ROI worksheet
This page is a template for the owner who checks once a year what the site returned. The businesses section has a worksheet for deciding on a project before it starts (ROI worksheet template). This one is for after: it puts what you planned next to what really happened, so the next year's plan is better. The measures are chosen on Measuring ROI, and a filled example is on ROI example assumptions.
Note
Template. The worksheet holds no figures of its own: every amount you enter must come from an invoice, a statement, the site's own figures or a written judgment, and the source column says which.
How to use it
- Copy the worksheet below into your own document or spreadsheet.
- Fill the Planned column from last year's budget or business case.
- Fill the Actual column from the sources named on Measuring ROI.
- Do the arithmetic in section D.
- Write the explanations and decisions in sections E and F.
- Bring it to the annual value review.
The worksheet
ROI WORKSHEET (PLANNED VS ACTUAL) - [site] Year: ______ Prepared by: ______
Currency unit: ______
A. COSTS FOR THE YEAR Planned Actual Source of actual
A1 License fee for Exponential 0 0 README "License"
A2 Hosting ______ ______ host invoices
A3 Partner support and maintenance ______ ______ partner invoices
A4 Updates and upgrades ______ ______ partner invoices / own hours
A5 Own staff time on the site (h x rate) ______ ______ time records
A6 Third-party services (payment fees, ______ ______ statements
mail, AI provider, statistics tool)
A7 One-time projects this year ______ ______ invoices
A Total costs ______ ______
B. BENEFITS FOR THE YEAR
B1 Gross profit from new online sales ______ ______ bookkeeping, store figures
B2 Inquiries or members gained (x value) ______ ______ form submissions, newsletter
B3 Staff time saved (h x rate x realiz.) ______ ______ survey / time sample
B4 Costs no longer paid ______ ______ canceled contracts
B5 Other measurable benefit: ______ ______ ______ ______
B Total benefits ______ ______
C. MEASURES (no money, but tracked) Planned Actual Source
C1 ______________________ ______ ______ ______
C2 ______________________ ______ ______ ______
C3 ______________________ ______ ______ ______
D. RESULT Planned Actual
D1 Net benefit = B - A ______ ______
D2 ROI = D1 / A x 100 % ______ ______
E. WHY ACTUAL DIFFERS FROM PLANNED (one line per large difference)
E1 ____________________________________________________________
E2 ____________________________________________________________
F. DECISIONS FOR NEXT YEAR
F1 Keep: ______________________________________________________
F2 Change: ____________________________________________________
F3 Stop: ______________________________________________________
F4 Budget for next year agreed on: ______
Checked by (someone who redid the arithmetic): ______ Date: ______Where the actual figures come from
| Line | Source | Read |
|---|---|---|
| A2 to A4, A7 | Invoices of host and partner | Cost of ownership for owners |
| A5, B3 | Your time records, or a two-week time sample | Measuring ROI |
| A6 | Payment provider and service statements; the Exponential Intelligence dashboard for AI costs (README.md) | Cost of ownership for owners |
| B1 | Bookkeeping, with the store's product statistics | Store reports |
| B2 | Setup > Collected information, newsletter administration | Collected information |
Checking the worksheet
- To do: Every Actual figure has a source in the last column.
- To do: Judgments (new share of sales, realization of time saved) are the same as last year, or the change is explained.
- To do: Test orders and test submissions are not counted.
- To do: Someone outside the project redid the arithmetic in section D.
- To do: Section F has at least one concrete decision with an owner.
Related pages
- Measuring ROI
- ROI example assumptions
- Annual value review
- ROI worksheet template (before a project)
- Free documentation: this page is free to copy, translate and improve under the GNU FDL 1.3.
Become an Exponential Partner
Partners share their information, provide funding, contribute back and develop the products with us, and that is how Exponential grows. A partner website and dashboard are planned for mid-2027: please become a partner today to speed up our growth rate and land new features faster.