Why Growth Marketing?
In short: To distinguish from old-school marketing approaches, and highlight what we’ve learned in the digital age.
News flash - the internet is here, and it’s not going anywhere. The internet has brought immense opportunities and challenges for small businesses. Our lives are now fully plugged in, and the first generation born after the internet is joining the workforce and gathering buying power; we need to adapt faster than ever.
Old wisdom would tell us that not every business needs a website, and while this is may technically be true, it’s missing a huge point and bigger opportunity. I wonder why we would turn our backs on the most common way to find the solutions we seek. (I was in a seminar in 2023 and more than one of the presenters told the group that they wouldn’t need websites. It still haunts me a little). Rather than viewing marketing as a dreaded expense, growth marketing sees it as an investment that can yield exponential returns when done strategically. This requires a shift in mindset for many small business owners who may be used to traditional marketing tactics like print ads in newspapers, billboards on highways, cold calling potential customers, and generic email blasts to a large list of contacts.
Without a digital footprint, we actually put ourselves at risk. But here's the exciting part: stepping up and embracing the revolution has never been easier. They were right; it won’t be televised; it will probably be in the short-form multi-platform video we’ll organize in tweets and group messages.
The opportunity here is its never been easier to get your message out there, to find and speak directly to your ideal customers, and to measure and adapt your strategies.
With the right approach, small businesses can use the power of digital channels to build their growth and reach beyond their current status sustainably. This is where we shift from 'doing ok' to 'crushing it ', opening up a world of possibilities for your business.
So what IS growth marketing?
Growth marketing is a modern, flexible approach to business expansion, perfectly suited for today's online world. It’s interdepartmental and interdisciplinary. The spotlight is on long-term objectives with a strong emphasis on testing, optimization, and innovation, growth marketing equips small businesses with the tools to grow and compete in the digital age, all while keeping costs in check.
The key is to embrace an agile (adaptable and curious) mindset, leverage data-driven insights (measure things), and continually refine strategies (iterate) based on performance and impact (results). 😅 Whew lemme make that more concise. Learn. Adapt. Thrive.
This guide will explore practical steps to implement a customized growth marketing plan and powerful strategies for acquiring, engaging, and retaining customers.
Does it sound a little overwhelming? It can be, at first. But like most things, we start by getting our bearings first, then add as we learn.
Learning is the #1 Goal in Growth Marketing
Small businesses that embrace agile, innovative growth marketing can adapt quickly to changes in consumer behaviour and stand out in an increasingly crowded marketplace. This could involve launching a new product or service in response to a trend or using social media to engage with customers in real time. However, this shift requires letting go of outdated notions and being open to a new model. The payoff can be game-changing for small businesses that do it right.
Here are some frameworks to help you get started:
Ahoy, Pirate Metrics
The AARRR Framework
The AARRR framework (also known as Pirate Metrics) provides a strategic blueprint to guide growth marketing efforts. For our purposes here, I’ve added an A, so it’s really the AAARRR (extra piratey).
Click the titles below to jump further down to tactics for the section 😉
Awareness - How do you find customers? Build brand awareness and attract potential customers through social media, SEO, and paid advertising. Most traditional marketing tactics focus here and acquisition.
Acquisition - How do you move prospective customers from “just looking” to asking questions and engaging? Converting interested prospects into users or customers. This often happens through lead generation tactics such as offering a free ebook in exchange for an email address, or hosting a webinar to share valuable industry insights. Compelling content, such as a well-written blog post or a visually appealing infographic, can also help attract and convert potential customers.
Activation - How do you deliver value? Getting new users or customers to experience a core product or service for the first time. This builds familiarity and establishes value. It’s the moment where they say “aha!” I get the value of this product/service.
Retention - How do you keep the customers you have? Encouraging repeat use and loyalty. Excellent customer service, email marketing, and community building drive retention. This is a loyalty moment, continue delivering value, and the customer will stay.
Referral - How do you get your customers to send you their friends? Motivating existing customers to recommend your brand. Referral programs, incentives, and word-of-mouth fuel referral growth. Just about any industry has a referral incentive program that can work really well - but the best ones are the ones that happen organically.
Revenue - How do you move them from curiosity to paying money? Optimizing pricing models and customer journeys to maximize revenue. Upselling, cross-selling, and reducing churn also boost revenue.
