LAMERS Growth Metrics

Benefit

Great for teams that want comprehensive metrics tailored specifically for product growth. Unifies the best elements of the most popular metric frameworks.

What is LAMERS Growth Metrics

In the age of big data, there are a vast amount of product metrics that can be tracked. But only some of them are meaningful for growth.

The LAMERS Growth Metrics, conceptualized by “Growth Analytics” author Shoin Wolfe, represents a comprehensive framework specifically tailored for product growth. The framework is an acronym standing for Lead, Activation, Monetization, Engagement, Retention, and Satisfaction. This framework synthesizes the best elements from pre-existing product metric frameworks like AARRR, HEART, and the Focus Metrics Framework in order to create a more holistic model centered around growth.

The underlying philosophy of LAMERS:

1. Determine 100% of the reasons you’re not growing: Create a framework where 100% of the reasons why your product isn’t growing is explainable through one of the six metric categories (LAMERS).
2. Growth is cyclical, not a linear funnel: Showcase that growth isn’t accomplished as a funnel, but a cycle of retention by converting users into repeat customers. Unlike linear models, it recognizes that post-purchase, the journey loops back, aiming to convert satisfied customers into repeat users and advocates.
3. User-lifecycle based: The framework is structured to systematically track a product's lifecycle through distinct phases, starting from the initial lead generation to the eventual satisfaction of the end-user.
4. The importance of tracking Engagement and Satisfaction: The biggest difference from other metrics is its emphasis on Engagement and Satisfaction as categories.

Did your co-workers think metrics couldn't be more lame? Well tell them to strap in, because their metrics are about to get LAMERS.

What Does LAMERS Stand For?

LAMERS stands for Lead, Activation, Monetization, Engagement and Retention. The biggest differences from other metrics, is its emphasis on Engagement and Satisfaction as categories.

Lead

• Definition: The phase where visitors come to your product to evaluate becoming a new user.
• Goal: How many visitors are coming to your product? What percentage become new users?

Activation

• Definition: The foundational stage where a new user experiences the product’s value for the first time, leading them to become a returning user.
• Goal: What percent of new users experienced the product’s core value for the first time? What percent experienced enough value that they came back?

Monetization - Revenue and conversion to becoming a paid user.

• Definition: The phase of converting users into customers, and then keeping them as customers.
• Goal: What percent of users became customers? How many customers stayed as customers? How much revenue did we make as a result of that?

Engagement

• Definition: Measures how users interact with the product. It focuses on the breadth, depth and frequency of core actions performed by users.
• Goal: What percent of users are performing actions that allows them to get value from our product? How many times do they perform it? How many users are using advanced features?

Retention

• Definition: The percentage and amount of users, customers, and revenue recurring over time.
• Goal: What percent of users from last time period come back to use the product this time period? What percent of customers that paid last time continue to pay this time? Did those customers that continued to pay spend less or more money this time?

Satisfaction

• Definition: The overall contentment and positive response of users towards the product, reflecting the quality of their experience.‍ Also acts as the umbrella categories for anything that doesn’t fit into the other metric categories.
• Goal: How satisfied are our users and customers?

Examples of LAMERS Metrics

Lead

• Number of New Users
• Signup Rate (Visitor → New User)
• Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
• Page of first landing

Activation

• Activation rate (e.g. percentage of new users who onboarded and engaged with a key feature)
• Onboarding completion rate
• Habit rate (e.g. what percent of new users completed a series of core actions that correlate with early retention)
• Time to value

Monetization

• Daily Revenue
• Net Revenue
• Conversion rates from free to paid
• Lifetime Value (LTV)
• Average Revenue Per User (ARPU)
• Refund Rate

Engagement

• Breadth, depth and frequency of feature usage
• Daily Active Users (DAU)
• Number of Power Users
• Time spent on the product

Retention

• Day 1, 7, 30 Retention Rate
• Week 1, Month 1 Retention Rate
• Engagement Retention, Customer Retention, Revenue Retention
• DAU/MAU Ratio (Daily Active Users ÷ Monthly Active Users)
• Churn rate
• Session frequency

Satisfaction

• App Rating
• Survey results for features
• Net Promoter Score (NPS)
• Customer Satisfaction Score (CSAT)
• % of active users who open support tickets
• Error rates
• Page load speed

Strengths and Weaknesses of LAMERS

Strengths

• Comprehensive Coverage: LAMERS encompasses all critical aspects of a product's growth journey, ensuring no area is overlooked.
• Flexibility and Adaptability: The framework can be tailored to suit various products and industries, making it a versatile tool for growth analysis.
• Cyclical Perspective: Recognizing the non-linear nature of customer relationships, it facilitates strategies focused on long-term user engagement and loyalty.

Weaknesses

• Subjectivity in Happiness: Measuring happiness can be subjective and also influenced by external factors.
• Requires Mature Analytics Infrastructure: To leverage LAMERS effectively, an organization needs a mature data collection and analysis infrastructure, such as product analytics with integrations, which might be a barrier for smaller or less tech-savvy companies.

In conclusion, LAMERS Growth Metrics offers a holistic and user-centered approach to product growth analysis, merging the strengths of existing models while introducing a cyclical view of customer relationships. However, its effectiveness hinges on the correct implementation and interpretation of its comprehensive set of metrics. For companies willing to invest in a robust data infrastructure and keen on a detailed, all-encompassing growth analysis, LAMERS presents a valuable tool.