If you wake up each morning excited about your business but frustrated with its slow growth, there is a way to change that. 

Proven growth hacking strategies will skyrocket your user base – without breaking the bank. But here’s the thing: what works for one company might not work for yours. So where do you start? 

That is exactly what we will debunk in this guide. We will give you eleven growth hacks that anyone – from a one-person operation to a growing company – can use to get a serious advantage. Plus, we will go over best practices and share useful tools to make it easier for you to put them into action.

11 Time-Tested Growth Hacking Strategies 

As we walk you through these 11 growth hacking techniques, think about how you can customize them to fit your business needs.

1. Build hype with a pre-launch email list

With a pre-launch list, you can send updates, share sneak peeks, and drum up excitement before you officially launch. Come launch day, you will have a group of engaged potential users who are primed to become your first customers. 

Here’s how you use this growth hacking strategy:

• Even before your product is finalized, create a signup form for an email list.
• Streamline the signup process. Only ask for essential information like email address and maybe name. Long forms discourage people.
• Incentivize signups with early access discounts, bonus features, or exclusive content.
• 41% of people engage with email marketing more than with social media posts. Use it to share exciting tidbits about what is coming soon to pique their interest.
• When you launch, reward your email list subscribers with first access or priority treatment.

2. Target adjacent markets with similar needs

As a growth hacker, you have to think outside the box. Don’t just target the most obvious audience for your product. Look for adjacent markets – similar groups with overlapping needs. This way, you can tap into a whole new customer base hungry for your solution. 

Here’s how to find them:

• Analyze user needs and the core problems your product solves. 
• Look for groups facing problems your product can solve, even if they seem different from your core audience. For example, if you have a project management tool originally for software development teams, you can market them to freelancers.
• Join forums and social media groups that these adjacent markets use. Learn their pain points.
• While your product’s core functionality might stay the same, adjust your marketing materials or communication style to match their specific needs. Highlight features that address their unique challenges.

3. Use referral marketing with incentives

Your happy users are your greatest asset. 92% of people trust recommendations from friends and family. Referral marketing uses this by encouraging happy users to spread the word – and you can add an incentive to make it even more enticing. 

Here’s how to make the most out of this successful growth hacking strategy:

• Reward users for referring a friend and offer a bonus to the new user for signing up. This creates a win-win situation.
• Integrate referral links into your app or website to make referring easy. Users should share their referral code with a few clicks. For instance, add a “Share” button that automatically generates a personalized referral link. This link can be easily shared via email, social media, or messaging apps.
• Think beyond discounts. Offer exclusive content, early access to new features, or even free product trials as referral rewards.
• Announce it on social media, include it in email campaigns, and even consider a dedicated landing page with clear instructions.
• Monitor your referral program’s performance. Recognize and reward your top referrers to keep the momentum going.

4. Build a thriving community

A thriving community boosts user engagement and loyalty. You will create a loyal user base that organically spreads the word about your product or service. Growth hackers know that happy users are your best marketers. 

Here’s how you can build such a community with this growth strategy:

• Create dedicated channels. This could be a forum, social media group, or even a live chat platform. Make it easy for users to find and access the community.
• Don’t wait for users to start talking – seed the conversation. Share valuable content, answer questions, and spark discussions.
• Identify passionate users and turn them into advocates. Give them a platform to share their expertise and help others.
• Keep things interesting with online or offline events and contests. This is a great way to increase engagement and attract new users.
• Show your appreciation for active community members. Give them shoutouts, badges, or exclusive rewards for their contributions.
• Hire a social media account manager from headhunter platforms like Genius to manage your social media channels’ day-to-day operations. They will consistently create and share content and respond to questions and comments to keep the community vibrant and engaged for you. 

5. Competitor analysis: Learn from their wins (and losses)

Growth is all about smart thinking, and sometimes, the smartest move is learning from those who already walked the path. But remember, competitor analysis is not about mimicking – smart growth marketers gather intel to create their own winning strategy. 

