Created by American entrepreneur Sean Ellis, the Growth Hacking methodology does not have a literal translation, but the two words, in a way, explain the concept: growth and exploration (hacking).
The idea behind it is basically to run quick experiments to identify more efficient ways to drive business growth.
Find out now how Growth Hacking works, especially in Digital Marketing, and what the main advantages are!
What is Growth Hacking?
Growth Hacking is a methodology that focuses on taking advantage of market gaps to uncover opportunities and develop exponential growth strategies.
Because it has a common goal with Marketing and Sales (growth), there is a lot of talk about the methodology in these contexts, but Growth Hacking is more than that:
It is a process of idealization, prioritization, testing and analysis carried out by a multidisciplinary team, which works in the most diverse areas of the company to optimize customer conversion and retention.
And actions can be formulated with a combination of strategies such as:
- SEO and Content Marketing based on keyword searches, website and blog content optimization and link building techniques;
- A/B testing and conversion optimization through analysis of strategic metrics;
- Partnerships with digital influencers and affiliates, which expand the brand’s reach;
- Automations and system integrations to improve operational efficiency and save time and resources.
What is Growth Hacking for and how does it work?
The word “hacker” generally has a negative attribution, but the term refers to an individual who seeks more detailed knowledge, beyond the common.
The professional who follows this methodology, then, analyzes the situation from where the company is to where it wants to be.
The Growth Hacking methodology, then, is made up of six steps:
- Formulate hypothesis;
- Select key results;
- Set goal;
- To execute;
- Track progress;
- Socialize/Iterate.
The concept is similar to that of Digital Marketing, but as Gaurav Rajput, author and startup developer, explains, Growth Hacking is a little more comprehensive and is not limited to just marketing management actions.
Growth Hacking can, for example, be a way of doing Marketing based on opportunity studies and application of tests.
But the growth hacker team or professional needs to consult other sectors of the company, such as product development, finance, business operations and even human resources.
When is Growth Hacking useful?
After understanding the methodology better, you must be thinking about situations in which it is welcome, right?
Check out the best apps to boost growth quickly:
- Launching new products or services, as Growth Hacking creates rapid awareness, generates interest and wins over early adopters through testing that speeds up the process;
- Increased user base, as actions of this type identify the most effective channels for acquisition, such as viral campaigns, referral incentives or specific social media strategies;
- Customer retention through loyalty programs, personalized communication and continuous improvements based on feedback;
- Conversion optimization on websites or applications with design improvements, A/B testing and sales funnel analysis;
- Generating paid traffic from campaigns on advertising platforms and audience segmentation to optimize ROAS;
- Reducing Customer Acquisition Cost ( CAC ) by identifying more accessible acquisition channels.
I hope these situations help you understand when and how Growth Hacking can be a powerful tool for your business!
With the right mindset and proper techniques, it is possible to not only survive in today’s competitive marketplace, but actually thrive!
Growth Hacking and other approaches
As Growth Hacking is designed to be agile and data-driven, it can (and should!) be used very well in other areas, such as Marketing.
I still hear, for example, some people saying that “Branding doesn’t put money in the coffers” and other things that I consider to be completely wrong…
But while Branding builds an emotional and long-term foundation with consumers, Growth Hacking and Performance Marketing can exploit these relationships to generate rapid and efficient growth.
And there are many studies today that reinforce that the secret to achieving better results — including profitability — lies in combining brand building and performance initiatives.
In fact, in an article by none other than the Harvard Business Review, the authors discuss the existence of “Brand Equity Growth”, which is a strategy that combines the two concepts to boost financial returns!
Discover in detail 8 advantages of investing in this methodology:
What are the advantages of investing in Growth Hacking?
1) Rapid growth
Since the main objective of Growth Hacking is to promote accelerated growth in companies, the professional analyzes different areas of the organization, proposes improvements and works on campaigns aimed at closing deals and gaining market share.
Furthermore, the strategies usually involve low costs and a lot of creativity!
A practical example of this can be seen from the application of A/B tests in Digital Marketing campaigns.
By optimizing ads based on audience preferences, this approach can drive sustainable base growth and add value to your strategy without necessarily increasing costs — which brings us to the next advantage.
