What CatchThatBus learned after an 8 week 'growth hacking' intensive

TL;DR

CatchThatBus learned that disciplined data tracking, rapid ad experimentation, personalized coaching, and Scrum could accelerate growth during an eight-week intensive. Correctly configured Google Analytics exposed key sales and route metrics, while testing 50 ads produced results within 24 hours and helped double mobile app installs over eight weeks. Read on for the specific experiments, operational changes, and three core lessons behind those gains.

Transcript

hey I'm bruin and i'm a co-founder bus we are an online travel aggregator for intercity express buses across malaysia and singapore we've been around for about two years so we launched our mobile app for the five months ago we're growing at forty to fifty percent you know as aggressive as our web growth but then we got a round of funding and obviou... Read More

Key Insights

• ❓ Accurate data tracking and analysis are essential for informed decision-making and growth.
• 🥺 Ad experimentation can lead to faster and more impactful results compared to traditional marketing strategies.
• ❓ Personalized coaching and guidance can enhance understanding and implementation of growth strategies.
• ❓ Internal efficiency and Scrum methodology can improve operational performance and focus.

Questions & Answers

Q: What did CatchThatBus learn after its eight-week growth hacking intensive?

CatchThatBus learned to treat data as a fundamental business tool, test many advertising variations, improve internal efficiency with Scrum, and explain growth initiatives to the entire team. The company also learned not to assume that spending heavily on online advertising would automatically make it the market leader.

Q: How did correcting Google Analytics help CatchThatBus?

The corrected setup let CatchThatBus see important information directly, including popular routes and daily ticket sales. Previously, the team had to ask developers to extract this information from the back-end database every other day.

Q: What did CatchThatBus discover by experimenting with 50 ads?

CatchThatBus launched 50 ads and found that only 20 worked. The experiment delivered results within 24 hours, contrasting with the previous approach of running one ad at a time for six to eight months.

Q: How did experimentation affect CatchThatBus's mobile app downloads?

Before applying experimentation, its mobile app advertising generated roughly 10 to 20 downloads. The new approach produced 100 downloads a day, and CatchThatBus doubled its mobile app installs over the eight-week period.

Q: What Google Ads results did CatchThatBus report during the intensive?

CatchThatBus reported reaching 80 percent in impressions and spending double the amount. It also said that it had quadrupled that number over the eight weeks.

Q: How did Cerebro's coaching support CatchThatBus during the eight weeks?

The co-founder described Cerebro as having a personal coach who provided daily direction and made sure the assigned work was completed. That accountability helped keep growth work from being displaced by the many other demands on the business.

Q: Why did CatchThatBus apply Scrum to its operations?

CatchThatBus recognized that growth involves internal operations as well as marketing and revenue. Applying Scrum made the team more efficient and focused, helping it execute growth work more consistently.

Q: What three growth lessons did CatchThatBus take away?

First, businesses should understand every metric that is important to them and treat data as a close guide. Second, they should not assume that high advertising spend guarantees leadership; third, the whole team should understand why changes are being made and see the results those changes produce.

Summary & Key Takeaways

• Utilized improved Google Analytics for accurate data tracking.

• Implemented ad experimentation tools for faster results.

• Emphasized the importance of internal efficiency and Scrum methodology for operational growth.