KPIs in Your Business You Should Actually Track
- Miglena Hofer
- Oct 8
- 3 min read
Updated: Oct 21
Most self-employed people hate numbers, at least the kind that live in spreadsheets. You didn’t start your business to become your own accountant. But when money gets tight (and let’s be honest, 2025 hasn’t been a walk in the park), knowing your key performance indicators - KPIs - is the difference between guessing and steering.
And no, you don’t need a wall of dashboards. Just a few metrics that show whether your business is healthy, slowing down, or quietly bleeding.
1. Monthly Revenue (and Its Trend)
This one’s obvious but often ignored. Don’t just look at what came in - look at how it’s moving. Is revenue climbing, flat, or dipping for the third month in a row?
The trend tells you when to act before your accountant does. A simple line chart is enough.
Track booked work separately from received payments. It shows whether you’re building a pipeline or just living off what you invoiced last month.
2. Operating Costs
Monthly costs expand quietly like wet paper. List every recurring expense: tools, subscriptions, rent, insurance, the “just €19/month” apps.
Then ask: “If I made 30% less next month, what would I still pay for?”
That question alone can save hundreds every quarter, without cutting anything that actually brings clients in.
3. Cash Flow
This is your oxygen level. Revenue means nothing if it arrives two months late.
Cash flow is simply: what’s coming in this month vs. what’s going out.
Track it weekly when things feel tight. You’ll spot patterns, like the client who always pays on day 59 or the recurring cost you forgot existed. Awareness gives you options.
4. Marketing Channels That Actually Work
Before throwing money at ads or shiny platforms, know where clients really come from.
List your channels: referrals, LinkedIn, Google Ads, website inquiries, networking, partnerships. Then track:
How many leads come from each channel per month.
How many turn into paying clients.
How much time or money each one costs.
You’ll quickly see one or two channels quietly carry your business — and others mostly waste your time.
If you can’t measure it, it’s not a channel. It’s just a hope.
5. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
Once you know your working channels, measure what it costs to get a client from each.
Formula: Total spent on marketing ÷ number of new clients from that effort.
If LinkedIn brings one new client per month for free, and ads bring two clients for €500, you can decide which is worth scaling — not guessing.
6. Client Retention & Repeat Business
Getting new clients is hard work. Keeping existing ones is where profit hides.
Ask yourself monthly: How many clients come back or refer someone?
If the answer is “not many,” you don’t need more ads, you need better follow-up and aftercare.
7. Profit Margin
Profit = Revenue – Expenses.
Margin = Profit ÷ Revenue × 100.
You don’t need to be a finance pro — just know if your margin is shrinking. It’s often the first warning sign your business is under strain.
The KPI Trap to Avoid
Most people overcomplicate this. They create ten fancy metrics, track them twice, and give up.
Keep it simple: five to seven numbers that matter, updated once a month. The goal isn’t to impress your tax advisor — it’s to make faster, calmer decisions.
Why This Matters Now
In this financial climate, “winging it” is a luxury. The businesses that survive aren’t the ones who hustle harder — they’re the ones who notice sooner when something’s off and adjust before it hurts.
That’s exactly what we’ll cover in the upcoming workshop:
We’ll look at how to read your numbers and what to do with them, pick your winning marketing channels, cut costs without killing momentum, and keep your sanity while you do it.
If you’re in your first few years of business and want to feel more in control (without turning into a spreadsheet person), join us!
You’ll leave with practical tools — and a clearer view of what’s really happening in your business.
