eCommerce & WooCommerce Metrics Glossary
Clear definitions for every metric your WooCommerce store should be tracking — from MRR and churn rate to LTV, AOV, and cohort analysis.
Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)
The predictable revenue a subscription business generates from active subscribers each month. MRR is the north star metric for WooCommerce subscription stores — it tells you instantly whether your business is growing or contracting.
Why it matters
A flat or declining MRR is an early warning sign before it shows up in annual revenue. Track it monthly alongside new MRR, expansion MRR, and churned MRR to understand the full picture.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks MRR in real time and breaks it down by new, churned, and net MRR so you can act before trends become problems.
Track MRR in SaleTidesAnnual Recurring Revenue (ARR)
Your annualised subscription revenue, calculated by multiplying MRR by 12. ARR is used primarily for business planning, investor reporting, and benchmarking against other SaaS or subscription businesses.
Why it matters
ARR smooths out seasonal variation and gives a high-level view of your subscription business's trajectory. It is most useful for annual planning and comparing year-over-year growth.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides displays ARR alongside MRR so you always have both the immediate and the long-range view of your subscription revenue.
Track ARR in SaleTidesChurn Rate
The percentage of customers or subscribers who cancel within a given period. Churn is one of the most damaging silent forces in a subscription business — a 5% monthly churn means you lose over half your subscriber base within a year.
Why it matters
Reducing churn by even 1–2% can have a larger impact on revenue than acquiring new customers. Understanding when and why customers churn lets you intervene at the right moment.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks both subscriber churn and revenue churn, and shows churn trends over time so you can identify the periods or product changes that triggered increases.
Track Churn Rate in SaleTidesCustomer Lifetime Value (LTV / CLV)
The total revenue a single customer is expected to generate over their entire relationship with your store. LTV determines how much you can profitably spend to acquire a customer and which customer segments are most valuable to retain.
Why it matters
A high LTV means you have more room to invest in acquisition and retention. Comparing LTV across customer segments — by product, channel, or location — reveals where your best customers come from.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides calculates LTV per customer and across segments, so you can identify your highest-value cohorts and focus retention efforts where they have the most impact.
Track LTV in SaleTidesAverage Order Value (AOV)
The average amount a customer spends each time they place an order. AOV is one of the fastest levers to increase revenue without increasing traffic — improving it by 10% on a $100,000/month store adds $10,000 in monthly revenue.
Why it matters
Tracking AOV over time reveals whether promotions, upsells, or product changes are affecting basket size. Segmenting AOV by product category or customer type highlights your most valuable purchase patterns.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks AOV in real time and lets you compare it across date ranges, so you can measure the exact impact of upsell campaigns, pricing changes, or new product launches.
Track AOV in SaleTidesCohort Analysis
A method of grouping customers who made their first purchase in the same time period and tracking their behaviour over time. Cohort analysis separates the performance of newer customers from older ones, revealing whether your store is getting better or worse at retaining buyers.
Why it matters
Without cohort analysis, improving overall retention metrics can mask the fact that newer customers are churning faster than older ones. Cohort views expose that hidden deterioration before it compounds.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides includes subscription and purchase cohort analysis so you can compare how customers acquired in different months or campaigns behave over their first 3, 6, and 12 months.
Use Cohort Analysis in SaleTidesRetention Rate
The percentage of customers who return to make another purchase within a defined time window. High retention is the clearest signal of product-market fit — it means customers get enough value to come back without being pushed.
Why it matters
Tracking 30-day, 60-day, and 90-day retention separately reveals whether customers disengage immediately after purchase or gradually drop off. Each pattern requires a different retention strategy.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks repeat purchase rates and retention curves, so you can see exactly when customers tend to disengage and time your re-engagement campaigns accordingly.
Track Retention in SaleTidesRefund Rate
The percentage of orders that result in a refund within a given period. A rising refund rate is often the first signal of product quality issues, misleading descriptions, or fulfilment problems — and it directly erodes net revenue.
Why it matters
Most WooCommerce stores monitor refund rate too infrequently. Tracking it weekly by product, category, or country surfaces the root cause quickly, before a small problem becomes a reputation issue.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides monitors refund rate in real time and breaks it down by product, category, and time period — giving you the granularity needed to find and fix the root cause fast.
Track Refund Rate in SaleTidesGross Revenue vs Net Revenue
Gross revenue is total sales before any deductions. Net revenue subtracts refunds, discounts, and fees — giving you the amount your store actually earned. Most WooCommerce built-in reports show gross revenue, which can paint a misleadingly positive picture.
Why it matters
Optimising for gross revenue while your net revenue shrinks is a common trap. Always track both side by side, especially during promotional periods when discounts can quietly erode profitability.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides displays both gross and net revenue on every report, with full breakdowns of refunds and discounts so you can see the real financial impact of every campaign or promotion.
Track Revenue in SaleTidesCustomer Acquisition Cost (CAC)
The total cost of acquiring one new customer, including all marketing spend, ad costs, and sales expenses in a period divided by the number of new customers won. CAC determines whether your growth is financially sustainable.
Why it matters
The LTV:CAC ratio is one of the most important health indicators for a WooCommerce business. A ratio below 3:1 often means you are spending more to grow than you can recoup. Improving retention (LTV) is often faster than reducing CAC.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks new customer acquisition trends over time. Pair the new-customer data from SaleTides with your ad spend to calculate CAC and monitor it each month.
Track Customer Data in SaleTidesConversion Rate
The percentage of website visitors who complete a purchase. WooCommerce store conversion rates typically range from 1–4%, with top-performing stores reaching 5–8%. Even a 0.5% improvement in conversion rate can significantly increase revenue without increasing ad spend.
Why it matters
Conversion rate should be monitored alongside traffic volume — rising traffic with a falling conversion rate means your new visitors are less qualified, or your product pages need work.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides tracks orders over time, which — when combined with your analytics traffic data — lets you calculate and monitor conversion rate trends across campaigns and date ranges.
Track Conversion in SaleTidesRevenue Per Customer
Total revenue divided by the number of unique customers in a period. Revenue per customer bridges AOV and purchase frequency — a high figure means customers either buy often, buy in large amounts, or both.
Why it matters
Comparing revenue per customer across segments — new vs returning, by country, by acquisition channel — shows you which customers are genuinely profitable and worth investing in to retain.
How SaleTides tracks this
SaleTides calculates revenue per customer across segments and over time, making it easy to identify your most valuable customer groups and tailor your marketing accordingly.
Track Revenue Per Customer in SaleTidesSee All These Metrics in Your Store
SaleTides tracks every metric in this glossary — automatically, in real time, for your WooCommerce store.
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