A Guide to Assessing the Performance of Your Social App and Substack Metrics

A Guide to Assessing the Performance of Your Social App and Substack Metrics

In the fast-paced world of social apps and Substack newsletters, it can be challenging to determine whether your product is on track for success or destined to fade into obscurity. But fear not, because there are proven metrics and benchmarks that can help you gauge the potential of your app or newsletter.

When it comes to Substack metrics, one of the most important indicators of engagement is the open rate. Ideally, you want to aim for open rates of 50-60% or higher, although this number can vary depending on how frequently you send emails to your subscribers. A high open rate is a good sign that your content is resonating with your audience and keeping them interested.

Another crucial metric to consider is the conversion rate. This is the percentage of paying subscribers you have compared to your total email list. Conversion rates of 5-10% are common in the industry. A healthy conversion rate indicates that your content is not only being opened but also compelling enough for readers to take the next step and become paying subscribers.

Now, let's shift our focus to social apps and how to benchmark their performance. Developing a successful social product can often feel like trying to catch lightning in a bottle. But once your product is out in the wild, assessing its performance becomes more scientific than random.

The first step in benchmarking your app's growth is to define your core metric. For most consumer social apps, this is daily active users (DAUs). The goal is to see a consistent upward trend in your DAU graph. While perfect consistency may not be realistic, it's essential to have growth that lands around or above a baseline level every month. This "spiky" growth can be leveraged with excellent retention to capitalize on viral moments and retain users.

When it comes to growth benchmarks, the following percentages are indicative of success in seed-stage consumer social companies:

• OK: 20%
• Good: 35%
• Great: 50%

Ideally, your growth should come organically, driven by users inviting their friends to enhance the experience. If your app is not inherently viral and more than 10-20% of your users are coming from paid sources, it may be time to reevaluate your acquisition strategy.

Engagement ratios are another crucial aspect to consider. One popular metric is the DAU/MAU ratio, which measures the percentage of monthly active users who engage with your app daily. A benchmark of 25% is considered OK, while 40% is good, and 50% or higher is great. A high DAU/MAU ratio indicates that users are making your app a regular part of their lives.

To assess user retention, the L-ness curve is a useful tool. This metric looks at the distribution of users by the number of days they are active over a specific time period. Best-in-class social apps have an L-ness curve that "smiles" or skews right. This means that users are consistently returning to your app, indicating a high level of engagement. A benchmark of 30% for L5+ performance is considered OK, while 40% is good, and 50% or higher is great.

Retention is often measured using n-day retention, which shows the percentage of users who continue to use your app after a specific number of days. A benchmark of 50% for day 1, 35% for day 7, and 20% for day 30 is considered OK. Good retention would be 60% for day 1, 40% for day 7, and 25% for day 30. Great retention would be 70% for day 1, 50% for day 7, and 30% for day 30.

It's also important to consider how quickly your retention curve flattens out. In most cases, the slope of the line starts to flatten between day 7 and day 14, and a plateau is reached by day 20. If there is a significant degradation of retention after day 7, and your cohorts haven't flattened out by day 30, it may be a cause for concern as it suggests that long-term retention may not hold up.

To assess weekly retention, benchmarks of 40% for week 1 and 20% for week 4 are considered OK. Good retention would be 55% for week 1 and 30% for week 4, while great retention would be 75% for week 1 and 50% for week 4.

Now that we've explored the various metrics and benchmarks, let's discuss some actionable advice to improve the performance of your social app or Substack newsletter:

1. Focus on improving engagement: Engage with your audience, encourage user-generated content, and create a seamless user experience to increase the likelihood of users making your app or newsletter a regular part of their lives.

2. Optimize your acquisition strategy: Aim for organic growth and prioritize word-of-mouth referrals. If you're heavily reliant on paid acquisition, it may be time to reevaluate your approach and find ways to make your app inherently viral.

3. Continuously analyze and iterate: Regularly assess your metrics, identify areas for improvement, and iterate your product to address user feedback and preferences. This iterative approach will help you stay ahead of the curve and adapt to changing user needs.

In conclusion, assessing the performance of your social app or Substack newsletter requires a careful analysis of various metrics and benchmarks. By focusing on engagement, optimizing acquisition strategies, and continuously iterating, you can increase the likelihood of success and catch that elusive lightning in a bottle. Remember, these benchmarks serve as guidelines, and it's essential to adapt them to your specific industry and target audience.