Playbooks

What’s in season at your stage.

The right move depends on where a product is. Pick your maturity (rows) and the stage where users get stuck (columns) to see the moves to lead with, and the ones to leave for later.

30 playbooks

The Stage Map

Maturity × lifecycle stage

Pay and Spread are overlays: they run alongside the other stages rather than after them. Empty cells have no playbook yet.

The Stage Map: one playbook per maturity row and lifecycle stage. Empty cells have no playbook yet.
Maturity	Value	Discover	Start	Return	Stay	Pay	Spread
M0-M1Idea / prototype to Searching (pre-PMF)	Find who needs it2 lead moves	First users3 lead moves	First-session win4 lead moves	Reliable core reward1 lead move	Stay out of seasonPlaybook	Early willingness-to-pay1 lead move · +2 variants	Founder asks1 lead move
M2Early fit	Early-fit value check1 lead move	Earned-to-owned acquisition2 lead moves	Early-fit onboarding4 lead moves · +1 variant	Owned trigger and loaded investment4 lead moves	Emerging veterans notePlaybook	Depth-gated monetization3 lead moves · +2 variants	Value-carrying invites2 lead moves
M2-M3Early fit to Scale	No playbook	Buyer proof pack2 lead moves · 1 variant	No playbook	Repeat purchase3 lead moves · 5 variants	No playbook	No playbook	No playbook
M3Scale	Scale-stage fit pulsePlaybook	Scaling acquisition2 lead moves	Scale onboarding optimization3 lead moves	Scaled habit loop2 lead moves	Veteran status and reputation3 lead moves	Pricing page and conversion moment3 lead moves · +2 variants	Referral loop3 lead moves
M4-M5Mature to Stalled / declining	Re-validate value1 lead move	Renewed acquisition2 lead moves	Segment onboarding2 lead moves	Novelty and current-user protection3 lead moves · +1 variant	Evergreen endgame5 lead moves	Expansion and pricing power3 lead moves · +2 variants	Identity and ambassador2 lead moves

Reading the rows

Each maturity asks a different question

Maturity comes from product-market fit and growth signals only. The same technique can be right at one row and premature at another.

M0Idea / prototype: Is there a real itch, felt often enough?
M1Searching (pre-PMF): Who, if anyone, is it a must-have for?
M2Early fit: How do we put every new user on the path that retained users took?
M3Scale: Can we scale acquisition, conversion and loops without leaking?
M4Mature: Can we deepen and protect the habit?
M5Stalled / declining: Is this a discovery collapse, an endgame collapse or novelty decay?

Your product

Find the stage your product is stuck in

The Stage Finder gives a first, low-confidence read of your product’s cell in two minutes; Gamify It confirms it with evidence from your product. Connecting is free; a Pro subscription starts it.

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