Build your first model step by step

Have a Tessly account and a separate practice model ready. Sign in yourself using the Open Tessly link. Prepare your currency, forecast start date, revenue, costs, team and cash. This walkthrough uses the SaaS B2B template and an already-revenue-generating business; other business models show different fields.

Northstar Notes is a fictional B2B subscription business. Every number below is a teaching assumption, not a benchmark or a recommendation. Use a separate practice model; replace these values before making business decisions.

Operating currency

USD

Current monthly subscription revenue

10,000

Current paid company customers

100

Monthly new paid company customers

10

Monthly paid-company retention

98%

Monthly non-headcount OpEx, excluding marketing

2,000

Monthly non-headcount marketing

500

Team / monthly base salary per person

2 people / 3,000

Current cash

100,000

Check the units: 10,000 ÷ 100 = USD 100 per customer per month. Non-headcount spend is (2,000 + 500) × 12 = USD 30,000 per year, excluding payroll. Base salaries total USD 6,000 per month before employer costs. Retention of 98% means 2% churn for the same monthly cohort; do not enter 2 in a retention field. These checks do not predict the final forecast, which also depends on timing, costs and other assumptions.

1. 01

   Choose the template route

   Open Tessly, sign in and complete any initial preparation screens. In Model Setup, choose “Start with a template”, then SaaS B2B. Set the operating currency to USD and choose your forecast start date. Use the existing-revenue option for this example.

2. 02

   Set the revenue starting point

   In Revenue, find “Subscription starting point”. Enter 10000 for “What is your current monthly subscription revenue?” and 100 for “How many paid company customers do you have?”. The derived average should be USD 100 per company per month. Review revenue timing and the delivery-cost or gross-margin assumptions shown for the stream; keep a note of any defaults you have not replaced.

3. 03

   Add costs and the team

   In Cost, enter 2000 in “Monthly OpEx — non-headcount” and 500 in the separate marketing field. Keep Headcount on Simple. Enter 2 in “Team Size”. The source assumption is USD 3,000 per person per month, so calculate 3,000 × 12 = 36,000 and enter 36000 in “Avg Salary USD/yr (per person)”. The team’s base payroll is USD 72,000 per year, equivalent to USD 6,000 per month, before employer costs. Check employer-cost and hiring assumptions separately; do not include those salaries again in the non-headcount fields.

4. 04

   Describe customer growth

   In Growth, use “Paid customer additions and retention”. Choose Simple → Keep fixed. Enter 10 monthly new paid company customers and 98 for monthly paid-company retention. Select “Apply customer additions and retention”. This sets customer growth assumptions; the model derives revenue growth.

5. 05

   Enter cash and generate

   In Cash & Funding, enter 100000 in Current Cash. Review any funding assumptions before generating; starting cash and future funding are different inputs. Complete any remaining required fields, review the values, then select “Generate Forecast”. Inspect the resulting model before using save or share actions.

Select the prompt text and copy it. Replace the bracketed placeholders before using it.

• The intended model and operating currency match your checklist.
• Subscription baseline shows 100 customers and USD 10,000 monthly revenue; derived average is USD 100.
• New customers and retention are monthly inputs; retention is 98, not 0.98 or 2, in the percent field.
• Non-headcount costs and marketing are separate; salaries are not counted twice.
• Starting cash is USD 100,000; future funding, delivery costs, employer costs and dates have been reviewed.
• The model has no unexplained missing inputs. Review results and remaining defaults before saving or sharing.