What is CAC?
CAC is the cost of customer acquisition: the investment attributed to acquiring new customers divided by the number of customers acquired in the period or group analyzed. An agency uses the measure to discuss how much it costs to generate its own business, as long as it explains which sales and marketing expenses it included in the calculation.
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Why know the acquisition cost?
An agency can invest in its own media, tools and hours of people involved in prospecting and negotiation. Combining these efforts helps to assess whether the acquisition pace fits within the budget and to compare channels, respecting the differences between sales cycles. The calculation does not replace the analysis of the value that each contract generates over time.
When the manager knows the cost criteria, he can talk about investment priorities with the team. It also becomes easier to identify expenses that were ignored in a previous comparison, such as a sales hire or the work needed to respond to campaign responses.
How can you do a simple calculation?
Imagine that the agency spends BRL 8,000 on sales and marketing actions attributed to the acquisition and acquires four new clients in the chosen period. Dividing BRL 8,000 by four, the average CAC is BRL 2,000 per customer. If no customers are gained, the division does not produce useful value; record the investment and evaluate a larger range.
State whether salaries, commissions, media, suppliers and tools are included, and maintain the same criteria when comparing periods. If closing usually occurs months after the first contact, also evaluate groups of opportunities monitored throughout the cycle so as not to associate expenses and sales without context.
Which interpretations need caution?
A low CAC can accompany small value contracts or customers who cancel quickly. The isolated cost does not reveal margin or length of stay. Avoid excluding shared expenses just to make the number look nicer; choose a reasonable form of apportionment and keep it documented.
Comparing channels requires paying attention to the origin and attribution of sales. A contact can find out about the agency through a recommendation, search the website and then chat via WhatsApp. The chosen attribution method must be explicit so that the same contract is not treated as a full win for multiple channels.
How can you organize information in Zenit OS?
Lead management and the calendar support the monitoring of sales journey, while the available financial tools help to record information relevant to the agency. The CAC calculation described here is a management practice and does not assume specific reporting or automatic allocation of costs by channel.
Access to modules varies by plan, role, and configuration; certain financial tools are being tested. Schedule a demo to review available records and discuss how your team can gather the data needed for the calculation.
Frequently asked questions
Does CAC include customer service costs?
Aftercare is often analyzed into delivery or retention costs; the agency must explain the criteria it adopts.
Does the calculation work with zero new customers?
There is no valid division by zero. Observe the expenditure made and choose a cut-off that allows you to evaluate the business cycle.
Does a lower CAC guarantee a profit?
No: you also need to consider revenue, delivery costs and client retention time.
Does each channel need to have its own indicator?
It can be useful, but the comparison depends on consistent rules for shared costs and sales attribution.
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