Growth Hacking
Rapid experimentation across marketing and product to find the most efficient ways to grow a business.
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Definition
Growth hacking is an approach to growth that combines marketing, product development, and data analysis to find unconventional, highly efficient growth strategies. The term was coined by Sean Ellis in 2010 to describe a mindset focused on rapid experimentation and measurable outcomes.
Growth hacking differs from traditional marketing in its emphasis on experimentation speed, product-level interventions, and viral mechanics. A growth hacker might change the product itself (adding referral features) rather than just marketing the existing product.
Classic growth hacks include: Hotmail's "Get your free email" signature, Dropbox's referral program, Airbnb's Craigslist integration, and LinkedIn's "import contacts" feature. Each leveraged existing platforms or user behavior to achieve exponential growth.
Why It Matters for Founders
Growth hacking provides a framework for finding non-obvious growth opportunities. For resource-constrained startups, finding one effective growth hack can be more valuable than months of traditional marketing spend.
The principles — rapid experimentation, data-driven decisions, and willingness to use unconventional tactics — are valuable even if the specific "hacks" have become harder to find as markets mature.
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Real-World Example
Dropbox's referral program is the classic growth hack: offering 500MB free storage for each referral increased signups by 60% and reduced CAC to near-zero for referred users.
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