Here’s how to get this growth hack right:

• Look at companies offering similar products or targeting the same audience. List them down and gather as much information as possible about their activities.
• Analyze their marketing strategies. Look at their social media presence, content marketing, email campaigns, and advertisements. Identify the tactics that work well for them.
• Analyze your competitor’s past marketing campaigns or product launches. See what worked and what didn’t to avoid similar pitfalls.
• Read what users are saying about your competitors. Identify areas where they are good and areas where you can offer a better solution.
• Evaluate their SEO efforts. Identify the keywords they rank for and target similar ones. Examine their backlink profile to find potential link-building opportunities for your site. Look over their HTML tags – title tags, meta descriptions, header tags – and use similar best practices on your site. Use this checklist to make sure you cover all aspects of these meta tags. This way, your content will be properly structured for search engines, and your organic click-through rate (CTR) will improve.

6. Gamify your onboarding process

Signing up for a new service can feel like a chore. Gamification changes that. Integrate game-like elements into the initial user experience to increase user engagement and product adoption. 

Here’s how to make it happen:

• Chunk the onboarding process into smaller, achievable steps. Completing each task gets users closer to their “win” – using your product.
• Visualize user progress with a clear bar. Seeing how far they’ve come motivates users to keep going.
• Greet new users with a small virtual gift or bonus for completing the onboarding process. 
• For some products, friendly competition can be a motivator. Consider a leaderboard to show top users but make sure it is not discouraging to new players.
• Create interactive tutorials that guide new users through your product’s features.

7. Collaborate with influencers in your niche

61% of customers trust recommendations from influencers. That is the power of influencer marketing for you. Partnering with them will expose your product or service to a highly relevant group of potential users. 

Take Meta, for instance, with Reels alone generating over 200 billion views daily across Facebook and Instagram. That is a staggering number of potential eyeballs on your brand if you can use the right influencer.

Here’s how to make it work:

• Find influencers who match your target audience and align with your brand values.
• Bigger isn’t always better; focus on quality over just follower count. Look for creators who actively engage with their followers and are authentic.
• Create content that shows your product or service authentically to their audience. 
• Be upfront about sponsored content. Partner with influencers who are comfortable disclosing partnerships.
• Promote the influencer-created content using your marketing channels to maximize reach and impact.

8. Integrate a free but useful tool

People love free stuff, especially if it solves a problem or makes their lives easier. A free, useful tool becomes a lead magnet, attracting potential users and giving them a reason to experience your brand.

Here’s how to do it right:

• Identify a problem you can solve for your target audience with a free tool. This tool should be relevant to your product or service but not replace its core function. For example, you can add a free online calculator for budgeting or a free SEO audit tool that analyzes website performance.
• Your free tool should be user-friendly and require minimal effort to get started. This lowers the barrier to entry and encourages people to try it out.
• Make it easy for tool users to discover your main product or service. This could be through clear calls to action or upgrading to the full version of your product or service.
• Keep your free tool updated and relevant to encourage users to stick around for the long term.

9. Create a sense of scarcity with FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out)

People don’t like missing out on a good deal or a limited-time opportunity. Use FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out) to tap into this psychology and create a sense of urgency. Remember, use FOMO ethically. Don’t create artificial scarcity or pressure on users, as it can backfire and damage trust.

Here’s how to use it effectively:

• Showcase products or features with limited quantities or time-bound offers. 
• Display progress bar or countdown timers for limited-time deals or product launches.
• Offer exclusive deals or early access to new features for a select group of users. 
• Combine FOMO with social proof. Show users how many people viewed or purchased a product recently. This adds another layer of urgency.
• Conduct flash sales that last for 2-4 hours. Promote these sales on all your channels.
• Use pre-order campaigns for upcoming products. Limit the number of pre-orders to create exclusivity and anticipation.

10. Remind users who visited your site with retargeting

Ever browsed a website and then seen ads for that same website everywhere online? That is retargeting. It lets you keep your brand in front of potential customers who might have otherwise forgotten about you. This way, you can capture lost attention and convert window shoppers into paying users.

