This article was contributed by Louis Columbus
Enterprise software startups are capitalizing on real-time data to continually improve revenue, costs, cash flow, marketing, and sales as their business grows. The majority of software startup CEOs spoken with have designed their businesses to provide real-time data that's immediately actionable. In addition, they've taken the time to design their business structure and systems to deliver the real-time data they need to scale.
The twenty metrics shared in this article are the most popular, with fifteen enterprise software startups founders, CEOs, and startup teams VentureBeat recently interviewed. A common attribute all of them share is that real-time data capture, analysis, and action is hard-wired into the DNA of their businesses from the very beginning. Startups use various analytics applications and platforms to get the real-time data they need, including Adobe Analytics, Clik Sense, Google Analytics, Looker, Microsoft Power BI, R Studio, Tableau Desktop, Zoho Analytics, and others.
Data-driven startups have a head start on growth
CEOs and founders say staying data-driven is just as challenging as keeping their prototypes, platforms, and new apps on schedule. Today, most of the startups interviewed have real-time data capture available from their finance, accounting, devops, sales, and marketing systems. However, recruiting team members with advanced analytics expertise are challenging to get the most out of their real-time data. Founders remark that the effort is worth it because real-time data brings greater visibility, control, and accountability across their businesses.
A startup's founder concentrating on cloud-based digital asset management software says real-time data made the difference in signing one of their first larger prospects. Here's her advice to startup CEOs on where to get started:
The following are the top twenty most popular metrics with startup CEOs, especially those in enterprise software:
Most popular finance and cash flow metrics
Most popular startup revenue and selling metrics
Most popular startup marketing metrics
The future of startups
When startups struggle to scale their real-time data, they often run into growth roadblocks faster than those adept at turning data into results. The most severe roadblocks come from cash flow, revenue generation, and devops problems that take longer to solve because the data behind them aren't as accessible. Starting with a small baseline of cash flow and revenue generation metrics is the best place to start based on advice from startup founders and CEOs. From there, it's best to branch out with a minimal set of metrics for devops, sales, and marketing. Real-time data provides startups with the insights they need to stay focused on customer satisfaction while continually improving financial, profit, and product quality performance.
Louis Columbus is a contributor for VentureBeat and business professor at Webster University.
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