marketers need to think more like hackers
TRANSCRIPT
I truly believe that the only way to be a great marketer in the future, will be to think like a hacker.
By Kirsty Sharman
The fundamental flaw in most marketing strategies is the assumption that consumers want to connect with brands online.
Unless you’re Red Bull, Nike or ooozing sex appeal,
chances are, you’re consumers aren’t online to connect with you. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
By Kirsty Sharman
§ Marketers look for ways to help brands connect with consumers
§ Want to serve the right message, to the right person, at the right time
By Kirsty Sharman
Traditional Marketers Growth Hackers
§ Growth hackers look for ways to get consumers wanting to connect with brands
§ Want to find creative ways to acquire customers, at any time
By Kirsty Sharman
Social channelPost timingTailor to device < Customer wants
If you get this right, the rest will fall into place.
Tactic one: Find something that your customers really want
By Kirsty Sharman
§ Traditional growth hacks (like finance calculators for example) help customers get the information they want, and associate that to a brand they will need next.
§ Your customers want many things, some completely unrelated to your product. Facebook realized that users wanted an easier way to log into websites, so they released the ‘sign in with Facebook’ technology. Soon every second website was giving them ‘free’ ad space.
Clue:
99% of the time, the answer to what your customers want is not your product.
By Kirsty Sharman
Tactic two: Leverage established networks to scale your attack
By Kirsty Sharman
§ If you want a campaign to scale, the best way to do it is by leveraging networks that already exist. Influencer Marketing, hacking established audiences, share tactics, etc.
§ AirBNB did this best when they stole traffic from Craigslist, their biggest competitor at the time:
By Kirsty Sharman
Think where most of your customers are right now, or what they will look for.
Then find a way to be there.
Tactic three: Learn to operate in a state of uncomfort
By Kirsty Sharman
§ Changing the way we think and operate as marketers means learning to operate in a state of uncomfort.
§ When AirBNB decided to steal traffic from their biggest competitor, I'm sure they felt like they were perched on the edge of a cliff, waiting to get caught……
Tactic four: Everything is not as it seems
By Kirsty Sharman
§ Traditional tactics like faking demand are often used, proving that everything is not as it seems. Pinterest turned hype into users by leveraging the ‘invite only’ tactic.
§ Twitter knows that users who follow more than 30 people are more likely to become active users. This is the real reason they highlight suggested people for you to follow ;)
By Kirsty Sharman
Humans gravitate to places that others want to be. It’s why we’ll always assume a que outside a shops means there is something inside we want.
The power of assumption is a great tool for marketers.
Tactic five: Always cover your tracks!
By Kirsty Sharman
§ The traditional marketing funnel has never been so important. Making sure you cover your tracks by capturing all customers – cookies, retargeting, email follow ups are just a few tactics to cover your tracks.
§ Great growth hackers have the ability to follow through with their ideas –meaning they are obsessed with customer acquisition.
Clue:
99% of the time, it’s not your product.
By Kirsty Sharman
Catch and convert:
Do what you can to keep customers inside the net, then get them back to shore as quickly as possible.
Example: Knorr found out that their users wanted to know, what to cook for dinner?
By Kirsty Sharman
</End>Kirsty Sharman
Entrepreneur | Growth Hacker | Webfluential.com
Email: [email protected]
By Kirsty Sharman