New This Week: 3 Methods and 3 Playlists

This week we've added three new methods and three new playlists to MethodPunks. Here's what's new and why each one matters.

New Methods

1,000 True Fans

Kevin Kelly's classic idea, made actionable. The 1,000 True Fans method helps creators and founders figure out the minimum viable audience they need to sustain a business.

Instead of chasing millions of users, you focus on finding people who will buy everything you make. It's a powerful reframe for anyone building a niche product or creative business.

When to use it:

• You're launching a creator-led or niche product
• You need to validate whether your audience is big enough
• You want to focus on depth of engagement over breadth

Pirate Metrics (AARRR)

Dave McClure's Pirate Metrics framework breaks growth into five stages: Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Revenue, and Referral.

It gives you a common language for talking about your funnel — and a clear way to find the biggest drop-off points. If you're not sure where to focus your growth efforts, start here.

When to use it:

• You need to diagnose where users are dropping off
• You're setting up growth metrics for the first time
• You want your team aligned on what "growth" actually means

Technology Readiness Level (TRL)

Originally developed by NASA, the Technology Readiness Level framework gives you a 9-point scale for assessing how mature a technology is — from basic research all the way to proven in production.

It's especially useful for deep tech, hardware, and R&D-heavy projects where "how close are we to shipping?" isn't a straightforward question.

When to use it:

• You're evaluating emerging technologies for your product
• You need a shared vocabulary for R&D progress
• You're making build-vs-buy decisions on unproven tech

New Playlists

Lean Enterprise

The Lean Enterprise playlist brings together methods for applying lean principles inside larger organisations. It covers strategy, governance, and continuous improvement — not just startup tactics.

If you're trying to bring innovation practices into a corporate setting, this collection gives you the tools to make the case and run the process.

Open Innovation

The Open Innovation playlist is about going beyond your own four walls. It includes methods for crowdsourcing, hackathons, accelerator programs, and challenge prizes.

These methods work well when you need fresh perspectives, want to tap into external talent, or are exploring new markets you don't fully understand yet.

Growth Hacking

The Growth Hacking playlist brings together acquisition, retention, and revenue methods into one focused collection. From Pirate Metrics to digital marketing mix, it covers the full growth stack.

Use this when you're ready to move from product-market fit to scaling. It's practical, metric-driven, and designed for teams that want to grow fast without guessing.

What's Next

We're adding more methods and playlists every week. Coming soon: Custom Playlists — build your own method collections and share them with your team.

Want to see a specific method added? Hit the feedback page and let us know.