According to Ryan Holiday, the author of Growth Hacker Marketing: A Primer on the Future of PR, Marketing and Advertising, the goal of growth hacking is to increase sales by developing, testing and iterating product versions while at the same time merging marketing into the product or service development process.

Growth hacking is based on creative marketing, data analytics, as well as automation and engineering. It uses tools such as email, pay-per-click advertisements, blogs and platform Application Programming Interfaces (or APIs) to test and track marketing results and to gain customers.

There are four steps in the growth hacking process:

Step 1: Product Market Fit

Marketers contribute to product fit by isolating who the customers are, figuring out their needs and collaborating with the engineering and automation team to design a product or service that customers will love. In this step, marketers serve as translators between the designers and the consumers.

Step 2: Find the Growth Hack

Marketers match the way they market and sell products and services to the way their prospects learn about and shop for them. In growth hacking, marketers seek to draw customers in using creative methods that are economical, effective and unique.

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Step 3: Turn Customers into an Army

At this stage, marketers ask themselves if they have made it easy for prospects and customers to find and spread the word about the product or service and consider whether the product or service is worth talking about. They use analytics and testing to refine their products, services and promotions until the desired results are achieved.

Step 4: Retention and Optimization

Growth hackers use analytics to identify conversion rates. Here the goal is to retain existing customers.

Have you tried growth hacking? What were some “hacks” that worked for you? Share your great ideas in the comments below!

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