In the fast-paced digital landscape, businesses are constantly seeking innovative ways to boost their online presence, drive traffic, and grow their audience. One powerful strategy that has gained immense popularity is growth hacking, a data-driven approach to marketing that leverages unconventional tactics to achieve rapid growth.
This case study dives deep into a successful growth hacking campaign that resulted in a staggering 1,300 social shares and a 2,752% increase in referral traffic in just one week. The campaign was developed and executed by Cody Lister, Founder of MarketDoc, and it showcases the power of strategic content marketing when combined with effective growth hacking techniques.
Step 1: Find a Share-Worthy Topic
The first step in any successful growth hacking campaign is identifying a topic that resonates with your target audience and has the potential to go viral. Cody Lister chose to focus on a topic that was both relevant and intriguing: “The 10 Biggest Mistakes Businesses Make with Content Marketing.” This topic was timely, as content marketing was gaining traction, and businesses were eager to learn how to optimize their strategies.
Step 2: Hire a Freelancer to Write an Epic Blog Post
Once the topic was selected, the next step was to create a compelling and informative blog post that would capture the reader’s attention and provide valuable insights. Cody Lister hired a freelance writer to create a comprehensive and well-researched blog post that went beyond the typical “list-style” article.
The freelance writer crafted a detailed and engaging piece that offered actionable advice, real-world examples, and practical tips for businesses looking to improve their content marketing efforts. The blog post was designed to be informative, educational, and shareable, laying the foundation for the growth hacking strategy to come.
Create content that teaches your audience valuable lessons, and according to Neil Patel, avoid pogosticking users who are searching for relevant content.
As confirmed by Moz’s insights from analyzing 1 million articles, long form content of over 1,000 words consistently receives more shares and links than shorter form content.
Step 3: Create an Awesome Content Upgrade
To further incentivize readers to share the blog post, Cody Lister created a valuable content upgrade: a downloadable checklist titled “The Ultimate Content Marketing Checklist.” This checklist provided a concise summary of the key points discussed in the blog post and served as a practical tool for businesses to implement the advice they had learned.
The content upgrade was strategically positioned within the blog post and offered as a free download in exchange for an email address. This approach helped to capture leads, build an email list, and provide a tangible incentive for readers to share the post with their networks.
Step 4: Find Sharers for Content Promotion
With a compelling blog post and a valuable content upgrade in place, Cody Lister turned his attention to identifying potential sharers who could amplify the campaign’s reach. He used a combination of tools and techniques to find individuals and groups who were actively involved in the content marketing space.
Step 5: Filter Out Low-Priority Data Rows
Cody Lister utilized a data filtering process to eliminate low-ity data rows from his list of potential sharers. This ensured that he was focusing his efforts on individuals and groups who were most likely to engage with the content and share it with their networks.
Step 6: Set Up Amazon Mechanical Turk HIT to Reverse Lookup Email Addresses of Sharers
To gather the email addresses of potential sharers, Cody Lister leveraged Amazon Mechanical Turk (MTurk), a crowdsourced marketplace for tasks that are difficult for computers to perform. He created a Human Intelligence Task (HIT) that involved reverse-looking up the email addresses of individuals who had shared the blog post on social media.
Step 7: Import Person Data into BuzzStream
Once the email addresses were gathered, Cody Lister imported them into BuzzStream, a popular public relations and outreach tool. This allowed him to organize and manage his list of potential sharers and streamline the outreach process.
Step 8: Set Up Outreach Email Templates in BuzzStream
Cody Lister created personalized outreach email templates in BuzzStream to send to the identified potential sharers. These emails highlighted the value of the blog post and content upgrade, and they encouraged the recipients to share the content with their networks.
Step 9: Send Initial Outreach Emails From BuzzStream
Using BuzzStream, Cody Lister sent out initial outreach emails to the identified potential sharers. These emails were personalized and tailored to the interests of each recipient, increasing
Step 10: Reach Out to VIP Influencers Mentioned in the Blog Post
Identifying and engaging with VIP influencers mentioned in the blog post is a strategic step in amplifying the reach and impact of the content. These influencers, being recognized authorities in the industry, can significantly boost the content’s visibility and credibility.
Step 11: Publish Date Follow-Up
After the initial release of the blog post, executing a publish date follow-up strategy is essential to maintain momentum and maximize the post’s visibility. This step involves revisiting the content after a certain period to ensure its relevance, update any information if necessary, and re-promote it to reach new audiences and re-engage existing ones.
Step 12: Find a Reputable Niche Content Syndication Platform
Identifying and leveraging a reputable niche content syndication platform can significantly amplify the reach and impact of your blog post. These platforms are designed to distribute content to targeted audiences within specific industries or interest groups, maximizing exposure and engagement.
Step 13: Promote Your Post with Content Marketing Retargeting and Content Syndication Networks
Utilizing content marketing retargeting and syndication networks can significantly enhance the visibility and impact of your blog post across various digital channels. These strategies involve targeting specific audience segments, re-engaging interested users, and expanding your content’s reach through syndication partnerships.
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