This is a post I’ve been thinking about for a long time, and I’ve really been looking forward to sharing it with you.
Over the past 3–4 months, I’ve received a lot of inquiries from companies looking to hire a Growth Hacker.
More and more people have also asked me what a Growth Hacker actually is, and what someone like that can be used for.
So, the purpose of this post is to shed some light on that mysterious buzzword, which has truly taken off — especially in the US — in recent years. In fact, all the big companies now want to hire Growth Hackers whose sole purpose is to create Growth.
Google Trends on “Growth hacking”
What is a Growth Hacker?
So, what exactly is a Growth Hacker? Good question!
I want to approach this a little differently, by explaining how the concept originated and, through that, highlight what it really means to be a Growth Hacker.
Some of the biggest success stories — like Spotify, Dropbox, and Hotmail — have experienced what’s known as “hockey-stick growth.” That is, not just generic growth, but extremely explosive growth where the curve resembles the blade of a hockey stick.
The hotmail case
Hotmail’s growth curve
So what did Hotmail do? Well — they had spent millions on various TV ads trying to get more people to use their email service. Of course, they tried a range of other approaches too — but they just couldn’t get their new, smart email service off the ground!
Then, a guy (who later earned the title “Growth Hacker”) suggested adding a small line at the bottom of every email sent from Hotmail.
The line said: “P.S. I love you. Get your own free e-mail account at Hotmail.”
That line, as the image above shows, caused Hotmail’s user base to explode, and the company was later sold to Microsoft for an enormous amount of money.
There are plenty of cases like this.
- Apple was among the first to use white earphones.
- McDonald’s decided to place restaurants near highways.
- Dropbox offered new users 2GB free if they referred friends.
- Spotify integrated with Facebook so users could see what their friends were listening to.
Get all the best case studies right here
The other side of the coin
Yes, it all sounds like a dream scenario. But the question still lingers: “Do ordinary companies actually need a Growth Hacker?”
First of all, I’d like to point out that everyone needs to think a bit outside the box. As the internet has “matured,” it’s also become increasingly difficult to break through using traditional marketing channels.
AdWords has become too expensive for many industries, and soon only companies like Amazon can afford to compete in paid advertising while still turning a profit.
So it’s no longer enough to lean back — thinking differently has become a necessity.
The word different is key here. You don’t need to reinvent the wheel, and you certainly don’t need an employee sitting around costing DKK 50,000 per month if you’re a startup — in that case, it’s better to give away some equity in the company.
Don’t obsess over titles when building a startup. Assemble a team of the coolest people, each with their own skill set. If you’re an established company looking for a Growth Hacker, it’s important that you have a clear goal in mind and can easily answer the questions: “What do you want for your company, and what are your KPIs?”
The first thing a skilled Growth Hacker will ask about is data.
Lack of knowledge
One theory I’ve had for a long time is that many companies still aren’t skilled enough at navigating the vast ocean — the internet — and as a result, they don’t really know what they’re looking for.
In other words, they want a bit of everything when hiring a marketing manager.
It’s a dream scenario to find one person who can master every discipline — because that’s nearly impossible, especially in such a dynamic field.
I “earned” the title myself when I worked with Tattoodo.com — my ideas gave the company the fuel it needed to grow, and they went from being a startup to reaching 5,000,000 monthly visitors, 2,000,000 Facebook fans, and 200,000 emails.
After that, people started calling and writing to me because they had heard about this case through the network. I am deeply thankful to Christian Stadil, Mik Thorbo, and Johan Plenge for that.
“Micky grew our Tattoodo page from 0 to 370,000 in 8 months and to 1 million monthly visits. In the same period he took Ami James’ page from 380,000 to 1.8M! A true genius! Can’t recommend him enough. Write me if you want to hear more.”
Mik Thorbo Carlsen
Chairman, Tattoodo
To me, a Growth Hacker is a technically skilled marketer who understands data, technology, and the interplay between them. They’ve also, in my view, worked with many different cases and therefore have the ability to spot opportunities across various platforms.
How do you find a Growth Hacker?
Without putting myself on a pedestal — there are plenty of things I don’t know either — I’ve been incredibly fortunate to start young. I’ve always been a bit of a nerd, and by age 27, I had already looked into over 100 different Google Analytics accounts.
If I were to find a Growth Hacker today, I’d look for someone who masters the things I’ve mentioned above.
A Growth Hacker can’t perform magic! Remember that!
But what you do get is a tremendously valuable mind, one that can very likely give your company a serious push forward.
Building a generic business based on SEO and AdWords will never be fun — at least not for me. I’m good at SEO, but I don’t find it challenging or interesting.
Is there only one growth hack?
Of course not — in a modern company, you should always have multiple growth hacks running simultaneously. The internet has become so complex that it opens up a range of opportunities most people don’t even know exist.
So it’s also about constantly testing new hacks. As I see it, it’s advantageous to run two parallel marketing tracks.
The traditional channels shouldn’t be deprioritized — they’re great for maintaining a stable and healthy business, provided you’ve got control over your channels and costs.
Growth hacks should be seen as initiatives that can go either way — but every time you try a new hack, you learn something. Whether it works or not.
Conclusion on Growth Hacking
Do you have enough “Growth Hacks” running in your business?
Feel free to share great examples of growth hacking, ideas, or anything else in the comment section below. I look forward to hearing from you!
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