When & How to Prioritise New Growth channels?
When to Prioritize New Channel Exploration:
This strategy is most effective in the Product-Market-Channel Fit & Growth stages of a business. It’s essential when your current channels have plateaued in effectiveness, while the market share is still low.
When to NOT prioritize New Channel Exploration:
Just like funnel optimisation, new Growth channels cannot solve a fundamental lack of product-market fit. Hence, search for new Growth channels should only start after product-market fit is established. Until then, reaching out to customers should be as direct as possible.
Exploring New Channels with the Bullseye Framework:
The Bullseye Framework by Gabriel Weinberg provides a structured approach to identifying and testing the most promising new channels.
Understanding the Framework:
The Bullseye Framework involves three concentric circles representing different channel categories: the outer ring for channels to test, the middle for promising channels, and the inner bullseye for channels that could move the needle for your business. The goal is to move channels from the outer rings to the bullseye through systematic testing and analysis.
Identifying Potential Channels:
Start by listing all possible channels that could reach your ideal customer profile (ICP). This includes not just digital channels but also offline ones, depending on your product and market.
Testing and Measuring:
Implement small-scale tests in each channel to gauge their effectiveness. Measure performance based on relevant metrics like engagement, conversion rates, and customer acquisition costs. This data-driven approach helps in identifying the most promising channels.
Focus and Scale:
Once you identify channels with potential, focus your efforts and resources on them. Scale these channels gradually, continuously measuring and optimizing their performance.
Conclusion:
New channel exploration is effective in the Product-Market-Channel Fit and Growth stages when current channels are plateauing but market share remains low. It shouldn’t be prioritized without established product-market fit.
The Bullseye Framework provides a structured method to test, measure, and focus on channels that can significantly contribute to your business growth.
Note: We will go deeper into different types of Growth Channels and ways to select and test them, in the skill set on "User Acquisition Skills".