The AARRR framework highlights the iterative nature of growth marketing. Each stage feeds into the next, creating a cycle of continuous optimization. Strategies evolve based on data and insights gathered across the customer journey. Small businesses can leverage this framework to develop comprehensive growth marketing plans tailored to their goals.
Developing Your Growth Marketing Strategy
A successful growth marketing strategy starts with thorough planning and research. This involves understanding your target audience deeply, setting clear goals, analyzing the competition, and conducting market research.
Target Audience Identification
Define your ideal customer avatar. Outline demographic information, interests, challenges, and motivations.
Segment your overall market into smaller niches you can target.
Use tools like Google Analytics, SparkToro and social media analytics to analyze your existing audience. Identify common traits to find lookalike audiences, which are groups of people who share similar characteristics to your existing customers and are, therefore, likely to be interested in your products or services.
Goal Setting
Set S.M.A.R.T. goals for growth. Be specific about the metrics you want to improve.
Determine achievable milestones to motivate momentum.
Prioritize goals based on potential business impact and available resources.
Competitive Analysis
Research competitor offerings, pricing, and messaging.
Identify gaps in the market you can fill. Even if you already have products and services, this exercise can help you build a strategic roadmap for expansion in the coming months.
Analyze competitors' digital marketing efforts for insights. Facebook Ads Library can be a wildly valuable resource.
Find weaknesses you can capitalize on, get excited about your unique strengths, and, most importantly, promote how you can use those strengths to solve customers’ pains.
Market Research
Use surveys, interviews, and focus groups to gather first-hand data about customer needs and preferences. For example, you could send out a survey to your email list asking about their satisfaction with your product or conduct a focus group to get feedback on a new feature you're considering.
Monitor social conversations and review sites to identify pain points.
Analyze industry reports and trends for opportunities.
Conducting thorough research and analysis will enable you to develop an informed strategy tailored to your business's needs and customers.
Acquisition Strategies for Small Businesses
Acquiring new customers is a crucial component of any growth marketing strategy. Small businesses can leverage various tactics to attract their ideal audience and convert them into paying customers.
Social Media Marketing
Determine which social platforms your target audience uses most actively. Instead of spreading yourself too thin, focus your efforts on 1-3 platforms.
Create engaging social content like behind-the-scenes photos, user-generated content, and videos to capture attention.
Utilize paid ads on platforms like Facebook and Instagram to promote your content and offers to relevant audiences. Start small and scale up as you test what resonates.
Optimize social media profiles entirely and keep them updated. To drive traffic, include links to your website and calls to action.
Content Marketing
Build a blog and create regular, high-quality content like articles, ebooks, and videos that attract your ideal customers.
Promote content through social media, email, and search engine optimization. Pop-up forms and exit intent popups can help capture leads.
Repurpose content into multiple formats like infographics, slide decks, and podcasts to maximize its reach and impact.
SEO Optimization
Research target keywords using tools like Google Keyword Planner to optimize content. Include keywords naturally in titles, headers, meta descriptions, alt text, and content.
Create localized content optimized for searches in your geographic area. Publish blog content regularly to establish domain authority.
Get backlinks from industry websites by contributing guest posts with strategically placed backlinks to your website.
Paid Advertising
Create Google Ads campaigns focused on product and service keywords relevant to your business. Target by location, demographics, interests, and other factors.
Retarget website visitors through custom audiences on platforms like Facebook and Instagram. Create lookalike audiences to expand reach.
Set small budgets initially and track conversion rates to identify winning products, services, and audiences before scaling up budgets.
Activation and Retention Tactics
Customer acquisition is just the first step. You must focus on activating new users and retaining existing customers to achieve sustainable growth. Here are some effective tactics:
Creating Engaging Content
Produce content like blog posts, guides, and videos that provide value and solve your audience's problems. This content should aim to convert visitors into active users or customers. This can also be in-store moments, like the quote on the day boards in coffee shops, thoughtful moments like messages in shopping baskets, etc.
Optimize content with keywords and structure it to guide visitors toward a desired action, like signing up or purchasing.
Repurpose content across platforms like social media and email newsletters to maximize reach.
Email Marketing
Create email sequences to nurture leads and new customers. Welcome sequences introduce your offerings, while weekly/monthly newsletters provide value and maintain engagement.
Segment your list to deliver targeted, relevant content to each subscriber. Identify customer lifecycle stages like new, repeat and inactive customers.
Automate sequences but also send one-to-one personalized emails when appropriate. Combine automation with a human touch.
Customer Service Excellence
Provide quick, helpful and friendly customer service through all phone, email, chat and social media channels.
