Growth Hacking Isn’t a Growth Strategy
Growth hacking could mean many different things. But for me, one thing is certain: growth hacking is not a growth strategy.
When I hear the words growth hacking, I think of somebody trying to hack into a growth strategy and make the journey shorter.
Make it simpler.
Make it quicker.
Get to the target faster.
But simpler is not always the right option.
Sometimes, in fact many times, the hardest road is the one that leads to the pot of gold.
That is where I think the problem with growth hacking begins. If you have already taken the time to work out a strategy, why would you immediately start trying to cut it in half or quarter it just because you want the result quicker?
If You Have Built A Strategy, Why Are You Trying To Hack It?
For me, growth hacking is somebody taking a strategy and trying to shorten the process because they want to reach the target quicker.
What Does Growth Hacking Actually Mean To Me?
I suppose growth hacking could mean many different things.
But it does not mean growth strategy. That thing is for sure.
For me, growth hacking is somebody wanting to hack into a growth strategy by making it shorter.
When I say shorter, I mean cutting into it and trying to make the journey simpler and quicker.
But why?
If you have worked out a strategy properly, why do you need to half it or quarter it?
The only real reason I can see is that you want to get to your target quicker.
If the strategy was worth building, why are you in such a hurry to cut pieces out of it?
The First Month Is Where The Itchy Feet Start
Picture this.
You have worked out a strategy and it is going to last three to six months.
You get into it and within the first month you start getting itchy feet.
You want to change it.
You cut bits out.
You stop doing what you were doing.
And before you know it, the strategy you originally built is no longer the strategy you are following.
Stick To The Strategy
Give the plan enough time to work. Keep the direction intact and make sensible adjustments when you have a proper reason to.
Start Cutting It Apart
Change direction because the result has not arrived quickly enough, remove pieces of the plan and chase a faster route.
Simpler is not always better. Sometimes the hardest road is the one that leads to the pot of gold.
A Strategy Can Be Working Before You Can See The Result
Three to six months is long enough to start knowing whether something is working. But you will not always see that in the first month. Sometimes you might not even see it in the first three.
What If The Improvement Does Not Arrive Until Month Five?
Things take time.
Strategies take time.
You might get into the fifth month before you start seeing real improvements.
That does not mean you should blindly carry on with something that is clearly going nowhere.
But it does mean you should be very careful about judging a three-to-six-month strategy after a few weeks.
Businesses do not always grow on the timetable we want them to.
Do not mistake “I cannot see the result yet” for “the strategy is not working.”
Social Media Creates A Different Kind Of Peer Pressure
I know why people lose patience.
They do not see results.
And then there is what I like to call peer pressure from YouTube, Instagram and social media.
Everywhere you look, somebody seems to be leading this rich lifestyle.
Somebody has the nice house.
Somebody has the car.
Somebody is telling you how quickly they built a business.
Somebody else has another great idea to make money and you start thinking, “Yes, I could do that.”
That is peer pressure.
And I do not think it is good to keep watching it.
Somebody else appearing successful does not mean your strategy is wrong.
Nothing Seems To Be Happening
The strategy may still be developing, but impatience starts creating pressure to change it.
Everybody Else Looks Ahead
Social media shows the result people want you to see, not necessarily the full journey behind it.
Another Idea Looks Better
A new business model, tactic or opportunity catches your eye and suddenly your own strategy feels less exciting.
Your Own Plan Gets Forgotten
Instead of reviewing your own progress, you start making decisions based on somebody else’s apparent success.
Someone else’s success story is not evidence that your own strategy is wrong.
The Strategy Should Be Seen Through. The Version Can Change.
I have made this mistake myself. What I have realised is that when you set a strategy, that strategy should be seen through — but the exact version you started with does not have to stay the same.
A Strategy Does Not Have To Stay Frozen
I know it is hard.
I have made this mistake.
But I have realised something.
When you set a strategy, the strategy does not have to be seen through to the end in exactly the same form.
The strategy does.
But that version does not.
There is a big difference between adapting something because you have learned from it and abandoning it because you have become impatient.
Keep the direction. Change the details when the details genuinely need changing.
Small Monthly Tweaks Are Enough
For me, adapting a strategy means tweaking it.
Monthly.
Short tweaks.
Nothing too large.
Just small movements.
You look at what happened.
You look at what worked.
You look at what did not.
Then you make a sensible adjustment without destroying the whole plan.
Set The Strategy
Decide where you are trying to go and give yourself a realistic period to work at it.
Do The Work
Give the activity enough consistency to create something meaningful to review.
Review Monthly
Look at the evidence and decide whether a small movement is needed.
Keep Moving
Adapt the version without throwing away the direction.
Do not hack the strategy. Tweak it.
Sometimes The Harder Road Is The One Worth Staying On
Business is not always about finding the quickest route. Sometimes it is about staying on the right road long enough for the work to start paying you back.
What If You Simply Cannot Do Everything?
I get it.
Sometimes it is difficult to do everything.
Especially if you are on your own.
Perhaps you work full time and you are trying to get your business to take off around that.
You only have so much time.
You only have so much energy.
So yes, adapt it.
But stick to it.
There is nothing wrong with reducing the amount you are trying to do if that makes the strategy realistic.
What I would not do is keep changing the destination because the journey feels too slow.
Make The Workload Realistic
Do what you can consistently, adjust the execution and keep the strategy moving in the same direction.
Keep Looking For A Shortcut
Cut the process, chase the next idea and keep restarting before the previous strategy has had time to prove itself.
Why Does Everything Have To Be Quicker?
This is the question I keep coming back to with growth hacking.
Why does everything have to be quicker?
If you have a target and you have a strategy that you believe can take you there, why are you constantly looking for a way to shorten it?
Faster does not automatically mean better.
Easier does not automatically mean better.
Simpler does not automatically mean better.
Sometimes the work that feels slow is the work that is building the foundations underneath the result.
The aim is not to reach the target as quickly as possible. The aim is to build something that still works when you get there.
Stick to it. Adapt it. Tweak it. But do not keep hacking pieces out of the strategy because you are impatient for the result.
Growth Hacking Is Not A Replacement For Patience, Strategy And Consistency
I understand why growth hacking sounds attractive.
Everybody wants to get to the target quicker.
Nobody wants to spend months doing something that does not work.
But there is a difference between improving a strategy and hacking it apart.
If you have taken the time to build a three-to-six-month strategy, give it enough time to show you something.
Do not judge it after the first month just because the results are not obvious.
Do not abandon it because somebody on YouTube or Instagram appears to have found an easier way to make money.
Do not confuse another person’s success story with evidence that your own plan is wrong.
And do not be frightened of changing the version of the strategy when you have a proper reason.
Make small monthly tweaks.
Learn.
Adapt.
Keep moving.
Stick to the strategy. Yes, adapt it. But stick to it.
Growth takes time.
Strategies take time.
And sometimes the hardest road really is the one that leads to the pot of gold.