What tools should I use to track metrics, and do they differ for B2B and B2C?
Quick answer
Start simple and add tools as you grow. B2C startups lean on website and product analytics; B2B startups lean on a CRM and pipeline tracking. Both need clean accounting and a way to bring it all together.
The mistake most founders make
Buying expensive tools too early, or the opposite — running the whole company on one messy spreadsheet long after it's outgrown it. Match the tool to your stage and your business.
For B2C startups
You're tracking lots of users and their behaviour, so you'll want website and product analytics (tools like Google Analytics, Mixpanel or Amplitude), your store or platform's own dashboards (like a Shopify dashboard), and your ad-platform reports for spend and conversion. The focus is funnels, retention curves and cohorts.
For B2B startups
You're tracking fewer, higher-value deals and relationships, so a CRM is the heart of it (tools like HubSpot, Salesforce or Zoho CRM) to manage leads, pipeline and conversion. If you're , add product analytics too.
What both need
A cloud accounting tool (like Zoho Books, QuickBooks, Xero or Tally) for clean financials, and a simple dashboard or BI layer to pull everything together — early on a Google Sheet or Looker Studio is plenty; later, tools like Power BI or Metabase. The goal is one place where your key numbers live, updated regularly.
Our honest take
Tools don't create discipline — they support it. Pick a small stack you'll actually keep updated over a big stack that goes stale. Start light, add as the questions get harder.