The Cost of Not Firing Your Customers: A SaaS Power Law No One Talks About

In SaaS, there's a hidden gravity: not all revenue is created equal. While logos on the homepage make founders feel validated, the wrong customers quietly extract more than they give—time, energy, morale. High-churn, low-growth customers don’t just cost support dollars—they erode product strategy, fragment your roadmap, and dilute your brand. Great SaaS businesses are built on ‘aligned customers’—those who map to your vision, consume intelligently, and grow with you. But holding on to the wrong ones? That’s anti-growth. Audit your customer base like your codebase: rigorously. Which segments ask for custom features that no one else uses? Who pays late, complains often, and refuses to adopt new releases? Fire first, explain later. Your CAC isn’t just money, it’s focus. Invest it wisely. This power law is brutal: the top 20% of your customers likely deliver 80% of LTV expansion. Give them your inner circle treatment. For the rest, have clarity and courage—they were part of the journey, but not the destination.