Growth startup (12/12): growth marketing minidegree review

Sad, but true: this is the last :((( post of this series of growth marketing, based on my learnings from CXL’s Growth Marketing minidegree.

Again: I’ll miss being here every Sunday to share with you what I learned - and what I can put into practice from now on...

Last Sunday, we focused on martech stack and how to choose the right tools:

• After all, what is a martech stack?,
• A lot more than just tools,
• Where to start?,
• Why is it important to think about the customer journey?,
• Mistakes to avoid.

GROWTH STARTUP SERIES PREVIOUS POSTS:

Growth startup (1/12): open-minded growth vs. traditional marketing review

Growth startup (2/12): building a customer-centric growth process review

Growth startup (3/12): running growth experiments with research and testing review

Growth startup (4/12): conversion research review

Growth startup (5/12): mastering a/B tests review

Growth startup (6/12): attribution models review

Growth startup (7/12): conversions review

Growth startup (8/12): product messaging review

Growth startup (9/12): email marketing review

Growth startup (10/12): growth program management review

Growth startup (11/12): what is martech stack and how to choose the right tools review

Today I wanna try to highlight what I learned about growth marketing I explain why you should consider enrolling in a growth marketing course.

Let's recap my journey through growth marketing

During the last 12 weeks and approximately 111 hours and 41 minutes studying of this CXL Institute Scholarship program, I walked through different places of growth marketing:

• Growth mindset: growth vs traditional marketing,
• Building a growth process,
• User-centric marketing,
• Identifying and amplifying growth channels,
• Research and testing,
• Conversion Research,
• A/B testing mastery,
• Statistics fundamentals for testing,
• Google Analytics for beginners,
• Intermediate Google Analytics,
• Google Tag Manager for beginners,
• Attribution,
• Excel and Sheets for marketers,
• Landing page optimization,
• Product messaging,
• Email marketing: from basics to best-in-class,
• Messaging strategy in public relations,
• Facebook Ads,
• Google Ads,
• Content strategy and SEO for lead generation,
• Retention: the most underrated growth channel,
• Maximizing audiences for your PPC campaigns,
• SEO driven editorial calendar,
• LinkedIn advertising,
• YouTube ads,
• Technical SEO,
• Data-driven influencer marketing,
• Account-based marketing,
• GrowthMaster Training Workshop,
• Optimizing Your Growth Process,
• Optimizing your marketing tech stack,
• Marketing strategy,
• Project Management for Marketers.

Yes, it's mind-blowing. And very exciting because you don't just learn... You understand what marketing growth is all about.

Keep calm: do not panic!!!

The first thing I notice is that there is no chance I can master everything. But I can master the ability to connect the dots. Why is so important do to A/B testing? And why it correlates with martech stack, for example.

Now, I know that there is a lot of concepts, actions, questions, and learnings to take into consideration when every time a customer says "I need this, I need that...".

Remember: be able to connect the dots is more important than getting mad trying to be in control of everything.

Look and feel

Before saying to customers I HAVE THE SOLUTION!, it's fundamental to:

• Listen,
• Listen,
• And listen before answering.

What this course about growth marketing mostly taught me is that before growing, we need to listen and feel the pains of our customers (and their audiences and users). ;)

Caution: only tests will show the way

It's no use running like a crazy guy shouting at everyone. After hearing and feeling your client's pain, it is time to raise hypotheses.

And they are just hypotheses.

That is, it is necessary to test them with planning, method, and teamwork. And only the tests will tell whether or not we are right in our assumptions about how to optimize our strategies for growth.

Count on data, and data only

There are no arguments against numbers, right? The idea is precisely this: no assumptions, bets, or anything like that.

In growth marketing, what matters is the data you get from the tests for your hypotheses.

Data, data, and more data. Period.

And everything must be strong and based on models.

Or you're allowed to show up in meetings saying you're putting growth marketing into practice. ;)

It's okay to learn from mistakes

Yes, mistakes make us reevaluate, think and be more humble.

This is also true in digital marketing. Strategies are strengthened by mistakes because everything gets clearer.

Take mistakes as an opportunity to recycle ideas and get rid of misunderstandings and false expectations. ;)

Keep your eyes wide open

Having the ability to get away and review the facts with detachment is essential.

This is even clearer to me after this growth marketing course.

Because we must connect the dots, think of hypotheses, test, and take action, it's very important to go through this journey always trying to distance ourselves, mainly because we should be concerned with users and consumers.

Be persistent: in joy and sorrow

I was able to understand that in growth marketing, as in other marketing practices, we live on the razor's edge.

Persistence in trying to understand the situation, seeking answers, and fighting for others' help can keep us going.

It sounds like small talk, but it is true if we think about the difficulties of many marketing teams: poor communication, distancing from other teams, lack of reliable data, etc.

Deliver value to customers

Maybe this is the most important: really work hard to get things well done. Our strategies must result in real results. And this must be achieved always taking into consideration the audiences' needs.

After all, this is not about us, our customer, or their brands. It should be about the real people out there, consumers who are searching for the best products and services they can find.

Maybe this sounds naive, but I'll really try to keep that in mind after finishing this course of growth marketing.

Keep learning and walking

Growth marketing is changing, as are consumers and their habits. It is essential that we, as marketers, remain curious about it.

Each of the classes in this course was a delightful experience for me.

Growth marketing learning needs to be continuous to stay fresh as the tastiest fruit in the basket.

This is my last message for this series, sincerely hoping that you get inspired to learn more about this topic.

See ya. ;)