Here’s how to use it for growth:

• Use website cookies to track visitors who haven’t converted. 
• Create targeted ads showing products they viewed, abandoned carts, or similar offerings. Remind them about your value proposition.
• Include special discounts or promotions in your retargeting ads to entice users to come back and complete their purchases.
• Retarget users across different channels, like social media, search engines, and email marketing. This increases the chances of reaching them at the right moment.
• Customize your ads to target different stages of the buying journey. For example, remind users who viewed a specific product about its benefits while offering those who abandoned their cart a discount to complete the purchase.

11. Leverage user-generated content (UGC) for social proof

People trust recommendations from real people more than generic marketing messages. In fact, 100% of customers like to do their own research, and 93% of them base their buying decisions on online reviews. 

UGC shows potential customers that other people love your product or service, and it doesn’t cost you a dime to create. Reviews, photos, videos – these are authentic testimonials that build trust and credibility.

Here’s how to use it for explosive growth:

• Integrate social media sharing buttons and encourage users to share their experiences on your platform. 
• Host contests or challenges like “Share Your Best Recipe” or “Show Us Your Workout Routine” that incentivize UGC creation.
• Create unique and catchy hashtags for your brand. Encourage your customers to use these hashtags when they post about your product.
• Feature user-generated content on your website, social media channels, and marketing materials. This inspires others to participate.
• Actively respond to comments and messages on UGC. This creates a sense of community and encourages continued engagement.

5 Metrics To Measure Your Growth Hacking Strategies Success

Plug your data into the formulas we have provided to calculate your metrics and track your progress over time.

1. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

CAC tracks how much it costs you to acquire a new customer. It helps you determine how profitable your growth hacking strategies are. A low CAC indicates your growth hacking efforts are bringing in new customers at a sustainable cost. 

Here’s how to calculate it:

CAC =  Total Marketing + Sales Expenses/Number of New Customers Acquired

2. Customer Lifetime Value (CLV)

CLV looks at the total revenue a customer is expected to generate throughout their relationship with your business. It helps you understand the long-term value of each customer you acquire. A high CLV shows your customers are sticking around and spending money with you.

Here’s the formula:

CLV = Average Purchase Value X Purchase Frequency X Average Customer Lifespan

3. Conversion rate

Conversion rate measures the percentage of website visitors who take a desired action, like making a purchase or signing up for a free trial. It helps you understand how effective your website and growth hacking efforts are at converting visitors into paying customers.

Here’s how to find it:

Conversion Rate   =   Number of Conversions X 100/Total Number of Visitors

4. Net Promoter Score (NPS)

NPS gauges customer loyalty and satisfaction. It asks customers how likely they are to recommend your product or service to others on a scale of 0 to 10. 

Here’s a breakdown of the score:

• Promoters (9-10): These are your loyal customers who will happily recommend your brand.
• Passives (7-8): These customers are satisfied but not overly enthusiastic. They might not readily recommend you.
• Detractors (0-6): These are unhappy customers who could potentially damage your brand image through negative word-of-mouth.

Here’s how you can calculate NPS:

NPS = % Promoters – % Detractors 

5. Monthly Recurring Revenue (MRR)

MRR tracks the predictable revenue you generate each month from subscriptions or other recurring payment models. It helps you understand your business’s financial health and stability. 

Here’s how to find it:

MRR = Total Active Users X Average Revenue Per Account

6 Best Practices To Master Your Growth Hacking Strategies

Take note of the actionable steps in each strategy and think about how you can customize them to suit your brand.

1. Focus on the user

If your growth hacks don’t benefit your users, they won’t work. They are the center of your strategy, not an afterthought. Before you launch any strategy, ask yourself:

• Who exactly are you trying to reach?
• What are their biggest pain points?
• How can your product or service solve them in a way that excites them?

Talk to your users and read their reviews. Analyze their behavior within your product. Imagine the steps your ideal user takes to interact with your product or service and map out their entire experience. 

A poor customer experience can overshadow even the most effective growth hacks. 80% of customers are extremely or highly annoyed when representatives ask excessive questions during interactions.  

This can be a huge turnoff and cause customer churn. Instead, train your reps to anticipate customer needs and offer solutions proactively. Positive word-of-mouth from satisfied customers is a powerful growth hack in itself.

