Strategies: Growth Funnel (AARRR)#

Guides growth using the AARRR framework (Pirate Metrics)—five stages of the customer lifecycle. Created by Dave McClure (500 Startups) to focus on actionable metrics over vanity metrics. Use this skill when diagnosing growth bottlenecks, prioritizing improvements, or aligning product, marketing, and customer success.

When invoking: On first use, if helpful, open with 1–2 sentences on what this skill covers and why it matters, then provide the main output. On subsequent use or when the user asks to skip, go directly to the main output.

AARRR Framework#

StageQuestionKey metricsAcquisitionHow do users discover you?CAC, CPA, conversion by sourceActivationDo users reach "aha moment"?Activation rate, time-to-first-valueRetentionDo users return?D1/D7/D30 retention, churnReferralDo users recommend?Referral rate, NPS, viral coefficientRevenueDo users pay?Conversion rate, ARPU, LTV

Principle: Define behavior-based events per stage; analyze by cohort. Quality over volume—channels bringing fewer but more activated users often outperform.

Per-Stage Actions#

StageActionsRelated skillsAcquisitionSEO, paid ads, content, partnerships, directories, marketplacescold-start-strategy, seo-strategy, paid-ads-strategy, directory-submission, distribution-channelsActivationOnboarding, use-case guidance, FAQ, case studies, free trials, trust signalsconversion-optimization, faq-page-generator, customer-stories-page-generatorRetentionSupport, churn analysis, feedback, loyalty, dunningretention-strategy, email-marketingReferralReferral program, affiliate, case study sharingreferral-program, affiliate-marketingRevenuePricing, conversion optimization, CAC vs LTV analysispricing-strategy, conversion-optimization, paid-ads-strategy

Tactics by Stage#

StageTacticsAcquisitionGoogle ads (keywords, display); organic SEO; social (LinkedIn, YouTube, X, blog); partnerships (NGOs, SMBs); directories, marketplacesActivationUse-case guidance; video + blog tutorials; FAQ; case studies; free trials/credits; new-feature promotion; email; trust signals (reviews, media)RetentionTimely support; churn analysis; feedback collection; loyalty perks (credits, early access)ReferralReferral credits; signup email with referral CTA; enterprise case sharing; affiliate programRevenueConversion optimization; platform attribution; CAC vs LTV; post-campaign traffic analysis

Post-campaign: Analyze traffic and conversion by channel; reallocate budget to top performers.

Implementation#

• Events: Define precise, behavior-based events for each stage
• Cohorts: Analyze by cohort, not aggregate; compare cohorts over time
• Bottlenecks: Identify stage with largest drop-off; prioritize there first
• Cross-functional: Product, marketing, customer success share common language

Output Format#

• Stage assessment (where are you strong/weak?)
• Metrics per stage (current, target)
• Actions prioritized by bottleneck
• Related skills for each stage

Related Skills#

• cold-start-strategy: Acquisition for 0→1; first users
• retention-strategy: Retention and churn prevention
• conversion-optimization: Activation, revenue conversion
• referral-program: Referral stage tactics
• gtm-strategy: Full GTM; growth-funnel is lifecycle view
• integrated-marketing: Channel mix across stages