Demand Curve - The Growth Newsletter #085

The Growth Newsletter #085

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Welcome to the 1023 new marketers and founders who joined last week!

 

This week we're covering storytelling, ad pages, and B2B testimonials.

 

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Together with Maven.

 

Maven is a marketplace of cohort-based courses taught by the internet’s best educators. Over 10,000 ambitious professionals from companies like Google, Coinbase, and Airbnb have taken Maven courses to accelerate their careers. Maven just released 100+ courses as part of their Fall Lineup. And we hand-picked a group of our favorites that we think you’ll love. Check them out here.

Want to sponsor Demand Curve? Here's what you need to know (booked out 8+ weeks).

 

1. Don’t start your storytelling at the beginning

Insight from Andy Smith and Wes Kao.

 

One of the biggest mistakes we see startups make when it comes to storytelling:

 

Starting stories at the beginning.

 

Entrepreneur Andy Smith even calls this one of the “seven deadly sins of startup storytelling.”

 

Instead, start where it gets interesting. Here’s a great graphic from Wes Kao illustrating the point:

 

Smith argues that an interesting story arc matters much more than chronology.

 

“…the stuff you need to hook people doesn't tend to happen early on. Events need to build, one after the other, emotionally rather than sequentially.”

 

This applies to any form of storytelling, from your about page to video ads to blog articles. Cut the exposition. Get right to what’s exciting or resonant.

 

A marketing example: The first line of this gut-punch of a video: “There’s a Rang-tan in my bedroom, and I don’t know what to do.”

 

How do you know where to start? Smith recommends a classic plotting technique you’ve probably seen in a movie: Write your story elements on Post-It notes, then move them around to find your opening. If it’s sensory and intriguing, it’s probably a solid starting point.

 

2. Where to send your traffic: PDPs or sales pages?

Insight from Demand Curve.

 

Marketers often argue about whether it’s better to send ad traffic to product detail pages (PDPs) or dedicated sales pages.

 

The answer?

 

It depends. Here are three factors that’ll help you make a decision:

• Ad format. Text-based search ads capture demand while visual formats like Facebook and Instagram create it.
• Your product and industry. Some products, like jewelry and apparel, are self-explanatory—PDPs usually perform well. Innovative products often need more explanation, which sales pages provide.
• User intent. People at the top of the marketing funnel need more information (dedicated landing page) than people at the bottom (product page).

An example:

 

Ritual sells multivitamins for women. They run ads on Facebook/IG as well as Google search. Here's how its ads’ destination pages differ.

• Facebook ads → dedicated landing pages and homepage
• Search ads → homepage, PDPs, product collections

Why the difference?

 

If people are Googling high-intent keywords like “best womens vitamin,” it makes sense to send them to a PDP. But on Facebook, where people aren’t scrolling with the intention of buying vitamins, a dedicated landing page helps get new prospects into the funnel.

 

Use ad format, product, and intent to create a hypothesis of where to send your ad traffic. Then test it.

 

3. How to get more B2B case studies and testimonials

Insight from Superpath’s Slack community.

 

Case studies and testimonials are B2B conversion gold.

 

Now, more than ever, B2B buyers are relying on the opinions and expertise of peers to make purchase decisions.

 

But customers don’t always jump at requests for case studies and testimonials. Not because they’re unsatisfied or unwilling—they just have other priorities.

 

To get more and better case studies (and prevent ghosting), try these tactics:

• Tell customers that inaction translates into approval. For instance: "We'll send a draft of the case study for approval once it's ready. From there, you'll have [time frame] to review. we’ll follow up and if we don't hear back by [date], we'll take that as your approval.” Bold, but it works.
• Highlight the promotional benefits. If your company has an audience, present the case study as a way for customers to get in front of more people. Example: "If you’re down, we’ll promote the final piece through our channels—you’ll reach [# of people].”
  • Framing helps here. You can pitch this as a “customer spotlight.” Mention you’re looking for their take on industry topics and how your company has helped them on their mission.
• Offer something in return. Offer a discount or exclusive access to product upgrades. Or offer any assets used to produce your case study, like recordings or graphics your team creates.

 

4. It’s 3 am and you need a video ad done by tomorrow

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Trusted by 450+ ambitious brands, Superside is the #1 creative-as-a-subscription service designed with marketers and creatives in mind. By combining the top 1% of creative talent from around the world with purpose-built design ops technology, Superside helps companies grow faster.

 

Grab a free call here and see for yourself how Superside can hook you up with your creative needs.

News and links

News you can use:

• For businesses that rely on Instagram Shopping, get ready to pivot. Instagram plans to scale back and switch users to “Tab Lite,” a simpler version of the shopping page.
• Interested in building your business’s Twitter presence? Check out Twitter’s free Flight School workshops. Expect tips on its Professional Profiles features and how to prep for the holidays.
• Google finished rolling out its helpful content update last week. Here’s a helpful primer if you’ve noticed any changes in your traffic/rankings.

 

What's happening: We’re less than a month out from Growth Summit 2022. Wondering what sessions will be like?

• Brian Dean (Backlinko) will explain how he optimizes for Google's algo.
• Alex and Leila Hormozi will teach you how to use sales to scale your company.
• Nathan Baschez (Every) will show you how to grow a media brand.

If you’re into growth, we’ve got a session for you. Get your free ticket and learn alongside 10,000+ operators behind the world’s fastest-growing startups. Claim your free ticket.

 

Topic we’re hearing a lot about*: Community capital

 

Republic is a community capital platform that helps founders raise money, engage their community, and market their company at the same time. Through Republic campaigns, companies have tripled user bases, sold millions worth of product, gained press coverage, connected with VCs, and raised follow-on rounds at great terms. Founders have raised over $1B on Republic.

 

Apply here to get $1,000 worth of credit toward a fundraising campaign—only for DC readers.

 

* Sponsored

Top new marketing jobs

 

If you're looking for a top growth role, check out the opportunities below from our job board.

Something fun

From @skeleton_claw

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Who's Demand Curve? We’re who marketers and founders rely on to solve real marketing problems. We skip trends and fluffy stories and only share high-quality, vetted, and actionable growth content from the top 1% of marketers.

 

How we can help you grow:

• Read our free playbooks, blog articles, and teardowns—we break down the strategies and tactics that fast-growing startups use to grow.
• Enroll in the Growth Program, our professional course that will help you get traction and scale revenue.
• Hire our agency, Bell Curve, and we'll grow your startup for you.

• Engage with our audience by sponsoring Demand Curve.

See you next week.

 

— Nick, Grace, Joyce, Dennis, and the DC team.

Nick Costelloe

Grace Parazzoli

Joyce Chou

Dennis Buckley