What is growth hacking?

Growth hacking is a marketing strategy focused on rapid experimentation and rapid iteration. It is often used by startups, as it allows them to test different marketing channels and find the ones that work best for them.

• Growth hacking is about creating a growth system around your product, not just applying a universal set of tactics to it.
• If your product is any good, it’s unique. And if it’s unique, it deserves a novel set of growth solutions.

The origin of growth hacking

The term "growth hacking" was coined in the aftermath of the dot-com bubble. Companies were looking for new ways to grow, and they realized that traditional marketing methods were not effective.

• Growth hacking was born out of the need for leaner, more effective marketing strategies. Companies like Paypal, Yelp, and YouTube are seen as pioneers of growth hacking.
• Growth hacking is often seen as a quantitative approach to marketing, using data and analytics to track results.

Growth hacking at Uber

Andrew Chen believes that Uber has built the best growth team in the industry. He believes that Uber has the potential to be the biggest company ever, and that their growth strategy will be crucial to achieving this goal.

• Uber's growth team is focused on building a system that will help the company grow rapidly. They're looking at everything from acquisition to retention.
• The team is made up of product managers, engineers, designers, and data scientists.

The importance of product-market fit

Andrew Chen emphasizes that growth hacking is not a magic bullet. It is important to have a great product that people love. If you don't have a strong product, then no amount of growth hacking will be able to save you. He describes a successful growth hack like a magnifying glass; if you have a great product, the magnifying glass will make it even greater, but a bad product will just be a magnified bad product.

• Growth hacking is an after-effect of strong product-market fit and great distribution.
• A strong product will naturally attract users, and growth hacking can help to accelerate that process.

Tactics decay over time

Andrew Chen argues that you can't rely on individual growth hacking tactics for long-term success. Tactics become less effective as they become more mainstream.

• For example, coupons were once a very effective growth hacking tactic, but they are no longer as effective as they once were.
• Similarly, email marketing and banner ads are no longer as effective as they once were.

Growth hacking is not just about getting more users

Growth hacking is about building a system that will help your product grow sustainably. This includes everything from acquisition and activation to engagement and retention. Successful growth hacking requires thinking beyond just getting more users and thinking about how to keep them engaged.

• A great growth hacking strategy will take into account all aspects of the user journey.
• Growth hacking is about making big swings, not just incremental improvements.

The key takeaway

The main takeaway from Andrew Chen's interview is that growth hacking is a powerful tool that can help startups and established companies grow rapidly. However, it's important to remember that growth hacking is not a magic bullet. It's crucial to have a great product and to build a system that supports your growth goals. And, growth hacking is about making big swings, not just incremental improvements.