The Metrics Investors Actually Look At
ARR, MRR, gross margin, CAC, LTV, burn multiple — derive them straight from clean books.
Top-line metrics
MRR and ARR for recurring revenue businesses, net revenue retention, gross margin. These must reconcile to your P&L — if they don't, your investor noticed before you did.
Efficiency metrics
Burn multiple (net burn / net new ARR), CAC payback, magic number. These come from combining P&L (expenses) with CRM/billing data (new revenue). Clean books make them trustworthy.
The 'spreadsheet from the books' rule
Every investor metric should trace back to the GL in three clicks. If it can't, the metric is marketing, not measurement — and investors will treat it that way.
Key takeaways
- Metrics must reconcile to financials.
- Burn multiple and CAC payback signal efficiency.
- Three-click traceability from metric to GL.