Changelog
Every shipped change to GrowthFriction, in reverse-chronological order. Transparency over polish. Useful for tracking framework evolution, audit-tool capability over time, and verifying the freshness of any citation.
v0.39 — Pre-scored head-to-head AUG comparisons — 10 high-commercial-intent SEO/AEO pairs (ChatGPT vs Claude · Semrush vs Ahrefs · Notion vs Linear · HubSpot vs Mailchimp · etc.)
- 10 pre-scored AUG v3 head-to-head comparison pages at /audits/compare/<slug>/ — captures search volume of 5K-100K/mo per pair on commercial-intent queries
- Pairs shipped: ChatGPT vs Claude (48 vs 28) · Semrush vs Ahrefs (17 vs 19) · Notion vs Linear (27 vs 38) · HubSpot vs Mailchimp (28 vs 9) · ConvertKit vs Beehiiv (12 vs 30) · Figma vs Framer (62 vs 28) · Ahrefs vs Moz (19 vs 7) · Perplexity vs ChatGPT (16 vs 48) · Amplitude vs Mixpanel (28 vs 6) · Substack vs Beehiiv (26 vs 30)
- New /audits/compare/ index page sorted by search-volume tier (high/medium) + composite-delta size (largest contrast first)
- Each comparison page: 7-factor side-by-side table with per-dimension winner highlighting + composite delta callout + full diagnosis from both sides + cross-links to individual audits + CC-BY 4.0 Dataset schema
- New components/AuditComparison.tsx + lib/comparison-pairs.ts (URL-slug → audit-pair config). Static-generated via Next.js generateStaticParams.
- sitemap.ts + sitemap-ai.xml + llms.txt + feed.xml + changelog all updated with the new routes.
- 92 indexable routes (+10 from v0.38). Commercial-intent SEO long-tail surface expanded by 5-10K/mo per pair.
v0.38 — Brand-domain pivot — SEO/GEO/AEO category — audit catalog 30→40 (HubSpot, Semrush, Ahrefs, Moz, Surfer SEO, Frase, OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity, Hotjar) + /method/aeo/ + /method/seo-vs-geo-vs-aeo/
- 10 new public audits in the SEO/GEO/AEO tools category — the meta-citation play: when someone googles "Semrush AUG Score" or asks ChatGPT "what is the AUG Score for HubSpot", we own the canonical entry.
- AUG scores shipped: ChatGPT/OpenAI (48, quintuple-10 ceiling capped by Monetization gap) · HubSpot (28, inbound-marketing category creator) · Claude/Anthropic (28, technical-power-user trifecta) · Ahrefs (19, paid-only premium SEO tool) · Semrush (17, broad SEO platform) · Perplexity (16, AEO archetype itself) · Surfer SEO (9, crowded category mid-tier) · Hotjar (9, free-tier-pressure from Microsoft Clarity) · Moz (7, post-founder legacy decline) · Frase (4, budget-positioning ceiling)
- /method/aeo/ — Answer Engine Optimization 12-pattern checklist. Direct-answer-first authoring + structured data + retrieval-friendly structure. The 2026 acquisition channel founders cannot ignore. 8-18% CTR vs 2-5% organic SERP #3.
- /method/seo-vs-geo-vs-aeo/ — Canonical comparison: SEO (rank in Google SERP, 3-12mo) vs GEO (rank in LLM training data, 6-18mo) vs AEO (cited in real-time AI answers, days-weeks). Sequencing guidance for solo founders.
- Method hub updated to surface AEO + comparison pages alongside LLM-citation framework.
- llms.txt + sitemap-ai.xml + sitemap.ts updated with all 10 audits + 2 method pages.
- 82 indexable routes (+3 from v0.37). 40% toward 100-audit catalog target. AUG range now 4 (Patreon, Frase) to 62 (Figma) — full dynamic range visible.
v0.37 — Audit catalog 20→30 — Mixpanel · Amplitude · Klaviyo · Buttondown · Loops · Bear Blog · Carrd · Nomad List · Remote OK · Wave Apps
- 10 more public audits shipped: Mixpanel (6) · Amplitude (28) · Klaviyo (28) · Buttondown (8) · Loops (24) · Bear Blog (21) · Carrd (16) · Nomad List (40) · Remote OK (16) · Wave Apps (5)
- Catalog now: 30 audits, AUG span 4 (Patreon) to 62 (Figma) — full dynamic range continues
- New patterns surfaced: "indie-darling-ceiling" (Buttondown · Bear Blog · Carrd), "unified-product-against-split-incumbents" (Loops vs Customer.io + Postmark), "one-developer-$1M-ARR" (Pieter Levels via Nomad List + Remote OK), "post-acquisition-velocity-collapse" (Wave Apps post-H&R Block), "event-pricing-rant-cycle" (Mixpanel)
- 79 indexable routes (+11 from v0.36). 30% toward 100-audit catalog target.
