Dec 27, 2017
Cliff Lerner shares the inspiration and his story behind his book Explosive Growth: A Few Things I Learned While Growing To 100 Million Users - And Losing $78 Million.
Imagine waking up one morning to find your previously unknown
tech start-up all over the news. After years of hard work and
unsuccessful investor pitches, your valuation has increased tenfold
overnight and investors are suddenly acknowledging your success and
banging down your door to throw money at you. Within a few
weeks, you've raised nearly $10 million on the basis of just a
few phone calls, and every media outlet in the world wants to
talk to you.
Sounds like something out of a dream or a movie, right? Well, this
crazy story is entirely true.
When Facebook launched its app platform in 2007, it offered free
access to hundreds of millions of users for those smart enough to
figure out the right mix of marketing, engagement, and
analytics--someone like Cliff Lerner.
As a result of explosive growth, Cliff faced numerous challenges
and made a few inevitable mistakes. That's also how he lost $78
million, and that's what makes this story so compelling.
Explosive Growth isn't about an uninterrupted rise to success, and
it isn't a book that simply lists a bunch of growth strategies
without context or practical application--anyone can do that.
The marketing strategies, PR hacks, and viral
expertise that helped us accumulate 100 million
users are all in here. But what's perhaps more
valuable are the lessons learned from hard times and a real-time
window into the decision making as things were exploding.
Success in business doesn't come from an idea or a
formula; it comes from execution. No path is
identical, and each key moment presents a decision point that will
impact and shape the future of the business. The strategies in this
book, coupled with a glimpse into the thought processes behind key
decisions in SNAP's journey, will undoubtedly help any entrepreneur
better execute in their own business.