Adobe's monthly organic traffic was flat for 9 years.

Then, it tripled to 30.2 million in just 23 months.

The SEO strategy that unlocked that growth: First, a big shoutout to @Kevin_Indig for digging into Adobe's SEO strategy and sharing it on the @MktgPowerups show.

Follow him for SEO, growth, and tech content. Then, subscribe to his newsletter "Growth Memo!"

Let's dig into the 3 parts of Adobe's SEO strategy:

Product-led growth is often misunderstood as "product manager led."

In reality, it's the complete opposite.

PLG is a team sport. There's no other way to make it work.

Let me explain: At the center of product-led growth is a common thread that ties every team together—user success.

Every function contributes to making sure users are successful with the product often *before* they become paying customers.

Let's break it down.

Adding friction to the onboarding experience can boost your activation.

The key is to know the difference between good and bad friction.

I created a 3-step framework called "DAD" test to help with that: 🧵 First off, it may be counterintuitive, but user onboarding is a process to help people adopt new product habits.

And some friction is necessary for habit formation.

Let's jump in! 🙌

(And yes, the "DAD" test is a riff on Rob Fitzpatrick's MOM test!)

Want to see the best onboarding experiences?

Look at video games! 🎮

Here are 5 ways Super Mario Bros onboards new players: Before we start, Miyamoto, a legendary Nintendo designer, explains the design secrets why Super Mario Bros' World 1-1 is instructive but fun to play.

It's a great read.

I break down the 5 onboarding tips from it below. Let's start!

bgr.com/general/super-…

The 7 psychology principles responsible for +20% MRR growth for our clients:

1. Commitment & Consistency
2. Progressive Disclosure
3. Likeability Principle
4. Zeigarnik Effect
5. IKEA Effect
6. Hick's Law
7. Fitt's Law

Use them to improve your onboarding. Find out how: 🧵 First, understanding the underlying thought processes of users is your ticket to:

• Eliminating any friction
• Grabbing their attention
• Breaking through barriers

It's why these 7 principles work to improve onboarding.

I'll share examples and tips below.

Let's dive in!

I've audited 100s of user onboarding experiences over the past 5 weeks

Here are the top 3 conversion killers: 🧵 1/ Email verification wall

It's become the standard for most apps.

Users sign up. They hit a page: "Please verify your email."

So they start waiting for the email.

Some companies nail their user onboarding. I’ll break down the best ones.

Today: how @Shopify onboards new users

The verdict: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ out of 5

Let’s jump in! For people not familiar with @Shopify, it's SaaS tool that allows anyone to set up an online store and sell their products.

40-60% of users leave an app forever after signing in once.

Because the onboarding sucks.

That's why I wrote my new book "Product-Led Onboarding," which drops on Tue, June 8th! 🔥

Here's what you need to know. For most companies, user onboarding is often neglected due to:

❌ Lack of ownership
❌ Misaligned goals and definitions
❌ Or unclear onboarding success KPIs

It's the ugly duckling of growth!

Marketing is building relationships at scale.

It's why the bestselling relationship-building book "How to Win Friends & Influnce People" is one of the best marketing books.

Here are 5 lessons from that book that'll improve your marketing: 🧵 1/ Get close to your customer.

Marketing is about understanding people and knowing why they do what they do.

It’s that simple. And that hard.

Let's talk about webcam and video call setup.

2019: I looked like a kidnapped victim forced to do a ransom video

2021: After spending $3k to upgrade my video and audio setup, it's much better!

Here's a detailed breakdown of my setup: I'll be covering six things in this thread:

1/ Camera
2/ Lenses
3/ Video capture card
4/ Lighting
5/ Audio setup
6/ Teleprompter

How would you explain what "marketing" is to a 5-year-old?

Last week, I asked this on Twitter.

Here are the 5 best responses: 🧵 1/ I love @marie_haynes idea of using something that a 5-year-old can relate with to explain marketing.

https://twitter.com/Marie_Haynes/status/1393180348008345601

The #MarketingRant Show episode 2 is going live tomorrow on Twitter Spaces at 2pm ET

@coreyhainesco's going on a rant about:

😡 DON'T EXPECT A LONE MARKETER TO GROW YOUR BIZ WITH $0 BUDGET

😡 MOST COMPANIES SET UP NEW MARKETING HIRES TO FAIL 😡 EXPECTING MARKETERS TO BE EXPERT IN 1000 DIFFERENT THINGS LIKE COPY, ADS, WRITING, MANAGING, AND HIRING 🤦‍♂️

😡 WHY THERE'S SUCH A HUGE TURNOVER IN MARKETING HIRES FOR EARLY-STAGE COMPANIES

😡 THE UGLY TRUTH OF MARKETING EXPERIMENTS

4 years ago, Laura was a student in my digital marketing class.

Today, she is the new Head of Content at @ProductLed.

Here's the story behind it. 🧵 In 2017, I was a part-time marketing instructor at a Toronto tech college for designers, creators, developers, and digital marketers.

Here's my nerdy mugshot on their wall of teachers:

Podcasts are the ultimate form of content.

With one podcast episode, you can create at least 11 other types of content!

Here's how—with examples: 🧵👇 𝟏/ 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐓𝐮𝐛𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐨𝐬

Instead of recording podcasts privately via Zoom or Riverside, I’ve started doing it live on YouTube using Streamyard.

Great way to get more engagement from your audience.

As a marketer, having a side project is one of the best ways to learn new skills.

Side projects are yours, which means you’re more incentivized to learn well.

Here are five marketing skills I learned through side projects. 🧵 𝟏/ 𝐁𝐥𝐨𝐠𝐠𝐢𝐧𝐠

In 2013, I put up my blog on ramlijohn.com and wrote an article each week for almost three years.

I don't write there as much as now.

Starting soon: The #MarketingRant Show with @amandanat on Twitter Spaces

Amanda's ranting about:
► Common copywriting mistakes
► Tips on writing irresistible copy
► Writing for Twitter vs. LinkedIn

I'll be live-tweeting it below in ALL CAPS b/c it's a rant. 🧵👇 To join the #MarketingRant Show live. It'll show up on your iOs or Android app like below

I'm trying out a Twitter experiment:

Live on Twitter Spaces every Friday for 4 weeks: The #MarketingRant show

The goal: I get a marketer to rant about a topic they’re passionate about. The first one is tomorrow (Friday) at 1 pm EDT with @amandanat. 🔥

Amanda is going on a #MarketingRant about common writing mistakes marketers make.

Amanda has a journalism background and is currently the Head of Content at @ShipBob.

9 years ago, I transitioned to marketing from software engineering.

Since I was diving into marketing on my own, I didn't know where to start.

Now that I do know, here are the 3 marketing skills I wish I picked up first: 🧵👇 1/ Customer Research

Marketing is about understanding people.

It’s that simple. And that hard.

https://twitter.com/KateBour/status/1366000233981890561

LinkedIn is where you network.

Twitter is where you make new friends. Seriously, if you want to say hi, talk about podcasting, growth, marketing — my DMs are open

An Instagram account for a dog, sure. But a LinkedIn profile for a dog?!?! I am dead! I requested to connect. 😂 Don't believe me: linkedin.com/in/millie-the-…

Seth Godin rejected me last year by email... and I loved it!

It's an art to reject someone and make them feel good after.

Let me share Seth's rejection email and 5 reasons why I love it: 🧵 For reference, here's the full rejection email he sent me after I asked him to be on my podcast GrowthToday.fm

Two lines.

That's it.

Let me break down the 5 things I love about it.