Empower staff to resolve customer issues and complaints promptly and effectively. Aim to delight customers and create brand advocates.
Use feedback and data to identify common problems and eliminate sources of dissatisfaction. Improved customer experience increases retention.
Community Building
Encourage engagement, recognize loyal fans, and allow customers to interact with each other on social media to create a community.
Host live Q&As, contests and other events to foster connections. Let customers showcase their affinity for your brand.
Launch private groups on Facebook, Slack or Mighty Networks to take community-building to the next level. Host local meet-ups.
Referral and Revenue Optimization
Getting existing customers to promote your business and increasing revenue from each customer are key growth strategies. Here are some effective tactics:
Building Referral Programs
Offer discounts or rewards to customers who refer new business. This motivates word-of-mouth promotion.
Make it easy to share and invite others. Add social sharing buttons and email/text referral options.
Highlight successful referrals on social media or your website. This encourages more referrals.
Personalize outreach to referred prospects. They're more likely to convert.
Upselling and Cross-Selling
On e-commerce sites, suggest complementary or higher-end products on product pages.
Offer add-ons like expedited shipping and gift wrapping at checkout.
Email customers with related products they may like based on past purchases.
Train sales staff to make strategic upsell recommendations.
Pricing Strategies
Avoid underpricing. Analyze competitor pricing and premium offerings.
Test raising prices gradually to find the optimal price point.
Offer tiered pricing plans (basic, pro, premium) to appeal to diverse needs.
Bundle products and services to create package deals.
Implementation and Measurement
Implementing a growth marketing strategy is just the beginning. To achieve success, you must closely track and measure results to refine and optimize your approach.
Here are some critical aspects of the implementation and measurement process:
Growth Marketing Tools
Leverage tools to gain visibility into how your strategies are performing. Recommended options include:
Google Analytics - Track website traffic and engagement.
Facebook Analytics - Monitor ad performance and optimize campaigns.
Email marketing platforms - Review open and click-through rates to refine campaigns.
Heatmapping tools - Identify on-site engagement and optimization opportunities.
Key Metrics and KPIs
Identify the key performance indicators that matter most for your business goals. Metrics to consider include:
Sales revenue
Customer acquisition costs
The lifetime value of a customer
Email open and click-through rates.
Bounce rates
Social media engagement
Closely monitor your KPIs to determine if your efforts are succeeding.
Iterative Optimization
Use the data and insights gathered to continually refine your approach. Experiment with new strategies while scaling back tactics that underperform. Optimization should be an ongoing process as part of your growth marketing strategy.
Careful implementation, tracking, and optimization will help maximize the return on investment from your growth marketing efforts. Measure results, learn from data, and iterate for improved performance over time.
Getting Started with Growth Marketing
Getting started with growth marketing may seem daunting, but taking small, focused steps can yield significant long-term results. Here are some tips to begin implementing growth marketing for your small business:
Immediate Actions
Conduct an audit of your current marketing efforts and identify quick wins. Look for areas like social media, email and websites where minor optimizations can improve results.
Set 1-3 initial growth goals based on your most important business objectives. Be specific and trackable, like increasing website traffic by 20% month-over-month.
Research your competitors' marketing efforts for inspiration. Look at their website content, social media, ads and more to find gaps or opportunities.
Begin posting valuable content on your website, blog, and social channels. Share expertise, how-tos, case studies, and more to attract ideal customers.
Scaling Efforts
Create an editorial calendar to develop content consistently across channels. Start with once per week and scale up as you build momentum. The best place to start is whatever you can commit to consistently.
Allocate a small monthly budget for paid ads to amplify your organic efforts. Start with $100-500 per month and track results closely. If you aren’t there yet, don’t worry; there are other tactics you can use.
Develop lead magnets like ebooks, tip sheets and webinars to capture contacts for email nurturing. Offer them in exchange for an email signup. Share your expertise and value to help build trust before asking for the sale.
Partnering with Experts
If you don't have time to create blog and social content yourself, hire a freelance writer and give them an editorial calendar.
Work with a digital marketing agency to develop and execute a customized growth marketing strategy based on your goals.
Bring on a growth marketing consultant to audit your efforts and make strategic recommendations for improvement.
Attend conferences and workshops to expand your knowledge. Connect with other small business owners to share ideas.
Starting small but consistently will build the momentum you need to grow your marketing impact over time. And don't be afraid to get help from experts when you need it!