The Synergy of Content Marketing and Growth Hacking
Content marketing builds an asset slowly. Growth hacking tests quickly. How to use the two together, with seven experiments to run on your content and a simple way to choose between them.
By Suren, Founder & Growth Strategist at Gufy · Published · Last updated
Content marketing and growth hacking are not alternatives. Content marketing builds an asset that keeps working. Growth hacking is a way of testing quickly to find out what works. Used together, you build the asset and keep improving it.
This article explains the difference, shows where the two meet, and gives you seven experiments to run on the content you already have.
The difference between them
| Aspect | Content marketing | Growth hacking |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Useful material that attracts and earns trust | A method of quick, measured experiments |
| Time frame | Months and years | Days and weeks |
| Goal | Audience, trust, search visibility | Improving one specific number |
| Typical measure | Visitors, subscribers, rankings | Sign-up rate, activation, cost per customer |
| Risk on its own | Publishing for a long time without knowing what works | A string of tricks with nothing lasting behind them |
The term "growth hacking" was coined by Sean Ellis in 2010 to describe a marketer whose every decision is judged by its effect on growth. The method is simple: collect ideas, rank them, test them, keep what works.
Where they meet
Content gives experiments something to work on. Experiments stop content from being guesswork.
- An article brings visitors. An experiment finds the call to action that turns more of them into sign-ups.
- A guide ranks in search. An experiment finds the title that gets more people to click.
- A template gets shared. An experiment finds the channel where sharing happens most.
Applying experiments to content is sometimes called "content hacking".
Seven experiments to run on your content
1. Test the headline
The headline decides whether anything else gets read. For your most important pieces, write five versions and test two of them in email subject lines or social posts before choosing.
2. Test the call to action
Try a different offer, position or wording on your highest-traffic article. A link to a relevant template often does better than a general "book a demo".
3. Add something to take away
Offer a checklist, template or calculator that goes with the article, in exchange for an email address. It turns a reader into someone you can contact again.
4. Update instead of writing new
Find articles that sit just off the first page of search results. Improve the answer, add what is missing and update the date. This usually moves faster than a new piece.
5. Test distribution
Send the same piece to three places, such as an email list, a founder's social post and an industry forum, and compare which brings sign-ups, not which brings clicks.
6. Reuse one piece five ways
Turn a guide into short posts, an email, a checklist and a short video. See which format your audience responds to, then make more of that.
7. Make the product part of the content
Show the product solving the problem inside the article, with real screens and steps. Readers who see how it works are closer to trying it.
How to choose what to test
Rank ideas with three questions, each scored from one to ten. This is the ICE method, also from Sean Ellis.
| Score | Question |
|---|---|
| Impact | If it works, how much will it move the number we care about? |
| Confidence | How sure are we that it will work? |
| Ease | How little time and money does it need? |
Add up the scores and start at the top. It is rough, and that is the point. It stops the loudest opinion from deciding.
Write each test down
Before you start, record five things:
- What you are changing
- What you expect to happen, and why
- The one number that will tell you
- How long it will run
- What you will do if it works, and if it does not
Most tests will not produce a winner. Writing them down means you still learn something from the ones that fail.
What to measure
Measure content the way you would measure any other growth work.
- Sign-ups or enquiries that started with a piece of content
- The share of readers who take the next step
- Which articles customers read before buying
- Cost per customer from content, counting the time spent
Page views and likes tell you about attention. They do not tell you about growth.
Common mistakes
- Running tricks with nothing behind them. A clever tactic pointing at thin content does not last.
- Publishing without testing. You never find out which pieces are worth more effort.
- Testing too many things at once. You cannot tell what caused the change.
- Stopping tests too early. A few days of data on a low-traffic page proves nothing.
- Counting visitors as the result.
For the content side in more depth, see Content Marketing for Startups. For experiments beyond content, see B2B Growth Hacking.
Common questions
What is the difference between content marketing and growth hacking?
Content marketing creates useful material that attracts and earns the trust of an audience over time. Growth hacking is a method of running quick, measured experiments to improve a specific number. One is an asset you build. The other is a way of working.
Can content marketing be a growth hack?
Content itself is not a hack, but it responds well to experiments. Testing headlines, calls to action, formats and distribution on content you already have often improves results faster than writing more.
What is content hacking?
It is the practice of applying growth experiments to content: treating each article as something to test and improve, measuring it by sign-ups or customers and not by page views, and putting more effort into what works.
Which should a startup do first, content marketing or growth experiments?
Start with the experimental habit, because it applies to everything you do. Begin content once you have a message that customers have responded to, then use experiments to improve it.
Where Gufy fits
Gufy runs growth experiments for SaaS and mobile-app startups across acquisition, landing pages, onboarding and lifecycle messaging, with the tracking needed to read the results. See conversion rate optimisation and product analytics.