👨💻VC's Top Metrics for 10 Different Industries
Knowing the right metrics for your startup’s industry can be the difference between securing VC funding and getting lost in the noise - this guide breaks down the key numbers that truly matter.
The moment I received my first invitation for an interview at a VC fund, I felt a mix of excitement and uncertainty. While I was eager to prove myself, I quickly realized that preparing for this opportunity would require more than just a basic understanding of venture capital. I needed to familiarize myself not only with industry trends but also with the key financial metrics that investors use to evaluate startups. The problem? I had no idea where to begin.
It didn’t take long for me to understand that the financial metrics VCs care about differ significantly across industries. What drives success in a crypto startup is worlds apart from the key performance indicators (KPIs) that determine the viability of an e-commerce company. Meanwhile, B2B SaaS operates on an entirely different financial model, with its own set of critical metrics. With so many data points floating around, I found myself struggling to cut through the noise and identify which numbers truly mattered for different types of startups.
For this very reason, I decided to use this article to explain the most important key figures in the major startup sectors in a simple and understandable way. This is the perfect summary to help you prepare for future interviews and get one step closer to your dream job!
Sector 1: Software as a Service (SaaS)
Let's start with SaaS startups - probably the most important startups for most VC funds!