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What Is CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost)?

CAC (Customer Acquisition Cost) is the total cost of acquiring a new customer, calculated by dividing total sales and marketing spend by the number of new customers gained in a given period. CAC is one of the most scrutinized metrics in SaaS because it directly determines whether a company's growth is economically sustainable.

How to Calculate CAC

The basic CAC formula is straightforward:

CAC = Total Sales & Marketing Spend / Number of New Customers

If you spent €50,000 on sales and marketing last quarter and acquired 100 new customers, your CAC is €500. The "total spend" should include salaries, ad spend, tools, agency fees, content production — everything that goes into generating and closing new business.

Some companies calculate "blended CAC" (all customers, all channels) and "paid CAC" (only customers from paid channels). The blended number is lower because it includes organic and word-of-mouth customers who cost nothing to acquire directly.

Why CAC Matters for SaaS Growth

CAC determines the economics of growth. According to First Page Sage's B2B SaaS report, the average B2B SaaS company spends between $1,200 and $2,000 to acquire a customer, and CAC rose 40-60% between 2023 and 2025 due to higher competition and privacy changes. If the CAC exceeds the LTV (Lifetime Value) of each customer, every new customer represents a net loss.

The standard benchmark is an LTV:CAC ratio of at least 3:1. CAC payback period matters too — how many months of subscription revenue it takes to recoup the acquisition cost. Most healthy SaaS businesses recover CAC within 12-18 months.

How BOFU Content Reduces CAC

BOFU content is one of the most effective ways to reduce CAC because it captures existing demand rather than creating it. According to Phoenix Strategy Group, organic search CAC can drop to as low as $290 per customer once established — compared to $802 for paid search or $1,980 for outbound sales. Comparison pages and alternative pages rank for high-intent keywords and drive conversions at a fraction of the cost of paid acquisition.

Consider the math: a paid Google Ads click for "[Competitor] alternative" might cost €15-30. If that same keyword is captured organically through a well-ranking alternative page, the marginal cost per visitor is near zero. Over months of organic traffic, the content investment produces a steadily declining effective CAC.

Product-led content reduces CAC differently — by shortening the sales cycle. Prospects who arrive having already seen the product in action require fewer demos, less handholding, and close faster.