Christmas Hacks for e-Commerce by Youssef Hodaigui

Christmas Hacks for e-Commerce by Youssef Hodaigui - The Christmas season is here! Shopping is in full force and more and more consumers are going online to buy their gifts. Here are some valuable hacks for online stores to maximize sales.

Product Management and the Role of Product Managers

What Is Growth Hacking and Who Are Growth Hackers?

Growth hacking is a term that refers to a marketing technique developed by tech start-ups. The technique utilizes analytical thinking, creativity and social metrics to gain exposure for and sell products. Growth hacking experts (growth hackers) are marketers whose main focus is growth. They aren't replacements for online marketers; they are simply marketers who are focused on the  growth challenges of start-ups.

Image Credit - smartinsights.com

Growth hackers are specialists at using online marketing techniques like search engine optimization, content marketing, website analytics and A/B testing, among many others. Their focus is on low-cost, innovative alternatives to ''traditional'' marketing methods. For instance, instead of using traditional media like newspapers, television and radio, growth hackers focus on social media & viral marketing.

The history of growth hacking

The term ''growth hacker'' was coined by Sean Ellis (a renowned online marketer) in 2010. Sean defined growth hackers as marketers whose main focus is growth. According to Sean, everything growth hackers do is assessed by its potential to impact scalable growth. Sean Ellis aside, there have been many other online marketing experts who have come up with their own definition of growth hackers.

One such online marketing expert is Andrew Chen. Andrew defines growth hackers as hybrid marketers and coders whose main concern is finding customers for their products using A/B tests, landing page performance and email deliverability, among many other online marketing metrics. Aaron Ginn, a tech expert, gave the world a different growth hacker definition in 2012. He defined growth hackers as individuals with a mindset of data, creativity & curiosity. Many other growth hacking/hacker definitions have been hatched in recent years. Mattan Griffel (a growth hacking expert), for instance, defines growth hacking as a set of tactics & best practices for addressing user growth problems.

The popularity of growth hacking as a concept soared in 2012 after the first-ever growth hackers conference was held in the U.S. The conference featured growth hackers from major tech companies in the world (i.e. Google, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn) just to mention a few. The conference marked the beginning of a new age of the marketers known as growth hackers. Several growth hacking conferences have followed. There have been numerous growth hacking initiatives aimed at popularizing growth hacking, one of the most notable being the Growth Hacking Asia initiative launched in late 2013 to increase the success rate of tech start-ups in Asia.

Growth hacking methods

Growth hacking uses marketing approaches which are focused on scalability, innovation and user connectivity to drive growth, since most start-ups lack the experience and resources enjoyed by already-established companies. Growth hackers focus on product potential, including retention, user acquisition, on-board monetization and virality. Tech companies like Twitter grew because they offered a suggested users list. As opposed to building infrastructure to market, Twitter built marketing inside the product.

As mentioned above, growth hacking focuses on growth as the most important metric. It is important to note that growth hacking methods tend to vary from one company to another. The methods can also vary depending on the industry. Nevertheless, growth is the common denominator. Companies that have been successful in utilizing growth hacking create natural, viral marketing loops. New customers discover their service or product via their network or by using the service or product. The growth hacking loop of awareness, use, and sharing results in exponential growth for businesses.

Youssef Hodaigui has more than a decade of expertise in online marketing, product management, web design & analytics and SEO branding. He specializes in developing and marketing new products while helping companies maximize their return on investment (ROI), revenue growth, corporate profitability and enterprise value.

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