What does ‘8 customers’ really mean?
Use the ledger to explain what your traction slide can support.
The question
Your pitch slide says “8 customers.” The ledger covers eight distinct organizations. It lists no recurring agreements.
| Reason | organizations | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Paid one-time evaluations | 2 | |
| Active unpaid pilots | 3 | |
| Non-binding letters | 3 | |
| Total | 8 |
The slide combines three different stages of customer evidence.
“What does ‘8 customers’ really mean?”
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A strong answer, step by step
Open each step in turn. This is one strong answer, not the only one.
Step 1: How should you report the count?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Keep the total and give the three categories.
The strong move. The count still reconciles and the categories show how far each organization has progressed.
Call all eight organizations customers because each gave some signal.
Tempting, but it misses something. That hides the difference between a payment, active use and a letter.
Report six active evaluations and pilots.
Tempting, but it misses something. The ledger shows two evaluations and three active pilots, or five across those categories.
See how a strong candidate says it
“Say the ledger lists eight organizations: two paid evaluations, three active unpaid pilots and three non-binding letters.”
Why it works: The count is useful when the investor can see what each organization has actually done.
Step 2: Which evidence would you bring?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Use the letters to verify that the pilots are active.
Tempting, but it misses something. A letter can show interest. It cannot show that the pilot is in use.
Check payment, start status and usage against separate records.
The strong move. A receipt alone cannot confirm the evaluation started or that the organization kept using it.
Show every receipt as proof of recurring revenue.
Tempting, but it misses something. The ledger lists one-time evaluations and no recurring agreement.
See how a strong candidate says it
“Check the receipts and start dates for the evaluations, usage for the pilots and the terms of the letters.”
Why it works: Each source supports a different statement about adoption or willingness to pay.
Step 3: What changes in the traction count?
One of the two listed evaluations has a refundable deposit. The evaluation has not started.
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Keep two paid evaluations because a payment reached the account.
Tempting, but it misses something. The payment is refundable and the second evaluation has not started.
Remove the organization and report seven leads.
Tempting, but it misses something. The organization remains in the pipeline. Only the category changed.
Move one evaluation to pending deposit and keep the total at eight.
The strong move. This corrects the stage while preserving the count of distinct organizations.
See how a strong candidate says it
“There is one started paid evaluation, one pending deposit, three active unpaid pilots and three non-binding letters. Eight organizations remain in the ledger.”
Why it works: The deposit keeps the organization in the ledger. It does not count as a started evaluation.
Step 4: What would you put on the slide now?
What would you do here? Open the move you’d make.
Lead with the paid evaluation and active pilots, then explain the pending items.
The strong move. This describes the work underway and gives the investor a count to check.
Report two signed contracts and five active users.
Tempting, but it misses something. The ledger gives organization counts. It supplies neither two signed contracts nor five active users.
Project recurring revenue from the evaluation and the deposit.
Tempting, but it misses something. No recurring agreement supports the projection.
See how a strong candidate says it
“One paid evaluation is underway and three unpaid pilots are active. Keep the deposit and the three letters in the detail, then track whether any pilot converts to repeat paid use.”
Why it works: The headline separates current evidence from the next test of willingness to pay.
The answer, in short
- Decision
- Replace “8 customers” with counts by verified stage.
- Because
- One evaluation had a refundable deposit and had not started. The total number of organizations stayed at eight.
- What would change it
- A completed evaluation, a paid renewal or a verified pilot conversion.
Common traps
- Treating deposits and contracts as equivalent.
- Mixing organization counts with user counts.
Check your answer
- Which organizations have started?
- Who has paid and on what terms?
- What changed in the ledger?
- What evidence would show repeat paid use?
Last reviewed Nov 11, 2026