I was watching Dragon’s Den (Shark Tank in US) and a lady pitching her business proposal had already failed to answer what her projected profit was going to be this year – although she did recall Year One and Two numbers. Another Dragon asked what her Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) was and she didn’t know what that meant or the value. So, if any reader is thinking about visiting the ‘Den, know your turnover, gross and net profits and here’s a list of useful sales and marketing Key Performance Indicators (KPI) to understand with a brief explanation:

1. Return on Investment (ROI): Measures the profitability of marketing efforts by comparing revenue generated to the cost of marketing activities.
2. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): Calculates the total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing and sales expenses.
3. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV): Estimates the total revenue expected from a customer over their entire relationship with the business.
4. Conversion Rate: The percentage of visitors who take a desired action, such as making a purchase or filling out a form.
5. Sales Growth: Measures the increase in revenue over a specific period, indicating the effectiveness of marketing efforts in driving business growth.
6. Organic Traffic: Tracks the number of visitors coming to your website through unpaid search results, reflecting the success of SEO strategies.
7. Lead Generation: Measures the number of potential customers showing interest in your products or services.
8. Social Media Engagement: Includes metrics like likes, shares, comments, and followers, indicating brand health and audience interaction.
9. Email Marketing Performance: Tracks metrics such as open rates, click-through rates, and conversion rates for email campaigns.
10. Brand Awareness: Measures how recognisable your brand is to consumers, often through metrics like brand mentions and website traffic.