2. Embrace experimentation

Growth hacking thrives on testing and learning. Don’t be afraid to try new things, even if they seem outlandish at first. 

Here’s how:

• Set clear goals and metrics for each experiment. For example, if you are testing a new email marketing campaign, set a goal to increase click-through rates by 20%. 
• Define a specific question you want to answer. For instance, whether offering a discount code in your ads will increase conversion rates compared to ads without a discount.
• Don’t make huge, company-wide changes. Start with small, controlled experiments to gather data and iterate quickly. Try changing the call-to-action on a single product page to see if it boosts sales before applying it across the entire site.
• Run A/B tests to compare different approaches. For example, you could test 2 different email subject lines to see which one results in higher open rates.

Remember, successful growth hacking is an iterative process. The faster you experiment and adapt, the quicker you will find what truly boosts user acquisition and engagement.

3. Build a strong team

Growth hacking is a blend of different disciplines, and you need people with strong skills in each area. Not everyone needs to be a full-fledged growth hacker, but having team members who understand the core principles is incredibly important. Here’s how to do it:

• Assemble the A-team of people who are data-driven, creative, and analytical. 
• Experience is great but don’t overlook recent grads or early-career professionals – they bring fresh knowledge and new perspectives that can really help your company grow and stay adaptable. Platforms like Prosple make it easy to find these talented newcomers. It cuts through the noise of general job boards and connects you with exactly who you are looking for – enthusiastic, tech-savvy young professionals eager to make a mark.
• Don’t just hire carbon copies of yourself. Get people from different backgrounds with unique experiences to spark fresh ideas and help you avoid blind spots.
• Set clear expectations and ownership for each team member. Don’t leave everyone wondering what to do.
• Provide ongoing training and development to keep your team updated with the latest trends and tools in growth hacking.

4. Automation is your friend

Repetitive tasks slow you down. Identify repetitive processes in your growth hacking strategy and find ways to automate them.

• Set up automated email sequences to nurture leads. Use tools like Mailchimp or ConvertKit.
• Use social media scheduling platforms like Hootsuite or Sprout Social to streamline content distribution.
• Use tools like Google Analytics or Tableau to automate data analysis and free yourself from strategic thinking.
• Implement automated A/B testing with tools like Optimizely or VWO for your marketing campaigns.
• Use CRM automation tools like HubSpot CRM or Zoho CRM to manage and segment your contacts.
• Automate your ad bidding and optimization processes. Tools like Google Ads’ automated bidding and Facebook Ads automated rules can help.
• Use Google Ads’ Performance Max campaigns to automate campaign creation and optimization across all of Google’s advertising channels, including Search, YouTube, Display Network websites, Gmail, Discover, and Maps. These campaigns use machine learning to automate bidding, ad placements, and even creative assets.

5. Optimize your funnel

Imagine your user journey as a funnel. At the top, you have a wide audience. As they move down the funnel, they interact with your product or service, and ideally, a smaller, more engaged group converts into loyal users. 

Here’s how to optimize your funnel:

• Awareness: Get the right people to see your brand. This means using targeted marketing channels and creating content that attracts your ideal user.
• Interest: Once they discover you, catch their interest. Highlight your product’s benefits and how it solves their problems.
• Decision: Make it easy for them to understand the value you offer. Clear calls to action and compelling product demos are crucial.
• Action: Remove any friction in the buying process. Offer a seamless signup or purchase experience.
• Retention: Keep them coming back. Engage your users with valuable content, loyalty programs, and exceptional customer service.

6. Think long-term

Growth hacking isn’t a one-time win. It is about building a sustainable user base and creating long-term brand loyalty. Here’s the mindset to adopt:

• Focus on building a sustainable growth strategy. Quick wins are great but prioritize tactics that deliver long-term value.
• Invest in building a strong brand identity. Create a brand that resonates with your target audience and creates loyalty.
• Track key metrics and analyze data consistently to identify areas for improvement and adapt your strategies as needed.
• Continuously learn about new trends and technologies that can fuel your growth.
• Never stop listening to your users. Gather feedback through surveys, user interviews, and social media monitoring.

