Growth Stories

Unique marketing moves that grew real brands

The clever, unconventional methods companies used to boost sales and grow — and what your business can borrow from each one.

EdTech TikTok mascot marketing

Duolingo

How Duolingo grew with tiktok mascot marketing

↑
Brand awareness
Lower
Cost per customer
Compounding
Word-of-mouth
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Airline Low-Fare Marketing

AirAsia

AirAsia's Low-Fare Marketing Method Drives Remarkable Growth

60M
passengers in 2019
$2.3B
revenue in 2019
9%
net profit margin
Read the story
Pet Subscription Referral Program

BarkBox

BarkBox's Referral Program Drives 50% User Growth in One Year

50%
User Growth
30%
Revenue Increase
High Engagement
Customer Retention
Read the story
Beauty Social Media Influencer Marketing

Kylie Cosmetics

Kylie Cosmetics Leverages Influencer Marketing to Achieve Unprecedented Growth

$300M
Sales in 18 months
16M
Instagram followers
Sold out
Products in minutes
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Apparel Subscription Model

MeUndies

MeUndies' Subscription Model Fuels Explosive Growth

300%
Subscription growth
$100M
Annual revenue
30%
Higher lifetime value
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Apparel Weekend Warrior Marketing

Chubbies Shorts

Chubbies Shorts' Weekend Warrior Marketing Fuels 400% Sales Growth

400%
Sales Growth
200k+
Social Media Followers
50%
Increase in Engagement Rate
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Retail Guerrilla Marketing Campaigns

IKEA

IKEA's Guerrilla Marketing Campaigns: Creative Tactics Driving 15% Sales Growth

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Automotive Referral Program

Tesla

Tesla's Referral Program Drives Remarkable Growth

30%
increase in new vehicle orders
50%
lower customer acquisition cost
millions
social media impressions
Read the story
Telecommunications Uncarrier Campaign

T-Mobile

T-Mobile's Uncarrier Campaign Drives Massive Subscriber Growth

3x
Increase in subscribers
$75B
Annual revenue
67%
Stock price growth
Read the story
Retail Store Expansion Strategy

Dollar General

Dollar General's Store Expansion Strategy Drives Rapid Growth

9%
Increase in same-store sales
$27B
Revenue in 2022
18,000+
Stores Nationwide
Read the story
Beverages Celebrity Placement

Fiji Water

Fiji Water's Celebrity Placement Strategy Drives Remarkable Growth

30%
Revenue Increase
150%
Social Media Growth
Top 5
Market Share Position
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Beverage Influencer Partnership Campaigns

Aloe Gloe

Aloe Gloe's Influencer Campaigns Drive 150% Sales Growth

150%
Sales Growth
75%
Increase in User-Generated Content
100%
Doubling of Social Media Following
Read the story
Entertainment Binge-Watching Strategy

Netflix

Netflix's Binge-Watching Strategy Fuels Subscriber Growth

223M
Subscribers by 2021
2Hrs
Average daily viewing time
$25B
Annual revenue in 2020
Read the story
Automotive Community Building Events

Harley-Davidson

Harley-Davidson's Community Building Events Boost Sales and Loyalty

10%
Increase in sales
15%
Growth in H.O.G. membership
25%
Increase in event attendance
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Marketing Technology User-friendly email automation

Mailchimp

Mailchimp's User-Friendly Email Automation Fuels 30% Growth in User Base

30%
Increase in user base
25%
Revenue growth
15%
Improvement in customer retention
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Health & Wellness Free Trial Offer

Headspace

Headspace's Free Trial Offer Drives User Growth by 300%

300%
User Growth
50%
Trial-to-Paid Conversion Rate
6 months
Timeframe for Growth
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Food & Beverage Social Activism Campaigns

Ben & Jerry's

Ben & Jerry's Social Activism Drives 20% Sales Growth

20%
Sales Growth
1M+
New Social Media Followers
3x
Brand Engagement Increase
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Apparel Environmental Activism Campaigns

Patagonia

Patagonia's Environmental Activism Drives 25% Sales Growth

25%
Sales Growth
40%
Increase in Online Sales
90%
Customer Retention Rate
Read the story
Fintech Premium-only positioning

Cred

How Cred grew with premium-only positioning

↑
Brand awareness
Lower
Cost per customer
Compounding
Word-of-mouth
Read the story
Technology Referral Program

