Silver Bullets vs Heat Seeking Missiles
“Nate, if you’ve sent 10,000+ messages, shouldn’t you know exactly when a new client will hit their goals?”
It’s not the first time I’ve been asked this.
I wish it worked like that.
It would make things SO much easier.
Unfortunately, marketers worsen the problem by selectively highlighting their best cases to promote their services.
This misleads clients into thinking that these results are typical and should be anticipated.
I WANTED IT TO JUST “WORK”.
I launched my first online company, “Victory Laps LLC” when I was 16.
Over the next 10 years, I worked with various agencies, looking for this silver bullet.
All the businesses just found “their” silver bullet, right?
I figured it just was a matter of a time till I found it.
I never did find one.
THERE ARE NO GREAT MARKETERS, ONLY GREAT TESTERS.
What did I find?
When I look back on all those efforts I invested in, things I tried etc…
Forward Progression.
I had made progress and dialed things in.
Some things worked, others not so much.
I was much further along than when I started.
Studies show that even professionals only predict winning variants 52% of the time.
Unless you want a franchise, you’re going to need to optimize things like…
– Avatar
– Messaging
– Positioning
The burning question is: how can we guarantee that we’re testing the right elements?
How do we steer clear of aimless dart throwing and instead hit the bullseye with precision?
This is where systematic optimization becomes a game-changer.
THE CLOSEST THING TO A SILVER BULLET IS A HEAT-SEEKING MISSILE.
In 2019 I was on a flight to compete in the IBJJF Nationals, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Tournament in Vegas.
My flight was about 4.5 hours.
I love reading on planes, so I brought a book, “Hacking Growth” by Sean Ellis.
I read the entire thing during my round-trip flight.
What I found out, was that no business knows exactly what will work.
What did they do to grow?
They tested consistently and systematically.
For example, Dropbox used Growth Methodology to boost their customer base by 60% overnight.
Dropbox growth curve. Source: Viral Loop
See more inconic examples of growth hacking.
How exactly did they get this explosive growth?
They would gather these ideas and hypotheses from team leaders and put them in a doc.
– Market Research
– Client Feedback
– Team Suggestions
– Etc.
Once they had ideas of what they could test, they would create the “Minimum Viable Product”, by asking themselves:
“What’s the smallest test we can run to see if this works or not?”
Next, they score the ideas:
– Amount of effort needed
– Confidence it will work(based off previous tests)
– Impact it will make
– Cost
Next, they have the team vote on which ideas should be tested.
Once the test is complete, they review the progress and categorize it as a winner/loser.
– If it’s a winner, they can refine the test with a stronger hypothesis and higher “Confidence Rate”.
– If it’s a losing idea, see why, it may lead to another competing idea, or be scrapped altogether.
Later that year, I helped PlusThis, an automation tool company, integrate growth methodology into their business.
APEX Conversion emerged from this precise process, empowering us to consistently achieve above-average results on LinkedIn.
Silver bullets do not exist.
Operate like a heat-seeking missile.
Want to go faster?
1. If you’re looking for traction on LinkedIn, the best place to start is with a free audit so you can know what you personally should focus on: → LinkedIn Profile Audit
2. Level up your messaging: → Prospect Primer Pack
3. Consistently Secure High-Quality Clients on LinkedIn with Our Proven System → Market Domination Plan
