Growth Hacking
🚀 Scientific marketing analysis for rapid user acquisition and scale.
Growth hacking often suffers from survivor bias, unverified “hacks”, and channel fatigue. ReasonKit applies structured reasoning to validate growth strategies before you burn cash.
Common Growth Questions
“How can I double my user base in 30 days?”
rk-core think "I have 1000 users. I want to hit 2000 in 30 days. Budget $500. How?" --scientific
“Which acquisition channel should I focus on?”
rk-core think "B2B SaaS product, $49/mo. Should I focus on LinkedIn Ads, cold email, or SEO?" --balanced
“Is my viral loop realistic?”
rk-core think "I expect each user to refer 1.2 friends. Is this K-factor realistic for a productivity tool?" --paranoid
Example Analysis
Question: “How can I double my app’s user base in 30 days?”
rk-core think "I want to double my app's user base in 30 days" --scientific
╔════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╗
║ GROWTH ANALYSIS: User Acquisition ║
╚════════════════════════════════════════════════════════════╝
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
║ 💡 GIGATHINK: 10 Perspectives │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ 1. PATH 1 (VIRAL): Incentivize referrals ("Give 1mo, Get 1mo")
│ 2. PATH 2 (CONTENT): "Ultimate Guide" SEO series
│ 3. PATH 3 (PARTNER): Co-marketing with non-competing SaaS
│ 4. PATH 4 (SALES): Cold outreach to high-value targets
│ 5. PATH 5 (PRODUCT): Product-led growth (freemium)
│ 6. PATH 6 (COMMUNITY): Build Discord/Slack community
│ 7. PATH 7 (PAID): FB/LinkedIn Ads (instant but expensive)
│ 8. PATH 8 (INFLUENCER): Sponsor niche creators
│ 9. PATH 9 (MARKETPLACE): Launch on AppSumo/ProductHunt
│ 10. PATH 10 (ACQUISITION): Buy a smaller newsletter/tool
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
║ ⚡ LASERLOGIC: Reasoning Analysis │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ FLAW: "We just need to go viral"
│ → Hope is not a strategy. Viral loops require K-factor > 1,
│ which is mathematically rare for most utilities.
│
│ FLAW: "Paid ads scale infinitely"
│ → CAC rises as you exhaust early adopters. Unit economics
│ usually break at scale.
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
║ 🪨 BEDROCK: First Principles │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ CORE QUESTION:
│ Do you have Product-Market Fit?
│
│ If YES: Pour fuel (paid/sales).
│ If NO: Fixing the bucket (retention) matters more than
│ filling it (acquisition).
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
║ 🛡️ PROOFGUARD: Fact Verification │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ VERIFIED: Average SaaS growth is 10-20% YoY.
│ VERIFIED: "Doubling in 30 days" usually requires paid spend
│ or viral coefficient > 1.
│ TO VERIFY: Your current churn rate.
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
┌────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┐
║ 🔥 BRUTALHONESTY: Reality Check │
├────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┤
│ You want to double users in 30 days? Unless you have a
│ massive ad budget or a truly viral product, this is a
│ vanity metric that will kill your business. You'll likely
│ acquire low-quality users who churn immediately.
│ Focus on doubling revenue or engagement instead.
└────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
SYNTHESIS:
For a 30-day sprint, Path 1 (Viral Loop) + Path 3 (Partnerships)
is the only realistic way to double without massive ad spend.
But warning: solving for "user count" usually hides a
retention problem. Fix the leaky bucket first.
Growth Framework Integration
ReasonKit complements standard growth frameworks:
| Framework | ReasonKit Enhancement |
|---|---|
| AARRR (Pirate Metrics) | BedRock identifies the weakest bottleneck |
| Bullseye Framework | GigaThink brainstorms traction channels |
| ICE Score | LaserLogic validates “Confidence” estimates |
| Viral Loop | ProofGuard verifies mathematical assumptions |
Common Growth Fallacies
| Fallacy | Growth Context | ReasonKit Response |
|---|---|---|
| Magic Bullet | “We just need one big PR hit” | Probability analysis of PR impact |
| Premature Scaling | “Let’s pour ads before retention is fixed” | Churn rate warnings (BedRock) |
| Cargo Culting | “Dropbox did it, so we should too” | Context validation (LaserLogic) |
| Vanity Metrics | “Look at our signups (ignoring DAU)” | Metric integrity check (BrutalHonesty) |