Difference Between Digital Marketing and Growth Marketing – Part 2

Digital Marketing and Growth Marketing has similarities as well as differences. Let us discuss.

No matter whether it is a digital marketing or growth marketing campaign; it has to follow a process or certain steps to achieve the result.

Before, we get into today’s topic let me summarise from the previous article; growth Marketing is data-driven and a process where research and experimentation of specific marketing strategies can use them effectively to achieve business growth results in alignment with business strategy.

Growth marketing starts with product-market fit and relies on the product where marketing is inbuilt with i.e. the product solves a problem for the consumers.  You cannot grow or scale a product offering without any evidence that it is what the market wants. So, as a growth marketer, you take the marketing campaign performing well but needs an aggressive strategy to take further. That aggressive strategy is what growth marketing strategy is. It is agile. It is lean. It needs swift experimentation. The devil is in the detail, data-derived from the experimentation and success is resulting in moving falling forward or raising.

If the top of the funnel (ToF) or exposure stage of your marketing is to increase brand awareness and lead acquisitions.  This could be achieved through traditional digital marketing strategies such as organic traffic, influencer marketing, paid advertisements or search engine optimisation.  You are producing some results, but you want to go beyond then adopt growth marketing.

Growth hacking or growth marketing is not about going viral but about retention, referral and revenue.  And also start growth marketing small or focused and iron out issues so that you can out-smart and out-perform your competition to disrupt the market. Secondly, using the data and turning the campaign outcome for the best.

Unlike digital marketing or traditional marketing, growth hacker marketing needs an open mind to explore options, experimentation and research.

Marketing funnel stages (Digital Marketing and Growth Marketing)

Every visitor who gets into the marketing funnel has to undergo a journey to achieve their intent. So, what are the marketing funnel stages?  The first five stages are common for both digital and growth marketing. However, the way reports are looked at for performance or growth is different.

1. Exposure/Traffic  In this stage, we drive traffic to the product either thru organic or paid advertising.

2. Awareness/Attention In this stage, you increase product awareness through education on how the product could solve their challenges and create harmony in their life. This is not the product-market fit stage.
3. Desire/Discovery In this stage, your education from the previous stage has raised the curiosity; either want to test drive the product or want to get more information. You have not solved their problem yet, they don’t trust your product yet.
4. Intent/Evaluation Once they have tested and evaluated your product; they will purchase your product in the next stage.
5. Conversion/Activation The potential lead has become a client account. They successfully parted the cash for your product.

Until this stage growth marketing and digital marketing follow the same steps and use similar data.

1. How many entered the funnel?
2. How many left the funnel?
3. No data was collected from why they left at each stage.
4. What is the cost per acquisition?
5. What is the cost per customer?

However, the digital marketer does not make any changes to funnel or the strategies at each stage. They don’t conduct detailed A/B test. They don’t use heatmaps tool or other tools to verify the customer journey.  This is why many digital marketers will not assure you the ROI (return on the investment).

Additional Growth Marketing Stages

6. Retention/Loyalty

Have you ever used those price comparison sites? They do a comparison and suggest a low-cost initial price and when renewal occurs the price will be going up considerably which will make the steeper cost for the customers.   This is a major cause of customer turnover.   The other reasons being poor customer service or just dissatisfaction with the product.   The growth marketers first point of recovery is to close the tap at this stage. It is easier to retain a customer in the long term than, acquiring a new customer. This also puts responsibility when companies are pricing their products.

Some companies are willing to right off discounts when acquiring customers as expenses in the hope that they can recoup it in future payments.  Many customers do fall prey for these tactics.

7. Referral

The Referral marketing stage is one of my favourite stages.  It is rewarding when a product sells on referral. This shows the loyalty the customer place on us.  When customers are satisfied; if you increase your price they are willing to pay instead of leaving.  Another benefit at this stage if influencer or affiliate marketing strategy is used the operational and payout costs are much lower. It is a win-win for everyone involved. This is another star on the shoulder for Growth Marketer when strategies are applied properly here in this stage. ROI (return on investment) goes thru the roof.

8. Revenue

When the previous two stages are handled properly with the right strategies and tactics. Then this stage is the by-product of those steps.

So, friends, these are the differences between Digital Marketing and Growth Marketing.

Tomorrow, let us discuss the common metrics and strategies in growth marketing.

Until then adios amigos.

My LinkedIn Article from 2016