Dropbox

Dropbox's Referral Program: A Game-Changer for User Growth

3900%
Increase in sign-ups
4M
Users gained in 15 months
500MB
Storage incentive per referral
Read the story
Food Service Social Media Engagement Campaign

Panda Express

Panda Express Boosts Sales by 30% with Social Media Engagement Campaign

30%
Sales Increase
25%
Social Media Follower Growth
50%
Engagement Rate Boost
Read the story
Technology Gamification of Productivity

Trello

Trello's Gamification Strategy Fuels 50% User Growth in One Year

50%
User Growth
30%
Increased Task Completion Rates
40%
Rise in Collaborative Projects
Read the story
Beverages Extreme Sports Sponsorship

Red Bull

Red Bull's Extreme Sports Sponsorship: Fueling Brand Dominance and Growth

7%
Annual sales increase
6M
Social media followers
$10B
Market valuation
Read the story
Beverage Equity Crowdfunding Campaign

BrewDog

BrewDog's Equity Crowdfunding Campaign: A Recipe for Explosive Growth

25%
Increase in sales
50,000
New investors
£7 million
Raised in funding
Read the story
Mattresses Sleepover Campaign

Casper

Casper's Sleepover Campaign Drives Impressive Growth Through Engagement

30%
Increase in sales
50%
Rise in social media engagement
2x
Increase in repeat customers
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Personal Care The Man Your Man Could Smell Like

Old Spice

Old Spice's Bold Approach Drives 125% Sales Growth

125%
Sales Increase
18% to 35%
Market Share Growth
Millions
New Social Media Followers
Read the story
Consumer Goods Humorous Viral Video Campaign

Poo-Pourri

Poo-Pourri's Humorous Viral Video Campaign Drives 300% Growth

300%
Sales Growth
1M+
Video Views
50%
Increase in Brand Awareness
Read the story
Eyewear Home Try-On Program

Warby Parker

Warby Parker's Home Try-On Program Drives 300% Growth

300%
Revenue Growth
5
Pairs Sent per Home Try-On
60%
Higher Conversion Rate
Read the story
E-commerce Flash Sales for Local Businesses

Groupon

Groupon's Flash Sales: A Catalyst for Local Business Growth

83M
Subscribers globally
50%
Average increase in new customers
$2B
Revenue generated by Groupon in 2011
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Consumer Electronics User-Generated Content Campaign

GoPro

GoPro's User-Generated Content Campaign Drives 30% Sales Growth

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Food & Beverage Real-Time Marketing

Oreo

Oreo's Real-Time Marketing Method Drives Impressive Growth

20%
Increase in sales
500,000
New social media followers
15,000
Retweets of Super Bowl tweet
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SaaS Freemium + word of mouth

Slack

How Slack grew with freemium + word of mouth

↑
Brand awareness
Lower
Cost per customer
Compounding
Word-of-mouth
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Music Streaming User-Generated Playlists

Spotify

Spotify's User-Generated Playlists Fuel Explosive Growth

300M
Active Users
40M
User-Generated Playlists
30%
Increase in Subscription Revenue
Read the story
Consumer Electronics Will It Blend?

Blendtec

Blendtec's Viral "Will It Blend?" Campaign Boosts Sales by 700%

Read the story
Media Viral Content Creation

BuzzFeed

BuzzFeed's Viral Content Creation Method Fuels Remarkable Growth

1,200%
increase in monthly unique visitors
$300M
revenue by 2019
20%
average engagement increase per post
Read the story
Sports Apparel Collaborative Artist Partnerships

Nike

Nike's Collaborative Artist Partnerships Drive Remarkable Growth

15%
Revenue Growth
5M
New Users
30%
Increase in Social Media Engagement
Read the story
Beverages Share a Coke campaign

Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola's 'Share a Coke' Campaign Drives Remarkable Sales Growth

2%
Sales Increase
500,000+
Photos Shared
#1
Top Beverage Brand
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Food Tech Bold social-media voice

Zomato

Witty notifications and memes made Zomato India's most talked-about food brand

Viral
social reach
Top-of-mind
brand recall
Organic
word of mouth
Read the story
Travel Craigslist growth hack

Airbnb

A clever cross-posting hack put Airbnb in front of millions for free

Millions
of new eyeballs
Free
acquisition channel
Rapid
early growth
Read the story
E-commerce Viral launch video

Dollar Shave Club

A $4,500 comedy video turned an unknown razor startup into a subscription giant

12,000
orders in 48 hours
$1B
eventual acquisition
27M+
video views
Read the story

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