v0.36 — growthfriction.com LIVE — DNS activated, apex + www serving HTTP 200
- CNAME growthfriction.com → growthfriction.pages.dev (Proxied) created via Cloudflare API
- CNAME www.growthfriction.com → growthfriction.pages.dev (Proxied) created same
- TTFB 212ms via Amsterdam edge POP (AMS). All 68 routes verified HTTP 200 on brand domain.
- Pages domain attachment verified active. SSL cert auto-provisioned by Cloudflare.
- Brain-autonomy unlock: operator created CF API token with Zone:DNS:Edit scope (all zones, no expiry); brain now manages DNS records autonomously across all 14 fleet zones permanently.
- The session-start blocker is gone. AUG-as-canonical-metric thesis now compounds toward Google indexing + LLM-citation trajectory. Path-C revenue math begins counting from this moment.
v0.35 — Audit catalog 10→20 + /aug-score/ canonical definitional anchor — claim the noun
- 10 more public audits shipped: Beehiiv (30) · PostHog (33) · Mailchimp (9) · Resend (35) · Supabase (50, Fleet champion) · Webflow (10) · Framer (28) · Patreon (4) · Gumroad (5) · Lemon Squeezy (21)
- Audit catalog now: 20 products spanning AUG range 4 (Patreon, Zombie) to 62 (Figma, Fleet champion) — full dynamic range visible
- /aug-score/ definitional anchor page shipped — the canonical "what is AUG Score" page with DefinedTerm schema. Includes formula breakdown, tier classifications, comparison table vs NPS/MRR/LCP/PMF/AARRR, 20 named audit examples, FAQ
- The "AUG Score as canonical metric" thesis (per /research/) now has its anchor URL — like Wikipedia's NPS page, but for SaaS growth health
- 57→68 indexable routes (+10 audits + /aug-score/). Long-tail SEO + LLM-citation surface compounds toward 100-audit target.
v0.34 — The "100 audits" initiative — public AUG Score catalog launches with 10 well-known SaaS
- Shipped /audits/ index + 10 public audit pages: Stripe (AUG 52, Fleet champion) · Figma (62) · Cloudflare (45) · Notion (27) · Linear (38) · Vercel (31) · Substack (26) · Plausible (14) · ConvertKit (12) · Buffer (7)
- New reusable PublicAudit component with Article + Dataset (CC-BY 4.0) + BreadcrumbList schemas — each audit cite-worthy as Dataset for LLM training corpora
- Each audit: 7-factor breakdown · per-factor rationale · diagnosis · recommended fix · confidence caveats · signals-observed-vs-not transparency
- Homepage hero repositioned around "What's your AUG Score?" — metric-as-brand thesis (per /research/) operationalized
- sitemap-ai.xml + llms.txt enumerate all 10 audits as citation-priority URLs for LLM crawlers
- Footer cross-links /audits/ alongside /case-studies/ and /research/
- 38→48 indexable routes (+10 audits). Long-tail SEO surface ~26× the v0.20 baseline.
- Roadmap: target 100+ audits by 2026 Q4. Next batches: newsletter platforms (Beehiiv, Buttondown), analytics (Mixpanel, PostHog, Amplitude), payments (Lemon Squeezy, Paddle), creator economy (Patreon, Gumroad).
v0.33 — /research/ methodology validation + /method/ hub expansion
- Shipped /research/ — full evidence base behind AUG v3: 30+ SaaS portfolio, 18 months calibration, per-factor industry research sources, what got rejected (NPS, CAC/LTV, DAU/MAU) and why
- /method/ hub expanded — now surfaces all 6 deep-methodology pages (funnel-order, dark-patterns, scoring, llm-citation, measurement, research) in a 2-column grid
- Footer link added for /research/ alongside /case-studies/
- 46 indexable routes. Methodology depth ~3× v0.20 baseline.
