Having an interesting idea is just the beginning. Proving your product-market fit is a great progression. But the ultimate test is whether you can efficiently bring that product to market. That's where customer acquisition strategy comes in.

Many businesses with products customers love have raised millions in funding, only to eventually fail. The reason? They lacked a scalable, go-to-market (GTM) engine to effectively acquire customers. It's easy to burn money on customer acquisition costs, but it's tough to do it efficiently.

Early validation that your GTM and customer engine work is crucial for investors. The more proof you can provide, the better your chances of raising funding.

So, what do investors mean by proven customer acquisition channels? They want to see at least one route to the market that works. It could be a successful product-led growth (PLG) engine with organic growth and referrals. Maybe your ads are working with low customer acquisition costs and high lifetime value (LTV). Or perhaps partner channels are driving strong referral velocity. Whatever the channel, it must have attractive unit economics and demonstrate effective use of raised funds.

For a deeper dive into different GTM strategies, check out our comprehensive guide here.