Cracking Growth in SaaS: Lessons from Scaling a Hotel Tech Startup

Growth in SaaS is challenging. Every startup aspires to scale, but what happens when the product isn’t ready? Having led growth at a hotel tech startup, I’ve seen firsthand what works, what doesn’t, and where early-stage companies often miscalculate.

B2B growth overlaps with sales, marketing, and product, aligning acquisition and retention.

1. Product Readiness is the Foundation of Growth

A validated market need, strong messaging, and high-intent leads are not enough if the product is not ready. Growth stalls when the offering does not meet customer expectations.

At our startup, initial traction indicated Product-Market Fit (PMF), but delays in development meant customers did not get the features they needed. Feedback consistently pointed to feature gaps and pricing concerns rather than issues with positioning or demand generation.

The key takeaway: No amount of top-of-the-funnel (TOFU) growth can compensate for an incomplete product. Growth should be a collaboration between marketing, product, and sales, ensuring the offering is as strong as the acquisition efforts.

2. Early Growth is About Experimentation, Not Scaling

For early-stage startups, the goal is to learn, not scale prematurely. Instead of relying on scalable loops, we focused on linear traffic sources, testing different approaches before committing to automation.

We prioritized short-term, direct response strategies such as cold email outreach and LinkedIn outreach, which delivered quick wins. Simultaneously, we invested in long-term growth through SEO, social media, and content marketing to build brand equity.

For companies still defining their ICP or refining their offering, optimizing Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) aggressively is premature. Instead, the focus should be on:

• Lead-to-customer conversion rates

• MQL → SQL progression

• Net Promoter Score (NPS) and qualitative feedback

• Activation rate

3. Timing Matters When Tracking Performance Metrics

Tracking CAC too early in the startup lifecycle can be misleading. Instead, engagement and retention metrics provide a clearer picture of user behavior before acquisition costs are optimized.

Key revenue-related metrics included:

• Opportunity and LTV of high-intent leads – Identifying who is willing to pay and at what price point.

• Annual Contract Value (ACV) and revenue per account – Prioritizing long-term monetization over short-term transactions.

Since the product was still evolving, churn and retention were not primary focus areas. Instead, we monitored activation rates and usage frequency to gauge product stickiness.

4. Sales-led Growth Requires Pipeline Efficiency

Our growth strategy was primarily sales-led, requiring a strong focus on pipeline efficiency. Optimization efforts included:

• Improving lead-to-customer conversion rates

• Encouraging referral and viral growth

• Enhancing the effectiveness of sales outreach

For a product-led approach, the focus would have shifted towards self-serve onboarding, virality, and in-product growth loops.

5. Sustainable Growth Requires Retention Loops

For a company with predictable revenue and a clear path to scaling, optimizing CAC/LTV is critical. A sustainable target is a 1:3 ratio, ensuring long-term profitability.

The key transition is moving from testing and linear funnels to retention loops:

• Website visitors → Email opt-ins → Retargeting ads (if volume supports it)

• Content & webinars → Nurture funnel → Product engagement

• Lead-gen ads → Direct-to-demo pipeline

Final Thoughts

The early growth phase is characterized by rapid experimentation, balancing stakeholder expectations with market realities. The most important lesson is that growth is not just about acquiring users—it is about retaining them.

Once a company reaches the scaling stage, every dollar spent on acquisition should contribute to long-term revenue, not just short-term wins. This distinction separates true scaling from unsustainable growth.

Growth in SaaS is challenging. Every startup aspires to scale, but what happens when the product isn’t ready? Having led growth at a hotel tech startup, I’ve seen firsthand what works, what doesn’t, and where early-stage companies often miscalculate.

1. Product Readiness is the Foundation of Growth

A validated market need, strong messaging, and high-intent leads are not enough if the product is not ready. Growth stalls when the offering does not meet customer expectations.

At our startup, initial traction indicated Product-Market Fit (PMF), but delays in development meant customers did not get the features they needed. Feedback consistently pointed to feature gaps and pricing concerns rather than issues with positioning or demand generation.

The key takeaway: No amount of top-of-the-funnel (TOFU) growth can compensate for an incomplete product. Growth should be a collaboration between marketing, product, and sales, ensuring the offering is as strong as the acquisition efforts.

2. Early Growth is About Experimentation, Not Scaling

For early-stage startups, the goal is to learn, not scale prematurely. Instead of relying on scalable loops, we focused on linear traffic sources, testing different approaches before committing to automation.

We prioritized short-term, direct response strategies such as cold email outreach and LinkedIn outreach, which delivered quick wins. Simultaneously, we invested in long-term growth through SEO, social media, and content marketing to build brand equity.

For companies still defining their ICP or refining their offering, optimizing Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) aggressively is premature. Instead, the focus should be on:

• Lead-to-customer conversion rates

• MQL → SQL progression

• Net Promoter Score (NPS) and qualitative feedback

• Activation rate

3. Timing Matters When Tracking Performance Metrics

Tracking CAC too early in the startup lifecycle can be misleading. Instead, engagement and retention metrics provide a clearer picture of user behavior before acquisition costs are optimized.

Key revenue-related metrics included:

• Opportunity and LTV of high-intent leads — Identifying who is willing to pay and at what price point.

• Annual Contract Value (ACV) and revenue per account — Prioritizing long-term monetization over short-term transactions.

Since the product was still evolving, churn and retention were not primary focus areas. Instead, we monitored activation rates and usage frequency to gauge product stickiness.

4. Sales-led Growth Requires Pipeline Efficiency

Our growth strategy was primarily sales-led, requiring a strong focus on pipeline efficiency. Optimization efforts included:

• Improving lead-to-customer conversion rates

• Encouraging referral and viral growth

• Enhancing the effectiveness of sales outreach

For a product-led approach, the focus would have shifted towards self-serve onboarding, virality, and in-product growth loops.

5. Sustainable Growth Requires Retention Loops

For a company with predictable revenue and a clear path to scaling, optimizing CAC/LTV is critical. A sustainable target is a 1:3 ratio, ensuring long-term profitability.

The key transition is moving from testing and linear funnels to retention loops:

• Website visitors → Email opt-ins → Retargeting ads (if volume supports it)

• Content & webinars → Nurture funnel → Product engagement

• Lead-gen ads → Direct-to-demo pipeline

Final Thoughts

The early growth phase is characterized by rapid experimentation, balancing stakeholder expectations with market realities. The most important lesson is that growth is not just about acquiring users — it is about retaining them.

Once a company reaches the scaling stage, every dollar spent on acquisition should contribute to long-term revenue, not just short-term wins. This distinction separates true scaling from unsustainable growth.