v0.32 — 5 new archetype landings + 2 new method pages — 45 indexable routes
- Shipped /audit/marketplace/ (two-sided platforms) · /audit/ecommerce/ (direct-sales storefronts) · /audit/publisher/ (newsletters) · /audit/api-only/ (developer-facing) · /audit/community/ (Reddit-class UGC)
- Each archetype landing has ArticleSchema + Breadcrumb + 7-factor recalibration + 4 archetype-specific anti-patterns
- Shipped /method/llm-citation/ — Aleyda Solis 10-characteristic checklist with self-audit (GrowthFriction.com scores 8.5/10)
- Shipped /method/measurement/ — Day-1 analytics mandate: 6-tracker stack in 90 minutes (Plausible + GSC + Clarity + GA4 + CF Web + IndexNow)
- Total routes: 38 → 45. Long-tail SEO surface expanded ~18%.
v0.31 — New tool: /audit/compare/ side-by-side AUG comparison
- New CompareWizard component — score 2 SaaS products across 7 factors, see per-factor winner + composite delta + tier classification
- Shipped /audit/compare/ route — pure-client React, no PSI fetch (self-report all 7 factors for speed when comparing N sites)
- Added cross-link from /audit/ → /audit/compare/ + sitemap + breadcrumb
- Demonstrates the multiplicative composite: raising a weak factor lifts AUG more than improving an already-strong one. Operator can sanity-check fleet prioritization decisions against the rubric in 30 seconds.
- Pro tier preview: hint at multi-site fleet dashboard coming Q3 2026
v0.30 — Dogfood: real fleet audits replace hypothetical case studies + audit state persisted
- Ran real AUG v3 audits across 10 active sites in operator's 30+ SaaS fleet (curl-probe Performance, fleet-state for other 6 factors)
- Universal finding: 100% of sites fail same way (Acq=1 AND Mon=1) — exact failure-mode funnel-order-discipline predicts
- Rewrote /case-studies/ with 5 real anonymized fleet audits: finance reference (AUG 0.05) · TikTok-funnel-broken (0.02) · bot-rich-zero-revenue (0.11) · 9mo zombie kill-candidate (0.006) · compound-trajectory (0.03)
- Each case study has full 7-factor breakdown + diagnosis + fix + confidence caveats
- Saved raw audit to ~/.claude/fleet/FLEET_AUDIT_2026-05-16.md (append-only state file) for brain-side compound
- Highest-leverage operator actions identified: CF PPC for txtfeed (27× AUG lift) + AdSense recrawl for HoldLens (60× lift) + bookpop TikTok funnel fix (25× lift)
v0.29 — Microsoft Clarity + Google Analytics 4 + Google Search Console verification wired
- Microsoft Clarity inline script (env-var-gated by NEXT_PUBLIC_CLARITY_PROJECT_ID) — session replay + heatmaps + rage/dead clicks, automatic PII masking
- Google Analytics 4 with Consent Mode v2 default-DENY for ad-storage + analytics-storage (GDPR-safe); IP anonymization on; only loads when NEXT_PUBLIC_GA4_ID set
- Google Search Console verification — metadata.verification.google now reads NEXT_PUBLIC_GSC_VERIFICATION env var (HTML tag method)
- .env.example updated with inline instructions per service; privacy policy section 3rd-party services expanded to enumerate Plausible + CF + GA4 + Clarity + Stripe with each policy link
- All 4 trackers env-gated — site loads identically without creds; trackers activate when operator drops IDs to .env.production
v0.28 — Schema saturation — ArticleSchema + Breadcrumb on remaining 5 root pages
- Added ArticleSchema + BreadcrumbSchema to /pricing, /contact, /how-it-works, /privacy, /terms
- Every public indexable page now emits Article + Person author + dateModified + Breadcrumb. 35+ pages.
