Metrics & Accountability
What I'd be measured on — and what I'd watch first.
Five north-star metrics tell you whether the vertical bet is paying off. But by the time revenue moves, the decision is months old. So I pair each one with a leading indicator that moves first — and a set of rules for when to double down, hold, or pivot.
North star
The five metrics that define success
Transcribed from the role's success-metrics framework. These are lagging by nature — they confirm the outcome rather than predict it.
Vertical revenue won
Bookings from Community Colleges, K-12, Healthcare, and GRC.
ASP vs. nonprofit baseline
Are new verticals paying more than the nonprofit base?
Vertical customer count
New logos by segment.
Outbound pipeline by segment
Coverage + conversion vs. targets.
Speed to market
Days from research kickoff to first campaign live.
Early warning
Leading indicators
For each north-star metric, the signal that moves first. These are the numbers I'd review weekly — long before the lagging metric confirms whether a vertical is working.
| North-star metric | Leading indicator (early signal) |
|---|---|
| Vertical revenue won | Qualified pipeline created per vertical; warm signals handed to Sales. |
| ASP vs. nonprofit baseline | Average deal size in early vertical opportunities vs. nonprofit ASP. |
| Vertical customer count | Demos scheduled and opportunities opened per vertical. |
| Outbound pipeline by segment | ICP list coverage, cold-sequence reply rates, and webinar-engaged leads per segment. |
| Speed to market | Target list built and CRM-loaded; first cold sequence launched (target: ~2 weeks). |
Probabilistic thinking
When to pivot
Marketing into a new vertical is a bet, not a certainty. These rules are illustrative — sensible defaults I'd calibrate with Sales and leadership once we have real baselines — but the point is to commit to thresholds before the data comes in, so the decision isn't driven by optimism.
Double down
If a vertical's cold-sequence reply rate clears the portfolio average and at least 2–3 qualified opportunities open within the first ~6 weeks of outbound, shift budget and list-building capacity toward it. Early traction in a new market is rare and worth concentrating on.
Hold & tune
If reply rates are near average but opportunities are thin, the problem is usually targeting or message, not the market. Hold spend flat, re-tier the ICP, and rewrite the sequence around the buyer language that's actually getting replies before drawing any conclusion.
Pivot
If, after two full sequence cycles (~6–8 weeks) and a message rewrite, reply rates stay well below average with no opportunities and no ASP signal above the nonprofit baseline, deprioritize the vertical. Redirect the freed capacity to the next-highest-priority segment rather than spending into a market that isn't responding.
The discipline behind it
Each rule names a threshold, a time window, and a confounder to rule out first. That's the whole point: deciding in advance what evidence would change the plan keeps a slow-starting quarter from being read as either a triumph or a failure before the data earns it.