Business · Calculator companion · By K Imports
Customer acquisition & value: practical guide
This guide explains how to use the Count.ie customer acquisition & value. Estimate CAC, gross-profit LTV and acquisition payback. Follow the inputs, method and worked example below, then compare your own scenario.
Guide written .
Open the Customer acquisition & value calculatorWhat to prepare
- Gather supplier quotes, invoices, time records and the actual scope of the job or business decision.
- Separate revenue from VAT, direct costs from overheads, and profit from the timing of cash receipts.
- Use the same accounting period and currency for related inputs.
Understand the inputs
- Lifetime months if churn is zeroAdvanced
Shown when Monthly customer churn (%) is 0.
The calculation method
CAC = acquisition spend ÷ new customers. Gross-profit LTV = monthly revenue × gross margin × estimated lifetime.
Worked example
Illustrative inputs and their result.
Example inputs
- Acquisition spend (€)
- 5000
- New customers acquired
- 100
- Monthly revenue per customer (€)
- 30
- Gross margin (%)
- 70
- Monthly customer churn (%)
- 3
Calculated example result
- CAC
- €50.00
- LTV To CAC
- 14×
How to interpret the result
A profitable estimate can still create a cash shortfall. Read the cost and timing assumptions as well as the headline profit, price or return; the result is a scenario, not a sales forecast.
Keep the scope constant while changing price, volume, supplier cost or time. A lower-sales or higher-cost case helps show whether the decision depends on an optimistic assumption.
Common mistakes to avoid
- Do not confuse markup on cost with margin on selling price.
- Include work that is easy to miss, such as travel, setup, rework and administration, where the model supports it.
- Do not treat tax collected or an unpaid invoice as freely available cash.
Assumptions and sources
Constant churn and margin are assumptions. The ratio is a diagnostic, not a guarantee of a healthy business.
If your case falls outside this scope, use a more suitable calculator or contact us about an unclear method.