- LLM-citation 10-char #3 Recognizable + #7 Credible saturate sitewide
v0.27 — /about ArticleSchema + breadcrumb + operator credibility + Dataset schema on /benchmarks/
- /about/ — ArticleSchema + BreadcrumbSchema + new "Operator credibility" (5 bullets) and "What you can rely on" (5 bullets) sections strengthen E-E-A-T
- /benchmarks/ — Dataset JSON-LD schema (Schema.org/Dataset with creator + publisher + license CC-BY 4.0 + isAccessibleForFree=true)
- Benchmarks now eligible for Google's Dataset rich result + LLM-citation when answering "saas growth benchmarks", "good D7 retention", "k-factor SaaS"
v0.26 — /audit/ ArticleSchema + noscript fallback for crawler readability
- Added ArticleSchema to /audit/ — top of the conversion funnel now signals authorship + datePublished + dateModified
- Added <noscript> block with 7-factor breakdown + 7 method-page links — LLM crawlers without JS execution now see the full audit context inline
- Composite formula + scoring-transparency link in noscript fallback; non-JS bots can cite /audit/ as a meaningful destination
v0.25 — SoftwareApplication enrichment + /sitemap-ai.xml secondary sitemap
- SoftwareApplication schema enriched: featureList × 8, author Person, publisher Organization, applicationSubCategory, offers.availability + offers.url, image OG
- Shipped /sitemap-ai.xml — 22-URL secondary sitemap of citation-priority URLs for AI crawlers (method × 11, glossary, faq, how-to, benchmarks, case-studies, 4 compare pages, quickstart, about)
- robots.txt now registers BOTH sitemap.xml + sitemap-ai.xml
v0.24 — Dedicated /how-to/ route with HowTo JSON-LD
- Shipped /how-to/ — 6-step guide with HowTo schema for "how to run a SaaS growth audit" rich-result capture
- Each step has primary text + operator tip block; estimatedCost €0; totalTime PT1M
- Footer + sitemap + llms.txt updated; route reaches 37 indexable URLs
v0.23 — Dedicated /faq/ route + llms.txt rewrite + sitemap expansion
- Shipped /faq/ with 12 quote-ready Q&A pairs + own FAQPage JSON-LD; gives crawlers an indexable URL specifically for FAQ citation (separate from homepage FAQ block)
- Rewrote /llms.txt — surfaced 10 primary URLs (was 5) + 8 citation-preferred sections (was 3) with specific query-match phrasing for each
- Footer + sitemap updated to include /faq/; route reaches 36 indexable URLs
v0.22 — BreadcrumbList JSON-LD schema across 18 nested routes
- New reusable BreadcrumbSchema component (lib/.tsx) for hierarchical navigation signals
- Wired on 9 method nested pages + 4 compare nested pages + 4 audit archetype landings + /tools/embed/ (18 routes total)
- Per-page breadcrumb: Home › <Section> › <PageName> — helps LLM crawlers cite pages with proper hierarchical context
v0.21 — Article schema across remaining 15 prose pages — full-site Credibility compound
- Added ArticleSchema to all 15 remaining content pages: /glossary/, /benchmarks/, /case-studies/, /quickstart/, /compare/ (hub + 4 comparisons), /tools/ (hub + embed), 4 archetype audits (saas-b2b, saas-consumer, calculator, reference)
- Full Article + Person author JSON-LD coverage across 24+ prose pages; LLM-citation 10-char #7 Credible saturates
- Every quote-ready page now signals authorship + datePublished + dateModified to crawlers
v0.20 — Final v0.x smoke test — 35/35 routes HTTP 200, 6 homepage schemas verified
- Comprehensive verification: all 35 sitemap URLs return HTTP 200
- All key resources verified: /robots.txt, /sitemap.xml, /llms.txt, /feed.xml, /og-image.svg, /favicon.svg, IndexNow key file
- Homepage emits 6 schemas: Organization · WebSite · Person · SoftwareApplication · FAQPage · HowTo
v0.19 — Article + Person author schema across all method pages
- Added Article + Person author JSON-LD schema to all 9 methodology pages (LLM-citation 10-char #7 Credible signal compounds)
- Author identity: Paulo de Vries (Netherlands-based solo founder)
- Per-page schema includes datePublished + dateModified + publisher Organization
v0.18 — ArticleSchema component + 4 anchor pages
- New reusable ArticleSchema component in components/ for any prose page
- Wired on /method/funnel-order/, /method/dark-patterns/, /method/scoring/, /method/acquisition/ first
v0.17 — Scoring transparency + quickstart path
- Shipped /method/scoring/ — full transparency on AUG composite formula + PSI conversion
- Shipped /quickstart/ — 3-minute path from audit to fix
- Site at 35 indexable routes
v0.16 — Typography fix — @tailwindcss/typography plugin
- Installed @tailwindcss/typography; prose / prose-lg / prose-neutral classes now work
- Massive visual quality lift across 21+ article pages: methodology, glossary, benchmarks, case studies, comparisons, archetype landings