6 Essential Platforms & Tools To Boost Your Growth Hacking Strategies

Here’s your cheat sheet for essential platforms and tools that will amplify your growth hacking efforts.

1. ReVerb

ReVerb offers a full suite of services to assist you with all things online marketing, from building brand awareness to generating leads and increasing sales. With over 1,500 satisfied clients and 4,000+ articles produced, we can help you understand your users and create a product or service they love. 

Here’s how:

• We create strategies and content that increase web traffic and nurture leads, including technical articles, guest posts, and press releases.
• Comprehensive SEO audits, keyword research, and link-building services to organically boost your inbound traffic.
• Effective media outreach and influencer collaboration to get your story in front of the right audience.
• Customized Google Ads, Facebook, Instagram, and other social media campaigns to maximize your ROI.
• From web design to social media graphics and print-ready designs, we handle all your visual design needs.
• High-conversion email marketing strategies to maximize your investment.
• Complete management of your social media presence.

2. Google Analytics (GA)

Google Analytics is your mission control to understand how users interact with your product or website. 

Here’s how to use it for growth hacking:

• Identify where your visitors come from (social media, organic search, etc.).
• See which pages users visit most, how long they stay, and where they drop off. 
• Track how many users complete desired actions, like signing up or making a purchase.
• Define specific goals for your website (e.g., email signups, product purchases) and create funnels to track user progress towards those goals.
• Test different website elements (headlines, call-to-action buttons, page layouts) to see which ones drive better results.

3. Optimizely

Optimizely lets you run A/B tests on different elements of your website or app. Here’s how to use Optimizely for growth hacking:

• Easily create and deploy A/B tests for various website elements (landing pages, forms, pop-ups). Analyze results to identify statistically significant improvements.
• Personalize website content and offers based on user behavior and demographics. 
• Control the rollout of new features to specific user groups. This lets you gather feedback and iterate before a full launch.
• Test multiple elements simultaneously to see how they interact and influence user behavior. This helps you design the best website layout.

4. Mailchimp

Mailchimp is a user-friendly platform for building email marketing campaigns. It creates targeted email sequences, newsletters, and automated messages. Here’s how it can help:

• Set up automated email workflows based on user behavior (e.g., welcome emails for new signups and abandoned cart reminders).
• Segment your email list based on user behavior and demographics to deliver targeted messages.
• Design beautiful and informative emails with clear calls to action. 
• Use A/B testing to optimize subject lines and email content for maximum engagement.
• Monitor key metrics like open rates, click-through rates, and unsubscribe rates to measure how effective your email campaigns are.

5. Hootsuite

Hootsuite is your one-stop shop for managing all your social media accounts. Here’s how you can use it for growth hacking:

• Plan and schedule your social media content calendar in advance. 
• Track what people are saying about your brand across social media platforms. Respond to positive comments and address negative feedback promptly.
• Launch engaging contests and giveaways to attract new followers and increase brand awareness.
• Track key metrics like follower growth, engagement rates, and click-through rates. Use this data to customize your social media strategy accordingly.

6. Canva

Canva is a user-friendly design platform that even non-designers can master. It offers pre-designed social media post templates and easy-to-use editing tools. Here’s how it can help:

• Create eye-catching social media posts and stories to grab attention and increase engagement.
• Design high-converting landing pages with clear calls to action using Canva’s user-friendly templates and a drag-and-drop interface.
• Simplify complex data and statistics with visually appealing infographics that users can easily understand and share.
• Eye-catching thumbnails for your blog posts can increase click-through rates. Canva makes creating them quick and easy.

Conclusion

The digital landscape is constantly changing. What worked yesterday might not work today. But with the growth hacking strategies we discussed, you will be all set to adapt perfectly. 

The best part is you don’t need a massive budget to win at growth hacking. Resourcefulness and a willingness to experiment are more valuable than throwing money at unproven solutions.

However, implementing these strategies can be a challenge, especially for businesses without a dedicated marketing team. ReVerb can help here. We are a top digital marketing agency specializing in helping businesses achieve explosive growth. Our team can help you identify the best growth hacking strategies and then develop and execute a plan to achieve them. 

Contact us today and get a free marketing proposal in less than 24 hours!