Notes on finding your customers
Where visits really come from, why so many arrive as Direct, and how to tell which channels bring people who pay.
October 20, 2026 · 8 min read
What is direct traffic, and where does it really come from?
Direct traffic is every visit your analytics couldn't trace. Here is what ends up in it, why it grows, and how to find the real sources hiding inside.
October 20, 2026 · 9 min read
How to track ChatGPT traffic in GA4 (and the part GA4 can't see)
Find visits from ChatGPT, Perplexity, Claude and Gemini in Google Analytics 4 with one regex and a custom channel group, and learn why some AI traffic still hides in Direct.
October 20, 2026 · 8 min read
First touch vs last touch attribution, for founders who just want to know what works
First touch credits the channel that found the customer; last touch credits the one that closed them. Which revenue attribution model a small SaaS should use, with a worked example.
October 20, 2026 · 7 min read
What is dark social, and how much of your traffic is it?
Dark social is sharing your analytics can't see: links sent in WhatsApp, Slack, iMessage and email. How it shows up, how to estimate it, and how to get some of it back.
October 20, 2026 · 6 min read
Direct vs organic traffic: what's the difference, and which one matters?
Organic traffic comes from unpaid search results. Direct traffic is everything with no known source. How to tell them apart, and what each says about your product.
October 20, 2026 · 10 min read
GA4 alternatives for founders: 7 options, and how to pick one
Plausible, Fathom, Umami, Matomo, Simple Analytics, PostHog and DataFast compared on what a small SaaS actually needs: sources, conversions, privacy and setup time.
October 20, 2026 · 6 min read
UTM parameters: a small set of rules that keeps your reports clean
How to use UTM parameters without ending up with fifteen spellings of 'twitter'. Which tags to use, a naming scheme for small teams, and the mistakes that send campaigns to Direct.