The same statements, different operating engines
A generic financial model can organize assumptions, a P&L, cash flow and a balance sheet. It cannot tell you which behavior actually generates revenue. A mobile app may be driven by active users and in-app events; B2B SaaS by accounts, seats and contract renewals; a marketplace by available supply and completed orders. Start with a shared financial structure, then build the operating layer that fits the product.
| Business | Operating unit | Revenue event | Typical bottleneck |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mobile app | Active user or paying subscriber | Subscription period, ad impression or purchase | Retention and engagement |
| B2B SaaS | Paying account, seat or usage unit | Service period or contracted usage | Qualified pipeline, sales cycle and churn |
| Marketplace | Completed order between buyer and seller | Fee, subscription or advertising service | Liquidity, match rate and repeat transactions |
1. Build a shared set of financial schedules
Use a monthly timeline with explicit launch dates and a separate assumptions section. Link each product or channel to a revenue schedule and the direct costs it causes. Then add payroll, operating expenses, capital expenditure, financing and working capital. The P&L, cash flow and balance sheet should reconcile; a financing inflow is cash and equity or debt, not customer revenue.
Operating drivers → earned revenue and direct costs → P&L
Billing, collections and payment timing → cash flow
Assets, liabilities and funding movements → balance sheet
Separate assumptions from formulas, label units and currencies, and keep actual results alongside the forecast once the business is operating. Use a base case and a few targeted stress cases rather than building a single detailed projection that cannot be explained.
2. An app needs user cohorts and more than one revenue path
For an app, distinguish downloads, activated users and monthly active users. Forecast organic and paid acquisition by channel, then carry users through retention cohorts. A person who installed the app once is not necessarily available for advertising or a subscription sale in a later month. Model subscription conversion and churn, in-app purchases, and ad impressions as separate events if the product uses them.
Mobile app model · acquisition inputs
Active users = retained previous users + newly activated users
Subscription revenue ≈ eligible paying subscribers × realized monthly price
Ad revenue = monetized impressions ÷ 1,000 × realized net CPM
For subscriptions, distinguish recognized revenue from store payouts and billing cash; include store commissions where applicable. For ads, use impressions actually served and a net rate. An app may have many downloads and still struggle if engagement and monetization per active user are low.
Explore the mobile app financial model and its three monetization methods
3. SaaS needs acquisition channels, contracts and retention
A B2B SaaS model should trace self-service visitors, inbound leads and outbound opportunities into paying accounts without counting the same buyer twice. Account for sales-team capacity and the lag from first contact to contract. Roll paying customers and MRR forward through new business, expansion, contraction and churn.
B2B SaaS model · website inputs
Ending MRR = opening MRR + new MRR + expansion MRR − contraction MRR − churned MRR
Cash receipts = invoices paid during the month, including relevant prepayments
Contracted recurring revenue, revenue earned during the service period and money collected can differ. Analyze acquisition spending and sales salaries with consistent channel attribution, then test how a longer sales cycle and higher churn affect cash runway.
See the detailed B2B SaaS subscription and sales-channel model
4. A marketplace needs supply, demand and completed orders
Forecast sellers and buyers separately. Acquisition on both sides does not guarantee successful matches: active supply, available inventory, repeat visits, matching rate and order completion determine transaction volume. Define GMV before any buyer fees, platform take rate, seller subscription or advertising. Keep pass-through payments separate from platform revenue.
Marketplace model · two-sided acquisition
Completed orders = demand opportunities × match rate × completion rate
GMV before added buyer fee = completed orders × order value
Transaction-fee revenue = eligible GMV × effective platform take rate
A seller may pay a membership fee even when order volume is low, but fees can also discourage supply. Test the order mix, refunds, payment processing and settlement timing before assuming take rate becomes cash. If buyer and seller growth are out of balance, acquisition spend can grow while transaction volume stalls.
5. Add only the complexity the decision needs
Many products cross categories. A marketplace may sell SaaS tools to sellers; an app may include a B2B contract; a SaaS product may charge for usage. Create one customer and revenue logic per stream, then consolidate the results into the shared statements. Do not apply two different acquisition funnels to the same person or count customer prepayments as immediate earned revenue.
Choose the model detail by the decision ahead: price a new channel, compare product strategies, plan hiring or determine the next capital raise. Start with the few drivers that move the answer, test sensitivities and add cohorts or contract schedules as evidence improves. A reusable starting structure is valuable when you can explain how its inputs become cash; tailoring the drivers is what makes it a decision tool.