You’re probably tired of hearing buzzwords like “growth hacking” and “market growth” without actually knowing what they mean, yes? You’re not alone. It is confusing trying to differentiate growth marketing from traditional marketing.

The definition of growth for each varies from a little to a lot, but for most profit-making businesses, revenue and brand adoption remain two of the most critical and common indicators of growth. Whatever the growth strategy, it should and must not fail to increase revenue and brand adoption, among other crucial metrics.

To break it down, marketing has undoubtedly remained the key tool for companies’ growth. However, growth marketing outperforms traditional marketing in terms of mobile app growth.

That wasn’t so hard, was it? Did we add “Growth” to “Marketing” to find something different for an answer?  In truth, we didn’t, which then begs the question—what the heck is “growth marketing”?!

What is growth marketing?

We are not the only ones who have thought of these questions, but happily, we have the answers.

Practically, Growth marketing is a systematic and data-driven approach to business growth that focuses on the acquisition and building of an engaged and active audience to reduce churn and increase the lifetime value of individual users. Big words, yeah?

Here is another maybe simpler definition, it is a data-driven approach to marketing that focuses on growing a business by acquiring new customers and retaining existing ones. It is a marketing strategy employed to achieve lasting results for long-term steady and accumulating growth.

Successful growth marketing creates a highly engaged audience that will decrease churn and raise each user’s lifetime value, not just a larger user base. It has been observed that implementing a highly tailored growth marketing strategy can reduce acquisition costs in half and boost revenues.

But why is growth marketing important? Simply put, it’s because traditional marketing isn’t enough anymore. With so much noise in the marketplace, it’s harder than ever to stand out and get noticed. Growth marketing provides a way to cut through that noise and drive meaningful results.

Good Read: 7 Stages of Business Growth

What are the goals of growth marketing?

The ultimate goal of growth marketing is to increase revenue and profitability. But in order to do that, there are several sub-goals that must be met along the way:

1. Acquiring new customers: This is the foundation of growth marketing. Without new customers, there can’t be growth.

2. Retaining existing customers: It’s easier (and cheaper) to keep existing customers than to acquire new ones. Retention should be a key focus of any growth marketing strategy.

3. Increasing customer lifetime value: This means getting customers to spend more money over time, either by purchasing more frequently or by buying higher-priced products/services.

Additionally, a great perk of growth marketing is that the results are durable, as they will produce long-term outcomes for long-term sustainable growth.

So how is growth marketing different from traditional marketing? Think of it this way: Growth and traditional marketing walk into a bar. Growth marketing orders a double shot of innovation, while traditional marketing sticks to the same old thing. You can guess who comes out ahead.

But seriously, what’s the deal with growth marketing and how is it different from traditional marketing?

Growth Marketing vs Traditional Marketing: What Sets Them Apart?

Traditional marketing is all about building brand awareness and generating leads. It’s focused on the top of the conversion funnel. Once they’re aware of you, tactics like email marketing, social media, and paid advertising are used to convert those leads into customers.

On the other hand, growth marketing seeks to engage customers throughout the entire funnel, in contrast to traditional marketing, which primarily targets the top-of-the-funnel (ToFu).

image source: https://blog.useproof.com/

It takes a broader view of the customer journey. It’s not just about acquiring customers; it’s about retaining them and increasing their lifetime value. Growth marketing also relies heavily on data and experimentation to drive results. It’s about finding and optimizing the most effective tactics for maximum impact.

What does a growth marketing strategy look like?

Every business is unique, so there is no one-size-fits-all answer to this question. However, most growth marketing strategies share a few key elements:

1. A focus on data: Growth marketers are obsessed with data. They track everything from website traffic to customer behaviour to conversion rates and use that data to inform their decisions.

2. A/B & Multivariate testing: Also known as split testing, this practice involves testing two or more versions of a webpage, email, or ad to see which performs better. It is a crucial part of the system, as it allows you to optimize your tactics for maximum impact.

3. User segmentation: This involves dividing your customer base into different groups based on demographics, behaviour, and preferences. By doing so, you can create targeted marketing campaigns that are more likely to resonate with each group.

4. Referral programs: As we mentioned earlier, word-of-mouth marketing is incredibly powerful. By creating a referral program that encourages your existing customers to refer their friends and family, you can tap into that power and grow your customer base exponentially.

Take Your Business to New Heights with SAVA Growth Marketing Strategies

“At SAVA Mobile Growth Agency, we specialise in Performance Marketing and Lifecycle Marketing. This super creative and strategic method of marketing mobile apps is all about achieving measurable results. Our performance marketing strategies are designed to help businesses acquire a large number of engaged users through targeted ads and experimentation.”

Our lifecycle marketing strategies are aimed at retaining existing users by keeping them engaged and active. We focus on creating personalized experiences for each user, based on their behaviour and preferences, to increase their lifetime value. By analysing user data, we can identify opportunities to improve the user experience and keep them coming back.

We provide a comprehensive approach to mobile app marketing that covers both the acquisition and retention of users. Our goal is to help businesses grow their user base and increase revenue through a data-driven, results-oriented approach.

For startups seeking to grow, especially within the mobile app space, it is crucial to consider the “six stages of growth,” also known as the AAARRR funnel, in order to optimize their business strategy:

6 Stages of Growth

1. Awareness – Evaluating what percentage of your target audience and the broader market know your brand, offerings, and services is important. Are you reaching the right audience? Are your marketing efforts effective in creating brand awareness? These are important questions to consider.

2. Acquisition – What portion of your online traffic and visitors can a lead magnet bring into your funnel? How can you optimise your lead magnets to attract more potential customers? What strategies can you use to drive more traffic to your website or mobile app?

3. Activation – How well do you tend to your leads to prepare and familiarise them with your product(s) for conversions? Are you providing adequate onboarding and support for your users? Are you engaging with them effectively to build trust and loyalty?

4. Retention – How well can you keep customers by lowering churn, upselling, and preventing them from leaving? Do you have measures in place to reduce customer churn and increase customer lifetime value? Are you providing excellent customer service and support to enhance the customer experience?

5. Referrals – How do you use your current customer experience to impact Awareness, Acquisition, Activation, and Revenue? Are you leveraging word-of-mouth marketing and incentivizing referrals to drive more traffic and revenue? Are you actively seeking feedback and improving your product based on customer insights?

6. Revenue – Finally, what percentage of your activated leads do you turn into transacting customers, and what is your ROI? Are you tracking your conversion rates and optimizing your sales funnel to maximize revenue? Are you investing in the right channels and strategies to achieve your revenue goals?

Good Read: How to Increase App Ranking Fast

In Conclusion

Are you among the 163 investor-funded Mobile Apps Startups in Africa seeking effective strategies for growth? Is your company new to the VC(Venture Capital) and Startup block and aims to maximize your investment?

We could play 20 questions all day to tell you when your company should consider growth marketing, but you already get the hang of it.

Given the current tides and strides of global economics and the inflationary state of local and international economies, most mobile app-focused companies need a good dose of growth marketing to stay afloat.

Even after considering these realities, managing a business is still a mammoth undertaking for many businesses, even well-rounded players. Successful teams make successful companies, and effective building teams might take considerable effort and money. It is simple to understand why outsourcing teams and working with agencies to complete critical tasks has become a better option for Organizations.

Outsourcing or partnering with a growth agency will give your company the advantage of concentrating on its internal operations and strengths.

You can trust SAVA Mobile Growth Agency to deliver the best growth marketing and results without breaking the bank or risking internal efficiencies. We at SAVA are passionate about the growth of businesses, and we offer the best of expertise and experience to help companies grow.

Good Read: Case Studies