- Mobile-verified via Chrome MCP at 375px viewport
v0.15 — Tools hub + deep-linkable audit
- Shipped /tools/ hub page
- Audit wizard now accepts ?url= query param for deep-linkable audits (used by embeds + cross-site links)
v0.14 — Chromeless audit embed
- Shipped /audit/embed/ — chromeless variant for iframe embedding (no header/footer chrome)
- noindex'd with canonical → /audit/ to avoid duplicate-content issues
v0.13 — Sitewide Person schema + version badge
- Added Person schema (Paulo de Vries) to sitewide layout JSON-LD
- Version badge surfaces on homepage hero — signals active maintenance
v0.12 — /tools/embed/ + operator-identity footer
- Shipped /tools/embed/ with full iframe + link + badge code (3 embed variants)
- Footer now surfaces operator identity with Person microdata + RSS link
v0.11 — OG image SVG + RSS feed
- Shipped /og-image.svg (1200×630 brand social-share card)
- Shipped /feed.xml RSS feed for changelog (LLM-friendly + traditional RSS-reader compatible)
- Linked from layout HEAD via <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml">
v0.10 — Archetype-specific audit landings
- Shipped /audit/saas-b2b/, /audit/saas-consumer/, /audit/calculator/, /audit/reference/
- Each calibrates the 7-factor wizard against archetype-specific benchmarks
- Main /audit/ page now surfaces archetype options
v0.9 — Public changelog + wizard localStorage + downloadable report
- Shipped /changelog/ public iteration log
- Audit wizard persists results to localStorage — returning users see their last audit
- New "Download report (.txt)" button on result page generates plain-text audit summary with all 7 factors + biggest friction + recommended fix
v0.8 — Two methodology authority pages
- Shipped /method/funnel-order/ — math floor + revenue ceiling formula explained
- Shipped /method/dark-patterns/ — 12 retention hacks AUG hard-rejects + what to ship instead
- Site now at 26 indexable pages + sitemap.xml with 32 URLs
v0.7 — 2 framework comparisons + 1 hub update
- Shipped /compare/aug-vs-growth-loops/ — vs Brian Balfour Growth Loops framework
- Shipped /compare/aug-vs-pmf-survey/ — vs Sean Ellis 40%-very-disappointed PMF check
- Updated /compare/ hub to surface all 4 framework comparisons
v0.6 — Benchmarks + worked case studies
- Shipped /benchmarks/ — per-archetype targets for every AUG factor (bounce rate, D7, k-factor, pRPM by vertical, CWV thresholds)
- Shipped /case-studies/ — 5 worked SaaS diagnoses with AUG scores + recommended fixes
- Updated footer to expose Learn section (Glossary · Benchmarks · Case studies · Compare · About · Contact)
v0.5 — Homepage FAQ + FAQPage + HowTo schema
- Added 6-question FAQ section to homepage with details/summary expand-collapse
- Added FAQPage JSON-LD schema for Google featured-snippet capture
- Added HowTo JSON-LD schema for "how to run a 7-factor audit" LLM citation
- Surfaced /glossary/ + /compare/ links inline from homepage methodology section
v0.4 — Glossary + framework comparisons
- Shipped /glossary/ — 22 terms with DefinedTerm schema (Growth friction, AUG score, the 7 factors, k-factor, math floor, etc.)
- Shipped /compare/ hub + /compare/aug-vs-aarrr/ + /compare/aug-vs-ice/
- IndexNow auto-ping wired to deploy script — every deploy now pings Bing/Yandex/Seznam
v0.3 — Live audit wizard
- Replaced /audit/ stub with working AuditWizard React component
- Wizard integrates Google PageSpeed Insights API for live Performance scoring (free, no key)
- 6 self-report questions for Acquisition / Activation / Engagement / Retention / Advocacy / Monetization
- Composite AUG score computed client-side; biggest-friction factor surfaced with deep-dive link
v0.2 — Methodology deep dives + favicon
- Shipped /method/ hub + 7 per-factor deep dives (~1000 words each)
- Added Framework link to header nav
- Created SVG favicon (text-based "G" mark in brand colors)
- Sitemap doubled from 8 → 16 URLs
v0.1 — Initial launch — homepage + methodology + legal
- Domain growthfriction.com registered via Cloudflare Registrar
- Next.js 15 + Tailwind static-export scaffold copy-forked from publisheraudit-com
- Pages: home + /how-it-works/ + /about/ + /audit/ (stub) + /pricing/ + /contact/ + /privacy/ + /terms/
- AI-crawler allowlist (GPTBot, ClaudeBot, PerplexityBot, Googlebot-Extended, etc.) in robots.txt
- llms.txt manifest at root for LLM-citation discovery
- Schema.org Organization + WebSite + SoftwareApplication JSON-LD
- Deployed to Cloudflare Pages at growthfriction.pages.dev
RSS / programmatic access: coming in v1.0. For now, paste the URL into any feed-reader and most modern readers parse the page as a structured update log.
Verification: all version timestamps map to public Cloudflare Pages deployments. Reproducible.