analytics
Use this skill when the user needs to set up analytics, design event tracking, define key metrics, build funnels, or instrument their SaaS product for data-driven decisions. Covers event naming conventions, tracking strategy, funnel analytics, and data quality.
What this skill does
# Analytics & Instrumentation Track decisions, not dashboards. This skill helps you set up analytics that answer the questions that matter — without drowning in data. ## Core Principles - Every metric should connect to an action you'd take differently based on the result. - Instrument events at build time, not as an afterthought. It's 10x easier. - More data ≠ better decisions. Focus on 5-10 key metrics per stage. - Data quality matters more than data quantity. One clean funnel beats fifty broken ones. --- ## Choosing an Analytics Tool You don't need to write code to track events. Pick a tool, add the snippet, and configure in the UI. ### Recommended by Stage | Stage | Tool | Why | Cost | |-------|------|-----|------| | Pre-revenue | **PostHog** | Product analytics, funnels, session replay. Built for SaaS. | Free (1M events/mo) | | Pre-revenue | **Plausible** | Simple, privacy-first traffic analytics. | $9/mo | | $0-5K MRR | **PostHog** or **Mixpanel** | Deeper funnel analysis, cohort retention | Free tier or ~$200/mo | | $5K+ MRR | **Amplitude** or **Heap** | Advanced analytics, experimentation | $500+/mo | **Recommendation for solo founders:** Start with **PostHog** (free tier). It covers product analytics, funnels, session recordings, and feature flags — all things you'll need. For basic traffic analytics (where visitors come from), add **Plausible** or **Google Analytics 4** (free). ### Setup **Tell AI:** ``` Set up PostHog analytics: 1. Create a PostHog project and get the API key 2. Add the PostHog JavaScript snippet to our app (in the <head> or layout component) 3. Verify it's tracking page views by checking the PostHog dashboard 4. Configure: exclude admin/test accounts from tracking ``` --- ## What to Track (By Stage) ### Pre-Launch (Just These 3) 1. Landing page visits (traffic source) 2. Waitlist/signup conversions 3. Where visitors drop off ### 0-$1K MRR (Add These) 4. Signup → activation rate (completed key action) 5. Time to activate (hours from signup to key action) 6. D7 retention (% returning after 1 week) 7. Free-to-paid conversion ### $1K-$10K MRR (Add These) 8. Feature adoption (% of users using each feature weekly) 9. Cohort retention curves (track each month's signups over time) 10. Expansion revenue triggers (what behavior precedes upgrades) 11. Churn rate and reasons --- ## Event Naming Conventions Use a consistent schema so events make sense to anyone reading them. **Format:** [Object] [Action] in past tense, Title Case. | Event Name | When It Fires | |------------|--------------| | Signup Form Submitted | User completes registration | | Project Created | User creates their first/any project | | Dashboard Viewed | User visits the main dashboard | | Report Exported | User downloads or shares a report | | Subscription Upgraded | User moves to a higher plan | | Invite Sent | User invites a teammate | **Rules:** - Object first, then action (makes grouping in tools easier) - Past tense (the event already happened) - Be specific: "Signup Form Submitted" not "Form Submitted" - Never include personal data in the event name ### Event Properties Every event should include context: ``` "Project Created" template_used: "blank" | "marketing" | "engineering" source: "dashboard" | "onboarding" | "api" "Subscription Upgraded" from_plan: "free" to_plan: "pro" billing_period: "annual" trigger: "usage_limit" | "feature_gate" | "self_serve" ``` **Tell AI:** ``` Set up event tracking for our core funnel: - Track these events: [list your key events from the table above] - Include these properties with each event: [relevant properties] - Set user-level properties on identify: plan, signup_date, role - Verify events are firing correctly in PostHog/Mixpanel ``` --- ## Core Metrics Framework ### The 5 Metrics That Matter | Metric | What It Tells You | How to Calculate | |--------|------------------|-----------------| | **Signup rate** | Is your marketing working? | Visitors → Signups | | **Activation rate** | Is your onboarding working? | Signups → Completed key action | | **D7 retention** | Does your product deliver ongoing value? | % of users returning 7 days later | | **Free-to-paid** | Is your product worth paying for? | Free users → Paying users | | **MRR** | Is your business growing? | Sum of all monthly subscription revenue | ### Setting Up Your Dashboard **Tell AI:** ``` Create an analytics dashboard with these 5 charts: 1. Daily signups (line chart, last 30 days, by source) 2. Activation rate (% of signups who [completed key action], last 30 days) 3. D7 retention (% of each week's signups who returned 7 days later) 4. Free-to-paid conversion rate (last 30 days) 5. MRR (line chart, all time) This should be the first thing I see when I open analytics. ``` --- ## Funnel Instrumentation Define your core funnel and track every step: ``` Typical SaaS funnel: 1. Landing Page Viewed 2. Signup Form Viewed 3. Signup Form Submitted 4. Onboarding Started 5. [Key Activation Action] Completed 6. Second Session (returned next day/week) 7. Upgrade Page Viewed 8. Subscription Created ``` **The biggest drop-off between steps = your biggest opportunity.** Fix that first. **Tell AI:** ``` Instrument our conversion funnel: - Track these events in order: [list your funnel steps] - Build a funnel visualization showing drop-off between each step - Set up an alert if any step's conversion drops below [X]% week-over-week ``` --- ## Privacy and Compliance Add these before you launch: - [ ] Add analytics tool reference to your Privacy Policy - [ ] Add cookie consent banner if required (depends on tool and geography) - [ ] Enable "anonymize IP" in your analytics tool - [ ] Exclude admin/test accounts from tracking - [ ] Never track PII (email, name) in event properties without consent - [ ] Allow users to opt out of tracking - [ ] Respect Do Not Track (DNT) browser settings **Tell AI:** ``` Add privacy compliance for analytics: - Add a cookie consent banner that loads analytics only after consent - Exclude users with DNT enabled - Add an "opt out of tracking" toggle in account settings - Ensure no PII is sent in event properties ``` --- ## Common Mistakes | Mistake | Fix | |---------|-----| | Tracking everything from day one | Start with 5 metrics. Add more when you have questions they can't answer. | | No analytics until post-launch | Add the snippet during build. Track from first user. | | Dashboard but no actions | Every metric should have an "if this drops, I'll do X" response | | Ignoring data quality | Check that events are firing correctly once a week for the first month | | Paying for expensive tools too early | PostHog free tier handles most needs until $5K MRR | --- ## If You Can't Set Up Analytics Right Now Track these manually in a spreadsheet until you can: | Week | Signups | Activated | Retained (D7) | Paid | MRR | |------|---------|-----------|---------------|------|-----| | Week 1 | | | | | | | Week 2 | | | | | | Even rough manual tracking beats flying blind. Graduate to a real tool as soon as you can.
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