affiliates, promoting the program, and tracking key performance indicators.

A/B Testing Paradox: UX Maturity Reduces Your Gains

Jakob Nielsen on UX • 15 implied HN points • 13 Mar 24
🕹 Technology UX Design Analytics ROI Experimentation
  1. In A/B testing, the average uplift from design changes is small, about 0.15%, with 54% of cases showing improvements of 0.5%.
  2. Only 19% of experiments result in statistically significant gains, with an average lift of 1.0% across those cases.
  3. As companies mature in UX, gains from design experimentation may decrease over time due to the nature of tested designs and the diminishing low-hanging fruit.

The ROI on GenAI might not be so great, after all

Marcus on AI • 1 HN point • 12 Mar 24
🕹 Technology AI Generative AI Microsoft ROI
  1. The ROI for Generative AI might not be as expected, with reports of underwhelming outcomes for tools like Microsoft Copilot.
  2. There are signs of the hype around Generative AI being dialed back, as expectations are being tempered by industry experts and users.
  3. Despite the uncertainty in ROI, there are still massive investments in Generative AI, highlighting differing opinions on its potential benefits.

Into the print world

Mehdeeka • 1 implied HN point • 19 Oct 23
💼 Business Marketing Advertising Entrepreneurship ROI
  1. Print marketing can still be effective for tech companies like B2B SaaS, even though it's not commonly used.
  2. Using print ads may require different skills and processes compared to online advertising, such as understanding specifications and costs.
  3. Traditional marketing channels like print can yield positive ROI, but they may be harder to measure quantitatively compared to online platforms.

How Long Does It Take To See SEO Results (And ROI)?

B2B SEO & Growth with Annika Helendi • 0 implied HN points • 20 Jun 23
💼 Business SEO Marketing ROI Strategy Content
  1. SEO is a long-term strategy that requires patience and consistent effort.
  2. On average, it takes 6 to 12 months to see real SEO results, with the full impact often revealing in year 2.
  3. ROI of SEO is best measured in the long term, providing endless organic traffic, high-quality conversions, and increased credibility over time.

How to get users for your SaaS via your landing page (even if you don’t have a product)

Market Curve • 0 implied HN points • 22 Sep 23
💼 Business Marketing Startup Copywriting Sales ROI
  1. Create a landing page to build a waitlist of users before having a product.
  2. Include key elements like sticky header, headline, product shots, problem statement, solution, benefits, and final CTA.
  3. Invest in strong copywriting on your landing page to effectively communicate value proposition, target pain points, and sell your solution.