Video · Short explainer, under 10 minutes

What Shopify Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) Is & How to Calculate It

Shopify · Shopify (YouTube) Free Beginner

What Shopify Customer Lifetime Value (CLV) Is & How to Calculate It

This is a plain, visual walk through the same formula for a founder who assumed lifetime value was a subscription-only idea: average order value times purchase frequency times how long a customer stays. It is from Shopify itself, so it speaks in the language of a regular store selling one-off products rather than a recurring plan. Watch it to get the math straight, then go build the number on your own order history.

  • Even with no subscription, a repeat customer has a lifetime value: it is just how many times they come back multiplied by what they spend each time.
  • The three inputs you actually need are average order value, purchase frequency, and average customer lifespan, all pullable from your order data.
  • Aim to keep customer lifetime value comfortably above acquisition cost (a rough 3 to 1 is a common target) so your ad spend is not quietly losing money.
Watch on YouTube ↗

The question it answers

  1. I sell a one-time product, not a subscription. Do unit economics and LTV even apply to me?

Read with it

  1. If you sell a one-time product and think LTV is a SaaS thing, this piece does the reframe cleanly: for a physical-goods brand,... Top Growth Marketing Article · Long read, about 20 to 25 minutes Unit Economics for DTC Brands: The Complete Guide Jack Paxton
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