UrbanFootprint + Subscript

Judd MacRae leads the finance team at UrbanFootprint, a Series B startup whose platform provides climate risk and resilience data to large institutions that invest in urban infrastructure. The company’s work is important, and as a startup, they need to optimize their efficiency and manage expenses wisely in order to grow.

Prior to adopting Supscript’s billing and analytics platform, Judd’s team had found some significant pain points in their invoicing and revenue recognition processes. Invoicing was being tracked manually on sticky notes, and they relied on a cumbersome spreadsheet for revenue recognition. It was leading to inefficiencies, errors, delays in collections, and a lengthier month-end close.

On top of that, it was challenging for them to answer questions about customer metrics, churn, and ARR, often taking hours or even days to do the data analysis manually.

Judd realized that improving their billing and analytics processes could give the company faster cash flow and free up time to focus on higher-value work.

As a startup veteran, he was already familiar with several billing platforms, like Maxio and Chargebee, that could help his team improve their processes. Unfortunately, those platforms didn’t offer enough flexibility for UrbanFoorprint’s complex revenue recognition cycle. The last thing he wanted was to create more work for his team by simply layering on another tool that required spreadsheets to manage.

That’s when he discovered Subscript.

One of Judd’s main concerns was being able to handle diverse and complex billing scenarios, from annual contracts to short-term and usage-based contracts. The company has different customer segments that they service with different pricing and packaging, which can quickly lead to accounting challenges. Judd and his team were drawn to Subscript because of its flexibility in handling different types of contracts.

The team was also pleased by how quick and easy the implementation process was with Subscript. They were able to get up to speed in the platform quickly and start seeing value right away.

Within a few short months, Judd’s team found that Subscript was already saving them a significant amount of time.

Next, with help from the Subscript team, Judd’s team was able to clean up old data, track down anomalies in contracts, and correct errors. This gave them much greater confidence in their data so they could answer metrics questions instantly, rather than within days or weeks.

After using Subscript for several months, the UrbanFootprint team found that they were getting both measurable ROI and intangible value from the platform.

Since the invoicing process is so much faster, not only are they saving valuable time, but UrbanFootprint’s cash flow is accelerated. “We're not financing our collections effectively off of our balance sheet as much,” says Judd.

On top of the time savings from invoicing, the team has also been able to cut 1-2 days of work off of their end-of-month close with Subscript.

Judd estimates that these combined time savings add up to about 20 hours a month that can now be spent on other, more high-impact work. With this new level of efficiency, he plans to defer adding extra headcount for 6-12 months.

Additionally, with real-time access to data they can feel confident in, they are better able to answer questions about their SaaS metrics and help the business make sound, data-driven decisions.

Looking ahead, Judd feels optimistic about what his team will be able to achieve with Subscript.

Subscript gives youSubscript is the modern, flexible, and affordable way to invoice customers and track B2B SaaS metrics. Ready to see how Subscript can help you collect more revenue while saving time? Request a demo today.