Marketplace Financial Model Training Videos

Model architecture

Forgotten which sheet is which?

There is a very quick overview of each of the sheets in the marketplace model. I’ve mapped them out just in case it is useful when checking out the videos!

CHECK OUT THE SHEETS

Overview

• The first video in the SaaS financial model explains the basic modelling concepts.
• Boring I know, but important to understand exactly what to do and what not to do as it will save you time in the long-term!

This includes:

• Formatting
• Sparklines
• Columns
• Grouping
• Navigation

Overview

• We are going to go through the model at a high level, but enough to have an idea of what is going on.
• Next, we are going to run through the basics of the model that I find some people get confused about. These are things like grouping, turning on automatic calculations, ensuring you use all threads to enable faster calculations, column structure and flows between sheets.
• Even if you are a CFO or self-proclaimed Excel nerd, I still recommend just going through this video.

Overview

• In this 30-minute video, I’m going to give you my thoughts on how I would approach filling in the model. If you have never used a huge template like mine or have much financial modelling experience, this will really help you to understand what you should be doing.
• It’s important to internalise that this model will feel overwhelming to you at the start. You just need to start and keep learning more details over time. Eventually, it will make more sense to you. Understand that my models have facilitated learning experiences, not a destination you want to get to ASAP because “an investor wants one”.

Read

• I highly recommend reading this blog if you have not already How to fill in a financial model template
• I don’t care how senior you are, you’ll learn at least one new thing. You have to do the exercise that I explain in order to triangulate (as I will constantly reiterate to you in the videos).

Overview

• I am aware that people know more and less about their business/metrics, and more more and less time to commit to the model.
• The control sheet enables you to set basic and detailed approaches to staff and marketing.
• You can take different approaches to market by being detailed, have a ratio to supply or demand and doing the simplest approach to marketing by making it simple.
• The staff sheet also has a basic and detailed approach.
• Finally, you can turn on and off revenue streams for both the supply and demand side.

Overview

• We are going to understand the three profit and loss sheets, the pitch deck sheet, and the depreciation and tax sheet.
• The annual sheet is the most work. The forecast sheets only have around 5 assumptions to fill in. The combined sheets have none.
• The pitch deck sheet is an example of what you ‘could’ put in your deck. You can delete it for all I care (There will be no consequence, so you can delete it).
• Finally, the depreciation and tax sheet enables you to do funky calculations assuming you are profitable.
• The title says D&A and tax. There is no amortisation in my model because it is irrelevant to startups. I’m just used to calling it D&A because I was a banker. You don’t have to do anything if you don’t understand the sheet.
• If you want to learn more, see the video from the SaaS model below:

Overview

• The depreciation and tax sheet enables you to do funky calculations assuming you are profitable.
• The title says D&A and tax. There is no amortisation in my model because it is irrelevant to startups. I’m just used to calling it D&A because I was a banker.
• You don’t have to do anything if you don’t understand the sheet.

Note

• I’m reusing an old video from the original course.

Overview

• We are going to learn about the importance of the KPI sheet in the model. As an investor, this is a sheet I would certainly look at first. You will use it repeatedly to check you are on the right path, and at the end to ensure your assumptions coherently make sense.
• We will also go through the charts sheet. They’re just charts so not much to learn! You use them to ensure that you are trending in the right direction.
• How are you going to use the funds? What is your runway? We are going to go through this sheet briefly so you understand how to use it. When you have completed your model, you can use this sheet to calibrate the raise you need and runway.
• If you want a ‘little’ more detail you can read and watch the video on my runway calculator page.

Overview

• I added this here in case I went into more detail in the e-commerce model?
• How are you going to use the funds? What is your runway? We are going to go through this sheet briefly so you understand how to use it. When you have completed your model, you can use this sheet to calibrate the raise you need and runway.
• If you want a ‘little’ more detail you can read and watch the video my runway calculator page.

Overview

We generate traffic. These register on your site. They convert into customers. Now we want to make revenue from them. The supply and demand side sheets are near identical. The supply side has 4 revenue streams and the demand side has 6 streams.

You can turn these streams on and off in the control sheet.

I have built all the revenue streams that a marketplace might have. Just because there are options, do not mean you have to use them! That’s why there are options.

The revenue streams on the demand side are:

• Transaction Revenue
• Affiliate Revenue
• Member Revenue
• Listing revenue
• Payment revenue
• Ad revenue

The revenue streams on the supply side are:

• Transaction Revenue
• Member Revenue
• Listing revenue
• Payment revenue

Overview

• We generate traffic in the marketing sheets. These become registrations in the marketing sheet and become customers in the conversion sheet. The registration sheet is a pass-through so you can see the summary.
• The registration sheet is only used if you set assumptions to option 2. Manual supply and demand. This is the basic approach to marketing.
• These sheets are critical steps in the financial model. Whilst there are only a few assumptions, they are important ones.

Overview

• The staff sheet is the core expense sheet in the model. It enables you to do quite a lot, but also simply. Most of the sheet is for the various departments you have. The end allows you to add the various costs that you will have, which are mainly staff related. Included is also the other general costs.
• This sheet has two modules. A simple and a detailed version. You can choose the approach that you want to use in the control sheet.

Overview

• This sheet comprises of automated support staff calculations for both the supply and demand side. For both, we have customer care and customer success.
• Customer care is for your total customer base. You’ll set the % of your base that needs support, how long it takes to deal with customers and how many hours your staff are focused a day to result in the number of staff you need.
• For customer care, exactly the same calculations are done but we assume this is for new customers.
• These are optional automations. You do not need either, or of them.
• These automations enable you to scale up your staff base depending if you increase or decrease marketing. These all direct into your main staff sheet.

Overview

• Similar to the support staff, I’ve made it easy to forecast your sales staff requirements.
• I can’t think of any marketplace which does sales on the demand side, so this sheet is only for the supply side of your business.
• This sheet allows you to pick the number of suppliers that a salesperson (account executive) can manage per month. Depending on your forecasts and some more detailed assumptions around the AEs, you automatically calculate your salesperson requirement.
• In addition, you can set ratios to build managers and support team staff. These all directly into your main staff sheet.

Overview

• This sheet comprises of automated staff calculations and your other costs.
• You will be able to set assumptions for variable staff (customer care, warehouse, photographers) so you can increase those staff regardless of whether you change to a bull or bear set of assumptions.
• You will also map out your logistics costs (shipping and return, warehouse etc) as well as your payment and tech costs.

Overview

• We deal with the main marketing sheet

Note

• I’m reusing an old video from the original course.
• I built in a market saturation function which most people won’t use. If you really need me to explain, ask.

Overview

• Core marketing sheet if you pay to acquire customers
• Also simple assumptions for organic users

Note

• I’m reusing an old video from the original course.

Overview

• If you do email marketing as a user growth channel

Overview

• Sheet for blogging and social media user acquisition.

Note

• I’m reusing an old video from the original course.

Overview

• This is the last video.
• I’ve sort of covered this in previous videos, but we will briefly go through some sense checks you should do to ensure you don’t send something to investors that make you look dumb (assuming you are raising- the model isn’t just for VC-addicted startups).