<vertical_pack_saas>
Load when the client sells software subscriptions (B2B or prosumer). These are PRIORS — starting
benchmarks that make advice precise instead of generic. Verify against the client's real numbers
and current market data at engagement time; state when a client deviates from a prior and why it
matters. Judging a SaaS by ecommerce norms (or vice versa) produces confident nonsense.

<economics_priors>
- LTV:CAC health floor 3:1; payback < 12 months funded, < 6 months bootstrapped (cash is oxygen).
- Monthly logo churn priors: SMB self-serve 3–8%; mid-market 1–2%; enterprise < 1%. Churn above
  prior → retention is the constraint (<diagnosis_first> Gate 4), not acquisition. No channel
  outruns 10% monthly churn.
- Net revenue retention (NRR) > 100% means the base grows without new sales — expansion revenue
  (seats, usage, tiers) is the cheapest growth in SaaS; check for an expansion path before
  recommending more top-of-funnel.
- Gross margin prior 75–90% → breakeven ROAS is low, so SaaS can afford aggressive CAC IF payback
  and churn hold. The trap is long payback on monthly plans: annual-plan incentives are often the
  highest-leverage cash fix.
</economics_priors>

<motion_selector>
Pick the GTM motion by price point — the single most common SaaS strategy error is running the
wrong motion for the ACV:
- ACV < ~$5k/yr → SELF-SERVE: free trial or freemium, credit-card signup, product-led. A sales
  team at this ACV eats the margin.
- ACV ~$5k–25k/yr → HYBRID: self-serve entry + sales-assist on expansion/annual.
- ACV > ~$25k/yr → SALES-LED: demo funnel, outbound, buying-committee content (research Role 7
  committee map is mandatory here).
Trial priors: opt-in free trial → paid converts ~15–25%; credit-card-required trial ~40–60% (but
fewer trials). Freemium converts 2–5% of free users — freemium is a distribution strategy, not a
conversion strategy; recommend it only when free users create network/virality value.
</motion_selector>

<channel_priors>
- COMPOUNDING: SEO/content and comparison pages ("X alternative", "X vs Y") — high intent, slow
  build, moat-grade. Programmatic SEO where the product has natural long-tail (integrations,
  templates, use cases).
- REVIEW MARKETPLACES: G2/Capterra are intent channels — buyers there are in-market; profile +
  review volume matter (feeds Role 8 proof harvest).
- OUTBOUND: works above ~$10k ACV with tight ICP lists; below that, economics rarely close.
- PAID: search on high-intent keywords works; broad social prospecting for low-ACV SaaS usually
  fails the CAC ceiling — check <scale_gates> before recommending.
- PLG LOOPS: in-product virality (invites, shared artifacts, "made with X" badges) — the cheapest
  CAC in software when the product has natural sharing surfaces; always check for one.
</channel_priors>

<offer_and_conversion_notes>
- The "demo" is a weak offer for low-ACV; the product IS the demo — reduce time-to-first-value
  (activation) instead. Activation rate (reaching the "aha" action) predicts retention better
  than signup volume; if trial→paid is weak, fix activation before fixing traffic.
- Annual pre-pay with 2 months free: standard, converts cash-flow pain into a discount that
  costs less than churn risk.
- Guarantees: 30-day money-back on annual plans de-risks the bigger ask (<value_equation>).
</offer_and_conversion_notes>

<diagnosis_overrides>
- High traffic + weak trial signups → positioning/clarity (Gate 1/2), run <audit_rubric> on the
  homepage five-second test with the ICP's job-to-be-done.
- Good trials + weak paid conversion → activation problem (onboarding skill), not marketing.
- Good conversion + flat growth → churn/expansion (Gate 4) or channel saturation; check NRR first.
</diagnosis_overrides>
</vertical_pack_saas>
