Measure What Matters: Analytics

Strategic Context

In crypto, it's easy to confuse noise with traction. Token price goes up? Must be a marketing win. Viral tweet? We’re crushing it. But here’s the truth: price isn’t your KPI, participation is.

Great crypto projects don’t just chase impressions. They measure what matters: onchain actions, community health, and retention loops. That’s how you build staying power in a market that moves fast and forgets faster.

This module helps you cut through the noise. You’ll learn what metrics matter across each phase of your GTM journey—pre-launch, launch, and post-launch—and how to build a metrics engine that informs real growth, not vanity performance.

Core Concepts and Principles

1. Track Behavior, Not Hype

Impressions don’t equal impact. What matters is what people do, not what they see.

→ Key Metrics: Wallet connects, swaps, stakes, votes, referrals, governance actions.

2. Focus on Funnels, Not Vanity

Growth is a journey, track each step. Impressions and likes don’t equal conversions.

→ Key Metrics: Campaign attribution, waitlist → stake conversion, drop-off points.

3. Start With Story, Then Measure

Your metrics should support your manifesto. Reverse-engineer success from narrative.

→ Key Metrics: Thread engagement, community-led content, IRL → onchain actions.

4. Community Quality > Audience Size

100 aligned contributors > 100K passive followers.

→ Key Metrics: Engagement %, retention of early joiners, community-generated content, referrals.

5. Ownership = Real Participation

You don’t own your audience until they’ve opted in—wallets, emails, actions.

→ Key Metrics: First-party data, wallet-to-stake %.

6. Quant Shows ‘What’; Qual Shows ‘Why’

Analytics reveal patterns. Conversations reveal reasons. Use both.

→ Key Practices: Monthly user interviews, support ticket audits, community sentiment tracking.

7. GTM Phase Determines the KPI

Metrics must evolve across Pre-Launch, Launch, and Post-Launch phases.

→ Phase Goals:

• Pre: Validate resonance

• Launch: Drive activation

• Post: Measure retention and network effects

8. Ecosystem Coordination is a Force Multiplier

Single-product launches fall flat without broader sequencing. Act like a conductor.

→ Key Metrics: Inter-protocol tx flows, DEX/bridge integration, ecosystem usage.

9. Data Without Action Is Useless

Analytics aren’t for reporting, they’re for pivoting. Build tight feedback loops.

→ Practice: Weekly metric reviews → insight → next action loop.

10. Define Success Upfront With OKRs or SMART Goals

Don’t launch without clear goals. Use structured frameworks to turn intuition into execution.

→ Tool: OKRs (Objectives & Key Results), SMART Goals (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, Time-bound)

Actionable Framework: Metrics by GTM Phase

Pre-Launch: Validate Resonance

Goals: Build trust, test story, gather signal.

What to Measure:

• Waitlist signups + conversion rate

• Content engagement (X threads, blog reads, newsletter opens)

• Testnet participation (wallets connected, task completion %)is

• Narrative fit (qual interviews, community language use)

• Early community growth (Telegram/X followers with >5% engagement)

If people aren’t engaging now, they won’t show up at launch. Treat pre-launch like rehearsal, not rest.

Launch: Drive Conversion

Goals: Spark usage, distribute tokens, activate champions.

What to Measure:

• Unique wallets interacting with contracts

• Swap → stake → vote conversion rates

• Token holder count and distribution

• Social-to-onchain funnel (clicks → connects → swaps)

• Referral or Zealy campaign success (e.g. quests completed)

Launch isn’t a hype moment—it’s a behavior checkpoint. If it doesn’t lead to usage, it didn’t land.

Post-Launch: Retain and Scale

Goals: Build habits, create loops, drive ecosystem adoption.

What to Measure:

• Week 1, 4, and 8 retention (returning wallets / actions)

• % of circulating supply staked or reused

• Number of apps integrating your token or protocol

• Governance or proposal participation

• Onchain net promoter signals (referrals, user-generated content, restaking)

Real PMF isn’t measured by day 1 volume. It’s measured by who’s still around on day 30 and what they’re doing.

Action Steps & Worksheets

Step-by-Step Instructions

1. Audit Your Dashboard
   → Kill anything that doesn’t tie to real behavior.

2. Define Metrics by Phase
   → Use the GTM Metrics Planner to track only what matters now.

3. Set Up Feedback Loops
   → Pair your metrics dashboard with a monthly user interview program.

4. Align With Founders and Product
   → Pick 2–3 North Star KPIs everyone can see, understand, and rally behind.

5. Design for the Next Action
   → Every metric should lead somewhere: from swap to stake, from vote to refer.

Worksheets & Templates

↗ GTM Metrics Planner (Pre, Launch, Post)
↗ North Star Metric Worksheet
↗ X / Social Analytics Worksheet
↗ OKR Worksheet: Define Success That Drives Real Growth

Tools You Can Use

• Onchain: Dune, Flipside, Nansen

• Social: Typefully, X Analytics, Zealy

• Web2: Google Analytics, Notion forms, HubSpot-lite

• CRM-lite: Questflow, Layer3, Metaforo (wallet-based funnels)

Final Checklist: Is Your Metrics Engine Working?

✓ You're tracking different KPIs for each GTM phase.
✓ Every metric ties to a user action, not a vanity goal.
✓ You’re combining quantitative dashboards with qualitative interviews.
✓ You have a growth funnel with benchmarked conversion steps.
✓ Marketing, product, and founders share visibility on key metrics.
✓ You’re iterating based on data, not gut instinct.
✓ Your ecosystem contributors know what success looks like and how to measure it.