Growth Hacker vs. Full Stack marketer: The Ultimate Guide

Table of Content
What is growth hacking? 
What is growth marketing? 
What connections exist between growth marketing and growth hacking?
What distinguishes growth marketing from growth hacking?


I hear the terms "growth hacking" and "growth marketing" used interchangeably by a lot of smart individuals. To understand what I mean, just have a look at Julian Shapiro's epic growth marketing manual.

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Having stated that, I'm going to make a decision that might cause some debate. I'm about to argue that growth marketing and growth hacking are actually two very separate concepts with a few key connections, contrary to what the huge, terrifying headline up there might imply. Click here to enrol and learn from the digital marketing course.


Let's take a moment to define the two concepts, though, before I go any further.

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What is growth hacking? 

Growth hacking is described as "a disciplined approach to driving rapid market growth through high-speed, cross-functional experimentation" by Sean Ellis and Morgan Brown in their seminal book Hacking Growth.

The fundamental components of growth hacking, in accordance with Ellis and Brown, are:

• A cross-functional group with expertise in both technical product development and marketing.
• The process of learning about user behaviour and preferences through the use of qualitative and quantitative data.
• Using strict measurements and rapid testing to analyse the outcomes and take appropriate action.

Contrary to what is commonly believed (and in contrast to other definitions), Ellis and Brown emphasise that growth hacking also involves customer activation, retention, and monetization.

It's also important to note that, despite the fact that many people now associate growth hacking with particular strategies like Google Ads and A/B testing, the original definition would indicate that any experiment that generates a significant increase in revenue quickly and tangibly qualifies as a growth hack.

Finally, Ellis and Brown propose that growth hacking can be advantageous for businesses of all sizes and in all industries. I'll get to that eventually, even though I vehemently disagree.


What is growth marketing? 

Let's look at a definition of growth marketing: growth marketing is a systematic process that combines strategic brand marketing with tactical performance marketing to attract good-fit customers and make them successful enough to repurchase, make additional purchases, and recommend the product to others.

That's a mouthful, for sure.

But when broken down, growth marketing comes down to:

• A blend of tactical performance marketing and strategic brand marketing (think positioning and differentiation) (think content marketing and paid acquisition).
• A methodical procedure based on growth hacking and agile development principles. In a cyclical sprint model, the process prioritises techniques according to how significant they are thought to be over the long run.
• The goal of achieving long-term revenue growth through client activation, retention, and monetization in addition to new customer acquisition.
• Serving well-matched clients, or businesses that fit your ideal client profile, rather than just anybody with a heartbeat.

What connections exist between growth marketing and growth hacking?

Growth hacking and growth marketing, as their names imply, are fundamentally comparable in four ways:

• Goal. Both strategies aim to increase income through client activation, retention, and monetization in addition to new customer acquisition.
• Data. Growth marketing success depends on having access to both qualitative and quantitative data, just as growth hacking.
• Process. Both strategies use an agile sprint model, which promotes experimentation, data-driven decision-making, and the goal of ongoing improvement.
• Product. Growth marketing and growth hacking have one thing in common that makes sense: the product needs to be good enough for either strategy to be effective.

What distinguishes growth marketing from growth hacking?

There are, in my opinion, four key distinctions between growth hacking and growth marketing.

The brand is everything in growth marketing; growth hacking has nothing to do with the brand.
The competing approaches to a brand that characterise growth hacking and growth marketing are their most fundamental differences. Simply said, growth marketers, work for their brand, as opposed to growth hackers who don't care about it.

However, let's be clear about one thing right away: Growth hackers are brand averse for good reason. And the reason for this is that they favour strategies and distribution methods that ensure accurate attribution. Why? Since they can quickly determine whether or not a new experiment was successful and whether it should be abandoned or ramped up by knowing exactly where a lead or customer originated.

Brand marketing has the drawback of being difficult to attribute. The ultimate objective is to provide a consistent (and unmistakably pleasant) experience for those who come into contact with the brand. Therefore, it might be challenging to gauge the financial impact of a particular strategy (such as responding to a tweet, dispersing swag, or releasing a new podcast episode).

However, growth marketers are content to incorporate these poorly traceable strategies into their playbook since they are aware that even though something cannot be immediately measured, it will eventually bear fruit (in real money, too).

Look at this graph from a 2018 ProfitWell pricing analysis if you don't believe me; it shows that B2B clients are more willing to pay for brands they like. Who would have guessed?

In case the scientific evidence wasn't convincing enough, allow me to give you a more specific example.

Let's imagine your laptop was stolen at a coffee shop over the weekend and you are in dire need of a replacement.

Basically, there are two options available to you: either head immediately to the nearest Apple retailer and get the model you choose (the stunning dark grey MacBook Pro, anyone?). Alternatively, you might begin looking into and contrasting alternatives based on their cost, size, display type, and a variety of other qualities.

If you skipped the comparison phase, you're just like me and the other 200 billion individuals who would rather spend their time doing practically anything else than comparing computers.

I wanted a Mac, but how did I know that? The brand is the easy response. I am aware of it and I am committed to it. I am aware that it is more expensive than almost everything else, but I honestly don't care.

This is what I'm attempting to say:

There aren't any iconic brands that were created only through growth hacking. There are many things that Steve Jobs was, but a growth hacker isn't one of them.

growth-oriented marketing Growth hacking helps all the other PC manufacturers, including Apple. Let's all hazard a guess as to who has the biggest profit margins presently.

Brand marketing is difficult to measure but is completely worthwhile.
  A full stack marketer is, in the most basic sense, a person who is knowledgeable in all facets of digital marketing, capable of creating a comprehensive strategy tailored to your company, and capable of carrying out that strategy.