Startup Growth: Automation Isn’t Magic

It’s natural for founders to be looking into ways to accelerate their company’s growth while saving the most time. Time is gold, after all, as they say. But, they can fall into the trap of using automated tools such as email campaigns to bombard the market with emails hoping for a response. This is commonly referred to as “spray and pray”. While I understand the motivation behind this approach, it’s not the right way to go about things. Instead, think of these tools as an accelerator of what already works.

The key is to first identify what works for your business. Once you have done so, you can use automated tools to scale and accelerate it. This could be a way to reach your target audience in mass, but only after you’ve tested the effectiveness of your approach. Rather than relying solely on automated campaigns, consider starting with a more manual approach, such as personalizing the first 50 or 100 emails to see if it is effective. Once you’ve found something that works, you can then scale it using automated tools.

It’s important to keep in mind that automation should not replace your own judgment and analysis. A good example of this is Dropbox, a company that started with a manual approach and then used automated tools to scale their efforts. They found that by identifying their target customers and reaching out to them personally, they were able to drive sign-ups and build a loyal user base. Once they had established this foundation, they used automated tools to reach a larger audience and accelerate their growth.

In the words of Dropbox CEO Drew Houston, “If you don’t have your own judgment and analysis, then you’re just blindly following the data.” By using automated tools as an accelerator of what works, you can achieve growth while still maintaining your own judgment and analysis.