name	growth-strategy
description	Growth strategy for product-led and loop-driven growth systems. Use when building growth strategy, designing growth loops, planning acquisition channels, evaluating network effects, deciding when to scale, or coordinating product, engineering, data, and marketing around growth. For SEO audits use seo-and-aeo-strategy; for page/form CRO use conversion-rate-optimization; for A/B test design use ab-test-setup.
metadata	growth, growth-strategy, growth-loops

Growth Strategy

Workspace Context

Read bootstrap context before asking questions: strategy/brand.md for brand, audience, offer, channels, tools, constraints, and metrics; about/me.md for personal voice; content/ideas.md and content/calendar.md for content planning. Use legacy product-marketing context files only as fallback. Save generated drafts to content/<platform>/drafts/YYYY-MM-DD_short-topic-slug.md, and route durable learnings back to strategy/brand.md, about/me.md, or content/ideas.md.

Operating Contract

This skill is self-contained for its frontmatter scope: use its local instructions, references, scripts, and assets as the playbook; ask only for missing task-specific inputs; hand off to adjacent skills instead of expanding scope; and return an actionable artifact, decision, plan, draft, or diagnostic.

Growth strategy for compounding growth systems. Use this skill for growth loops, distribution bets, network effects, PLG strategy, and scaling decisions. Route tactical SEO, page/form CRO, and experiment design to the specialist skills.

Quick Reference

Situation	Use This Skill For
SEO, page CRO, or experiment execution	Route to specialist skills
Building growth engines	Growth Loops Framework
Strategic growth planning	Strategy & Frameworks
Distribution strategy	Channel & Platform Strategy
Network effects	Product-Led Growth

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Part 1: Core Principles

Foundational Truths

• Growth follows product-market fit, never precedes it
• Retention is the foundation; acquisition without retention is a leaky bucket
• The best growth is product-driven, not marketing-driven
• Compound effects beat linear efforts
• Every growth channel eventually saturates
• Network effects are the ultimate moat
• Premature growth destroys companies

Growth Is Not Marketing

Growth is the systematic application of product, engineering, and data to create compounding user acquisition, activation, and retention. It's a mindset, not a department.

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Part 2: Growth Loops Framework

Why Loops, Not Funnels

Funnels: Linear. Pour effort in, get results out, start over. Loops: Each cycle generates fuel for the next cycle.

The key shift: Move from "How do we get more users?" to "How does each user we acquire generate more users?"

Loop Types

Loop Type	Description
Content Loops	Users create content → attracts more users → more content
Viral Loops	Users invite others → exponential spread
Sales Loops	Customers generate revenue → fund more acquisition

Critical Patterns

Pattern	Insight
Funnels vs Loops	Funnels are linear; loops compound
Paid ≠ Loop	Paid acquisition doesn't compound — it's buying users
Founder-Led First	Can't outsource finding growth model
Product Must Own Growth	Can't be marketing-only function
One Primary Loop	Others supplement but won't save you
Earned Over Paid	Invest 80%+ in earned/owned channels

Platform Cycles

New platforms open, then close. Time your bets correctly:

• Early: High reach, low competition
• Mid: Reach peaks, competition grows
• Late: High competition, diminishing returns

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Part 3: SEO × SMO × CRO Framework

SEO Checklist

Page-Level

• <title> — unique, 50-60 chars, primary keyword
• <meta name="description"> — 150-160 chars
• <link rel="canonical"> — self-referencing
• Single <h1> with primary keyword
• Primary keyword in first 100 words
• Descriptive alt text on all images
• Internal links to related pages

Site-Level

• robots.txt not blocking important resources
• sitemap.xml up to date
• HTTPS everywhere; mobile-friendly
• Core Web Vitals passing (LCP < 2.5s, CLS < 0.1, INP < 200ms)

OGP / Twitter Cards

<meta property="og:type" content="website">
<meta property="og:title" content="Page Title">
<meta property="og:description" content="Description">
<meta property="og:image" content="https://example.com/og-image.png">
<meta property="twitter:card" content="summary_large_image">

CRO Core

Pillar	Goal	Key Metrics
SEO	Be found	Organic traffic, rankings
SMO	Be shared	Social CTR, shares
CRO	Convert	Signup rate, completion

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Part 4: Growth Models

The LTV Equation

LTV = (Average Revenue Per Customer × Average Customer Lifespan) - CAC

Unit Economics

• LTV:CAC ratio: 3:1 minimum for sustainable growth
• Payback period: < 12 months preferred
• CAC: Cost to acquire a customer
• ARPU: Average revenue per user

AARRR Framework

Metric	Definition
Acquisition	Users come from
Activation	First meaningful use
Retention	Users come back
Referral	Users invite others
Revenue	Users pay

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Part 5: Network Effects

Types of Network Effects

Type	Description
Direct	More users → more value (social networks)
Indirect	More users → more options → more value (marketplaces)
Two-sided	Supply and demand sides benefit (platforms)
Data	More data → better product → more users

Building Network Effects

1. Cross-side presence: Ensure both sides of marketplace exist
2. Liquidity thresholds: Hit critical mass in each segment
3. Switching costs: Users invest in platform
4. Platform stickiness: Integration with workflows

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Part 6: Product-Led Growth (PLG)

PLG Core Principles

• Product as the main driver of acquisition
• Free trials and freemium models
• In-product virality
• Self-serve onboarding
• Usage-based expansion

PLG Metrics

Metric	Target
Activation rate	> 40%
Time to value	< 5 minutes
Weekly active ratio	> 20%
Expansion revenue	> 20% of total

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Part 7: Growth Experimentation

ICE Framework

Factor	Score (1-10)
Impact	Could this double growth?
Confidence	How sure will this work?
Ease	How easy to implement?

Test Execution

• Document hypothesis clearly
• Define primary and guardrail metrics
• Calculate required sample size
• Wait for statistical significance (95%)
• Run full business cycle (1-2 weeks minimum)

What NOT to Test

• Button colors before understanding objections
• Copying competitors blindly
• Optimizing without funnel context

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Part 8: Growth Team & Timing

When to Hire Growth

Stage	Growth Focus
Pre-PMF	Founder-led, iterate on product
Finding PMF	First 100 customers, understand channels
Validated PMF	First growth hire, build experiments
Scaling	Full growth team, channel expansion

Growth Team Structure

• Individual Contributor: Run experiments
• Growth Manager: Prioritize and coordinate
• Growth Lead: Strategy and team management

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Part 9: Key Frameworks Summary

Andrew Chen's Wisdom

• Marketplace dynamics
• Network effects as moat
• Platform distribution
• Cold start problem

Brian Balfour's Frameworks

• Growth loops methodology
• Platform cycles
• Paid ≠ loop insight

Casey Winters' Playbooks

• Kindle before fire (non-scalable → scalable)
• Product-led sales
• PQA > PQL

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Common Mistakes

1. Premature scaling — Growth before PMF burns cash
2. Acquisition without retention — Leaky bucket
3. Chasing channels — Without understanding loops
4. Vanity metrics — Focus on leading indicators
5. One-hit wonders — Not building compounding systems

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Related Skills

• product-market-fit-analysis: For PMF assessment
• conversion-rate-optimization: For CRO implementation
• customer-success-and-retention: For retention strategy
• ab-test-setup: For growth experiments