2) Scalability
The second benefit I highlight here is the ability to increase financial results without burdening the company, keeping costs low.
Airbnb is an example of this, as the service provided by the company is the integration between property owners and people who want to rent.
Operational costs and processes should not grow too much ― even if the company has consecutive increases in the number of customers ―, making scalability possible while maintaining profitability!
3) Sales predictability
Due to the measurement of results, the growth hacker is able to predict sales in a given period based on the transaction history and stored data.
4) Promotion
Another essential feature is to have a larger sales funnel than the one generally adopted, with a certain emphasis on the steps related to Customer Success:
This is because the promotion makes the company known in the market more quickly and at very low costs!
5) Choice of alternatives
Through the integration between product development and Marketing, for example, it is possible to identify the best opportunities and apply the right tools to promote the company’s growth.
And, for Growth Hacking to be implemented masterfully, with each decision the company needs to make, the growth hacker must ask themselves what the impacts of this choice and other alternatives will be on the growth of the business.
6) Focus on metrics
To quickly identify the most effective strategies and guide decisions, I’ve already told you that Growth Hacking uses data analysis, right?
This also gives rise to the advantage of defining the right growth metrics to monitor, aligned with the company’s strategic objectives.
7) Efficiency in customer acquisition (and retention)
Since one of the goals here is to find effective and cost-effective ways to acquire customers, Growth Hacking often results in a reduction in customer acquisition costs (CAC) and an increase in marketing return on investment (ROI).
And this, in fact, can be a key point to show the impact of your actions!
But the truth is that Growth Hacking is not just about attracting new customers, but also generating value and engagement, which contributes significantly to their retention.
8) Understanding the market and customers
Growth hacking strategies often involve direct interaction with customers and detailed market analysis. One of the relevant side effects is a deeper understanding of customer needs and preferences.
By adopting a proactive stance in understanding this, companies can adjust their strategies more quickly, remaining aligned with consumer expectations.
Extra tip
Access our definitive Inbound Marketing manual to learn everything about the methodology that will revolutionize the way your company wins and retains customers!
How to build the ideal Growth team?
To assemble a Growth team, make sure you understand your company’s goals and needs, to align these expectations with suitable professional profiles.
I say this because there is no silver bullet: there is no training that is perfect for all situations.
You will need to be clear about the challenges to be faced and what skills are needed to deal with each of them — especially since Growth teams are usually quite small.
So, what I can say is that your team should have specialists with complementary skills — people with experience in data analysis, technology and Marketing (content, SEO, paid media, automation…).
But you can also have others, depending on your needs!
Furthermore, your team must be focused on valuing a culture of experimentation, which also opens doors for constant collaboration between teams, for example.
For Growth Hacking to really work, you will need communication to be very fluid to speed up analysis and decisions!
Strategies and actions for exponential growth
Creativity is one of the main ingredients of Growth Hacking: teams must explore innovative ideas to grow at an unconventional speed!
After all, if it were simple and obvious, everyone would be doing it. Do you agree?
For example, one strategy that gained prominence was gamification to increase user engagement, encouraging them to achieve daily action goals and rewarding them with virtual points and badges.
Another important point, which I already mentioned above, is the integration of strategies.
Knowing the differences between each approach, their applications and the expected results, gives you a better chance of achieving results, directing resources to those that provide the best return!
Now thinking about specific strategies and actions, you can:
- Create content that can go viral and quickly take your brand to new audiences;
- Invest in evergreen content, which remains relevant over time, to generate continuous traffic and leads;
- Launch referral programs, which use the power of “word of mouth” to gain more customers;
- Experiment with different acquisition channels to find out which ones offer the best return on investment;
- Continuously test everything from the colors of a button to the layout of an email. This can reveal valuable insights that increase conversion!
These strategies and actions not only increase the numbers: they change the way we interact with and understand our customers!
Because Growth Hacking is not just about fast growth, it is about smart growth.
Grow like never before with Enjoy Minder!
Growth Hacking embraces an experiment-driven approach, and the words “growth” and “exploration” sum up its essence:
He takes advantage of market gaps to create opportunities and exponential growth strategies!
And if you need specialized help, Enjoy Minder is your great strategic partner for growth. Request a free Digital Marketing Diagnosis + Consulting right now and receive recommendations from our experts!
