Growth Hacking works when branding and marketing are at their best

Growth hacking is a term you see quite often these days, especially when it comes to a technology brand. After a 2-day course on growth hacking and digital marketing, it wasn't as audacious as I thought it would be, in fact, it tapped into the fundamentals of branding and marketing.

1. A strong brand stands the test of time.

While the course title sounds forward-thinking, a strong brand remains the foundation for clear strategy formulation. A sharp consumer insight backed by a distinct brand essence and identity, is necessary for growth hacking to be effective.

2. Digital marketing has the same DNA as marketing, the principles of marketing have not changed.

"What is it that you desire?"

A phrase often heard in the Netflix series "Lucifer". Inbound marketing, also called pull marketing, is organically gaining attention. When marketing is desired, it doesn't have to interrupt (interruption marketing), also called push marketing. In my experience, pull marketing is much more effective, from message delivery to cost efficiency. So this "pull" could be the tried and tested word-of-mouth marketing that has spread through social media sharing, or a thought leadership presentation at a conference that is then posted as a video on YouTube and viewed a few million times - it comes from creating compelling stories and content that consumers desire, not digital versus offline.

Foster brand love to drive actions and loyalty beyond reason, it's more important today than ever before

When attempting to convert an intent into a purchase, the frequency and content of triggers must be carefully determined based on the consumer journey, and this is where digital marketing excels with the help of technology. We live in an extremely "noisy" environment these days, and in order to stand out from the competition and not be just another discount gimmick, turn on the brand lens to create triggers that lead to irrational decisions, like buying another limited edition Hermès Birkin.

However, digital marketing has changed the speed, transparency and access

Digital tools today make it much easier and faster to get information, and make marketing planning and execution accessible to many. However, with so many data points to look at and so many platforms to use, the critical thinking hasn't changed.

3. This is R&R! Rapid & Reiterative.

Let the learning go deeper, make it a triple loop-learning.

Review your brand, does it stand out from the competition? Engage with your consumers regularly so you know if brand insights are still relevant, if they even hold up, and what new needs have emerged. Optimise and improve regularly .

Branding is a journey and consistency is key to building a strong brand.

To keep things moving, have a work process that is lean and not complicated by human egos. A word of caution: while we want to move fast and may break things some days, Google will tell you that doesn't work in healthcare. The brand still has to do what's right in the long run.

4. A positive team culture is the secret sauce of growth hacking.

There needs to be psychological safety in the team so that each member feels comfortable to express ideas, make comments, and flag risks rather than worry about the hierarchy at the table. When the team culture is positive, every member feels happy and wants to contribute and add value to the work. Ambitious goals are then much easier to achieve.

I really enjoyed the course including this assignment! See you soon Hyper Island!

#learnings #branding #growthhacking #digitalmarketing