Your feast/famine cycle is the predictable result of relying exclusively on referrals and sporadic activities. The data is clear: fractional CFO services are in high demand, with Reddit threads showing founders actively seeking this help at predictable trigger points—approaching fundraising, crossing $100K/month in revenue, or when bookkeeping becomes too messy to self-manage. The problem is not market demand. The problem is you're invisible to founders when these triggers hit.

Your competitors occupy two extremes. Toptal (597K monthly organic visits, 129K ranking keywords) is a massive marketplace that sells "talent" as a commodity—you cannot compete on their turf. Boutique fractional CFO firms like those trusted by Sequoia and a16h portfolios (Burkland, Nomad, AirCFO) win through niche specialization and VC ecosystem relationships. Your single webinar with a startup accelerator produced one client—this signals that partnership-based acquisition works for you, but you abandoned the approach after one experiment.

The strategy ahead focuses on three interlocking systems: (1) becoming visible at trigger moments through targeted content and partnerships, (2) building a referral engine with adjacent service providers (lawyers, bookkeepers, accountants), and (3) creating a consistent LinkedIn presence that positions you as the obvious choice for a specific founder profile. The goal is 2-3 qualified inbound leads per month within 90 days, replacing the randomness of your current referral dependency with predictable pipeline.

Your Angle: You're not going to out-content Kruze or out-spend Pilot. You win through niche focus (specific industry or stage), partnership depth (accelerators, lawyers, bookkeepers), and personal brand on LinkedIn. You're the CFO founders actually get to work with—not a platform that matches them with someone.

1. Stop posting sporadically on LinkedIn. 2x/month is worse than nothing—it signals inconsistency. Either commit to 4x/week or pause entirely while you build a content backlog.

1. Stop positioning as a generalist. "Fractional CFO for startups and SMBs" is everyone. Pick a niche: stage (seed to Series A), industry (SaaS, e-commerce, healthcare tech), or trigger (fundraising prep specifically).

1. Stop treating referrals as passive luck. You're not asking for referrals, not building a partner network, not creating shareable assets (case studies, one-pagers) that make referrals easy.

1. Stop avoiding follow-up on cold leads. You sent 20 emails and stopped. That's not a failed experiment—that's quitting before data. If you revisit outreach, commit to 100+ with iteration.

1. Stop underestimating the webinar signal. One webinar. One client. That's a strong conversion rate. You should be doing 1-2 accelerator sessions per month, not per year.

Template 1: Trigger-Event LinkedIn Post

[Hook: State the painful moment]

You just got the email from your lead investor.

"Before we proceed to term sheet, we need updated financials, 
a 3-year forecast, and a clear path to profitability."

Due in 10 days.

[Agitate: Show you understand]

Your books are 2 months behind. You've been 
tracking revenue in a spreadsheet that only you understand.
The "forecast" is a back-of-napkin guess from 6 months ago.

This happens to 80% of founders I talk to.

[Solution: Provide value, not a pitch]

Here's what to do in the next 72 hours:

1. Get your books closed through last month. Hire emergency 
   bookkeeping help if needed. This is non-negotiable.

2. Build a simple 3-statement model. Revenue, expenses, 
   cash flow. Don't overcomplicate it—investors want to see 
   you understand your numbers, not that you're a spreadsheet wizard.

3. Prepare a "key assumptions" document. What's driving your 
   forecast? Customer acquisition costs? Churn rates? 
   Be ready to defend every number.

[Soft CTA]

If you're a [SaaS founder approaching Series A], 
I've helped 15+ companies navigate exactly this moment.

DM me "FUNDRAISE" if you want the checklist I use with clients.

Template 2: Case Study Carousel (Slide Outline)

Slide 1: [Client type] was 6 weeks from running out of cash.
         Here's what we did.

Slide 2: THE SITUATION
         - [Stage/size of company]
         - [Specific problem: messy books, no forecast, investor pressure]
         - [What triggered them to reach out]

Slide 3: THE FIRST 30 DAYS
         - [Action 1: e.g., "Rebuilt financial model from scratch"]
         - [Action 2: e.g., "Identified $40K/month in unnecessary spend"]
         - [Action 3: e.g., "Created investor-ready reporting package"]

Slide 4: THE RESULT
         - [Specific outcome: "Extended runway from 6 weeks to 8 months"]
         - [Secondary outcome: "Closed $2M seed round 90 days later"]
         - [Quote from founder if available]

Slide 5: THE LESSON
         - [One insight other founders can apply]
         - "You don't need perfect finances. You need clarity on 
            3 things: cash position, burn rate, and path to next milestone."

Slide 6: [Your name]
         Fractional CFO for [niche]
         DM me if this sounds like your situation.

Template 3: Accelerator Webinar Pitch Email

Subject: Free workshop for [Accelerator Name] founders: Fundraising Finance Essentials

Hi [Program Manager Name],

I'm Sarah Chen, a fractional CFO who works with [stage] startups 
on fundraising prep and financial modeling.

I'd love to run a 45-minute workshop for your current cohort on 
"Fundraising Finance Essentials"—the 5 things investors actually 
look for in your financials before writing a check.

What I'd cover:
- The 3 financial statements investors expect (and how good is good enough)
- Building a forecast that survives due diligence
- The metrics that matter at [seed/Series A] stage
- Common mistakes that kill deals (and how to avoid them)

I've delivered this session for [other accelerator if applicable] 
and the feedback was strong—founders left with a clear checklist 
and several booked follow-up calls.

No pitch, no hard sell—just useful content for your founders.

Would this be valuable for your upcoming cohort? Happy to jump 
on a quick call to tailor it to your program's focus.

Best,
Sarah Chen
[LinkedIn profile]
[Website]