How to track investor updates and see who read your asks
How founders send investor updates as tracked links and see which investors read the asks section.
The short answer
Send your investor update as a tracked link, with the asks in their own section. The report shows which investors opened it, how far they read and whether they reached the asks.
Most investor updates go out by email. The founder has no idea who read them. A tracked link gives you that answer for free.
Why the asks section matters
An update has two jobs. It keeps investors informed. It also asks them for help: intros, hires, advice. The second job brings the most value, and it sits at the end of most updates. Many readers stop before they reach it.
When you see who reached the asks, you know who to follow up with by name.
A structure that tracks well
Give each part its own heading. Time per section then shows each part separately. Put the asks high if most readers stop early.
- Headline: one sentence on the month.
- Key metrics: three to five numbers with the change since last month.
- Wins.
- Challenges.
- Asks: each ask as its own item with a name or a company.
- Thanks: credit the investors who helped last month.
Write asks that people can act on
A vague ask gets no reply. A specific ask gets intros. Name the person, the company or the role. Say why it matters now.
- Weak: 'Intros to enterprise buyers.'
- Strong: 'An intro to the head of finance operations at a US bank with more than 1,000 staff. We have a pilot slot open in December.'
- Weak: 'Help with hiring.'
- Strong: 'Our first sales engineer. Ideal: two years in API sales. Please forward the role to one person you trust.'
Send it
- Write the update as a Claude artifact, an HTML page or a Markdown file.
- Drop it into ArtifactSend, or ask Claude to send it with the MCP.
- Choose the email door, or an allow list of your investors' emails.
- Paste the link into your update email with a two-line summary.
- Turn on the weekly reading report.
Read the report
- Opened: which investors opened the update.
- Reached the asks: read depth tells you who got to the asks section.
- Time on asks: who stayed long enough to read them.
- Copied text: who copied an ask, often to forward it.
- Clicks: who clicked a link in the update, such as your product page.
Follow up
- Thank investors who read the asks and copied one. Ask if they need anything to make the intro.
- Send a short personal note to investors who opened but did not reach the asks. Name one ask that fits them.
- Do not chase investors who did not open. Note it, and try a different subject line next month.
A monthly rhythm
- Day 1: send the update link.
- Day 3: check who opened and who reached the asks. Thank the helpers.
- Day 7: send personal notes to readers who stopped before the asks.
- Day 25: review which asks got help. Carry open asks into the next update, with more detail.
See when investors visit your website
Add the one-line ArtifactSend script to your website. When an investor clicks from the update to your site, you see the visit and get an email. This works only for readers who click from your artifact. It does not track other visitors.
Keep one link per quarter
Some founders keep one living update link per quarter. They update it each month with the MCP tool update_artifact. Investors bookmark it and always see the latest numbers. The report shows each return visit.
Be open about tracking
Add one line to the update. For example: 'This link shows me who read the asks. It helps me follow up.' A clear note builds trust.