How to Reduce Customer Acquisition Cost While Growing Revenue: Lessons from a Growth Marketing Expert

Brad Schlachter led growth for Disney, Microsoft, MLB, and high-growth SaaS companies. Here’s what he’s learned about scaling subscription businesses profitably.

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The CAC Problem Most SaaS CEOs Don’t See

Customer acquisition cost (CAC) is climbing across every industry. Companies pour budget into paid media, scale their teams, and watch spend increase faster than revenue. The assumption? Growth requires more money.

Brad Schlachter proved that assumption wrong at Slate Digital, where he reduced customer acquisition cost by 85% year-over-year while simultaneously improving conversion rates by 97%. For most marketing teams, that sounds impossible. But the solution wasn’t more budget—it was fixing what was broken in the acquisition funnel.

In this 2 minute video, Brad shares how he did it, and what other companies should keep in mind.

What’s Actually Broken in Your Acquisition Funnel

Often times, the problem isn’t your ads. It’s treating all customers the same way.

SaaS and gaming companies tend to serve similar ads to different customer segments, send everyone to the same landing pages, and wonder why conversion rates stay flat. Brad’s approach is different: segment customers, personalize user experiences, and tailor messaging based on where prospects actually are in their journey.

“We were treating all of our customers too much in the same way,” Brad explains. “Once we were able to do a better job with segmentation—not only did we improve conversion rates and lower customer acquisition costs—but we were also able to expand into multiple segments with more personalization.”

The other factor most companies miss? Balancing paid and organic acquisition. While paid media gets the budget and attention, organic conversions through SEO and AI optimization can dramatically reduce blended CAC. Scale organic conversions, and your overall customer acquisition cost drops—even if paid spend stays constant.

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How to Grow Fast AND Reduce Churn (Yes, Both)

Most CEOs think rapid growth and low churn are opposing forces. You either grow fast and accept higher churn, or you optimize retention and sacrifice growth velocity.

Brad proved this is a false choice. At Slate, he drove 104% user growth while reducing churn by 40% simultaneously. Here’s how…

The Mindset Shift Required

The secret isn’t choosing between acquisition and retention—it’s understanding they’re connected.

“On average, it costs about 5 to 7 times more to acquire a new customer than to keep an existing one,” Brad notes. “You really have to be focused on both sides of the coin if you’re going to grow profitably.”

The breakthrough came from recognizing that high churn often signals you’re attracting the wrong customers. If you’re scaling for scale’s sake—bringing in anyone who converts—you’ll naturally see higher churn. But if you optimize for engagement and lifetime value from the start, you attract qualified customers who stick around.

The playbook:

• Optimize for LTV, not just acquisition volume
• Attract engaged customers who align with your product’s core value
• Track cohort retention alongside growth metrics

When you acquire the right customers, both growth and retention improve together.

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What Gaming Companies Know That B2B SaaS Doesn’t (And Vice Versa)

Brad’s career spans both gaming (Sega, Konami, Codemasters) and enterprise tech (Microsoft, Intel, Qualcomm). The marketing approaches couldn’t be more different—and each industry has something critical to learn from the other.

Gaming Gets Emotional Connection Right

Gaming companies excel at forging emotional connections with customers. Flashy graphics, compelling storylines, memorable brand experiences—games are designed to create feelings, not just solve problems. This makes their brands sticky and their customers loyal.

“Games are telling stories, and now games are movies,” Brad explains. “They have that inherited advantage of resonating emotionally.”

Tech Companies Win on Operational Discipline

Tech companies, especially B2B SaaS, are better disciplined about operations, efficiency, and processes. They build systems that drive long-term engagement and retention through measurable value delivery.

The opportunity? Combine both approaches. Emotional resonance gets customers in the door and keeps them engaged. Operational excellence ensures they stay and expand. Most companies lean too heavily on one side—and leave revenue on the table.

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Why a Sports League License Isn’t a Silver Bullet

Brad negotiated licensing deals with the NFL, NBA, MLB, and NHL during his time at Major League Baseball and Sega. He signed big-name athletes. He worked with some of the most recognizable brands in sports.

Here’s what he learned: a great license doesn’t guarantee success.

The License Gets You Audience—Not Product-Market Fit

When you license the NFL or another major brand, you’re buying access to their built-in audience. That’s powerful. But it’s not a shortcut around building a product that actually solves a customer problem.

“Getting a great license isn’t a silver bullet—it’s not going to guarantee success,” Brad says. “You still have to have a product or service that has strong product-market fit or that resonates with the customer.”

The licensing partnership gives you distribution. It doesn’t give you differentiation. Your product still has to be something that fulfills a need in the market, does it better than alternatives, and delivers value worth paying for.

For tech and gaming companies considering licensing partnerships: use them to amplify an already strong product, not to compensate for a weak one.

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The Subscription Retention Playbook That Actually Works

Subscription businesses live or die by churn. Customer acquisition gets the headlines, but churn is the silent killer that bleeds revenue month after month.

Brad’s retention playbook isn’t about discounts or win-back campaigns. It’s about engagement.

Churn Isn’t a Product Problem—It’s an Engagement Problem

“Typically, churn doesn’t signal a problem with the product,” Brad explains. “It happens because users or subscribers lose interest and stop engaging. If you have low engagement for your product, you’re more likely to see churn.”

The fix starts at acquisition: are you bringing in the right customers? If you’re relying on massive discounts or free trials to spike acquisition, you’re attracting people who aren’t committed to the product’s core value. They’ll churn the moment the incentive ends.

Keep Customers Engaged with Achievement

Successful subscription services keep engagement high by making customers feel a sense of accomplishment.

Think about Asana showing magic unicorn imagery when you complete a task. Or LinkedIn giving profile optimization tips. This gamification—badges, progress bars, milestone celebrations—keeps users coming back because they feel like they’re achieving something.

“That sort of gamification and sense of accomplishment are great ways to keep engagement high and retention high,” Brad notes.

The retention playbook:

• Optimize for lifetime value at acquisition (not just volume)
• Build engagement loops into your product experience
• Use gamification to create a sense of progress and achievement
• Track engagement metrics as leading indicators of churn

When engagement is high, churn drops naturally. When engagement is low, no retention campaign will save you.

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Work With Brad

Brad Schlachter is a fractional Chief Marketing Officer specializing in technology and content-driven companies. He helps SaaS, digital publishing, gaming, and subscription businesses scale revenue by transforming churn-heavy growth models into predictable revenue engines that maximize customer lifetime value.

His approach: develop growth marketing strategies, build retention programs, and implement data-driven systems that turn subscribers into long-term revenue. The result is lower churn, higher LTV, and marketing operations that compound growth instead of fighting constant customer loss.

If you want an expert who has lead growth for Disney, Microsoft, MLB, and Hallmark, you want Brad.

If you are ready to reduce customer acquisition cost while improving retention, Book an exploratory call to share your challenges and goals.