Everyone loves a hockey-stick growth chart — but not all progress shows up in revenue. Behind the scenes, we track signals that help us understand whether a startup is just gaining users or actually building something enduring.

Beyond Vanity Metrics

DAUs and MRR are important — but they’re not the whole story. For early-stage companies, some of the most telling indicators are harder to measure, but far more predictive.

Here are three under-the-radar metrics we pay close attention to:

• Product velocity: How frequently is the product improving? Are releases driven by real user feedback or internal speculation?

• Founder responsiveness: Do the founders answer tough questions directly, take feedback seriously, and act on it quickly?

• Customer obsession: Are users sticking around, even if the product isn’t perfect? Do they evangelize it unprompted?

These aren’t always listed in pitch decks — but they’re often what separates momentum from movement.

The Story Behind the Numbers

We once invested in a startup that only had 400 users. On paper, that’s small. But those users were logging in 5+ times a day, spending over 40 minutes per session, and referring friends without being asked.

Today, that company serves over 500,000 users and just closed their Series B.

Point is: quantity matters, but quality tells the real story.

What It Means for Founders

Founders reading this: don’t just chase big numbers. Build deep ones.

• Talk to your users weekly.

• Ship small, meaningful updates often.

• Document learnings.

• Track habits, not just headlines.

If your core users are obsessed, growth is just a matter of time.

Our Role as Partners

We bring this lens to every board call, catch-up, and coffee chat. We’re not here just for KPIs — we’re here for clarity, consistency, and conviction.

Because the strongest companies are built from the inside out.