Activation

The moment a new user first experiences the product's core value.

Example

Publishing their first rota, not merely creating an account.

Signups are vanity; activation predicts retention. Define it as a specific action, then measure how many reach it and how fast.

Funnel — The sequence of steps from first contact to paying customer, with drop-off measured at each step.
Retention — The share of customers still active after a given period. The inverse of churn, and usually the more useful way round.
North star metric — The single measure that best captures the value customers get from your product.

Funnels and conversion — Find the biggest leak, not the easiest one. Most founders optimise the top of the funnel while losing 90% at activation. (12 min)
What to measure, and what to ignore — Different stages need different numbers. Measuring everything is the same as measuring nothing. (12 min)
Activation and retention — The two numbers that predict whether a company works. Acquisition can be bought; these cannot. (12 min)
The north star metric — One number that only improves when customers genuinely benefit. Choosing it badly points the whole company at the wrong thing. (10 min)
Support that scales — Every repeated question is a product defect wearing a costume. Treat the ticket list as a roadmap. (10 min)