We pushed a major update last week and retention rates just tanked across all cohorts.
Went from 45% day-7 retention to 32% almost overnight. The feature tested well internally but clearly something went wrong.
Anyone else dealt with this kind of immediate drop after shipping?
Check if the new feature changed your core user flow or made existing actions harder to find.
Sometimes what works in testing breaks the habits people already built with your app. I would look at where users are dropping off now compared to before the update.
Might be worth rolling back temporarily while you figure out what exactly caused the drop.
We see this with ad campaigns too. Test the rollback first then add features back one by one.
Had this exact thing happen with a productivity app. Day 7 retention dropped from 41% to 28% after we added a new onboarding screen.
Turns out the feature wasn’t the problem - it was loading 2.3 seconds slower than the old version. Users were bouncing before they even saw what we built.
Run a quick performance check on key screens. Also look at crash reports if you haven’t already. Sometimes the real issue hides behind the obvious one.
If performance looks fine, segment your retention data by user type. New users vs returning users will tell different stories about what broke.
Focus on user feedback before the next update.
Review your analytics to pinpoint where users are getting blocked now. The update might have disrupted their usual flow. I’ve encountered issues when features change core actions users expect. Even minor UI adjustments can impact retention if they disrupt established habits. Use a user session recording tool if available. This will help identify friction points quickly.