What is Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)?
The total cost of acquiring a new customer, including marketing, sales, and onboarding expenses.
Definition
Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is calculated by dividing total sales and marketing spend by the number of new customers acquired in a period. For B2B SaaS companies, CAC includes: SDR salaries, sales tools, marketing spend, content production, events, management overhead, and onboarding costs. A healthy CAC should be recovered within 12-18 months through customer revenue (LTV:CAC ratio of 3:1 or higher).
Why Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) Matters
CAC is the single most important efficiency metric for B2B companies. High CAC kills unit economics and makes scaling unprofitable. Indian mid-market B2B companies average ₹75K CAC – companies using AI-powered outbound average ₹28K, a 63% reduction.
How IngageNow Uses Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
IngageNow reduces CAC by: replacing expensive SDR teams (₹35L/year) with AI (₹2.6-9.6L/year), improving conversion rates through intent-based targeting (3x), and shortening sales cycles through better lead quality (50% faster). Typical CAC reduction: 60-70%.
Try IngageNow Free