Use your experimentation layer to test new ways of growing, especially ones you have never tried. When a strategy works, move it to your always-on layer as fast as possible and keep optimizing it there.
What a channel stack is
In workshops around the world I have taught channel stacking. The basis is the nineteen traction channels from the book Traction by Gabriel Weinberg and Justin Mares. A stack lets several of those channels work together, so the return of the combination can be measured against the investment.
Example 1: Pixel, mail, convert
At my growth hacking agency we targeted people with Facebook ads and brought them to our blog. From there, automated email marketing took over. At its peak our marketing automation ran more than 500 follow-up emails.
- Pixel them with strong content.
- Email them strong content.
- Convert them, because they trust you can solve their problem.
Stacking these channels let us take what worked in the experimentation layer and keep it running in the always-on layer.
Example 2: stacking tools to sell out a workshop
To sell out a workshop in Dublin we stacked tools instead of only channels:
- Connect. LinkedIn automation invited second-degree connections in marketing in the Dublin area.
- Keep showing up. A content curation tool sent us two articles a day, connected to our social scheduling tool, so we appeared twice a day in the timeline of that new audience.
- Sell and follow up. A banner led to a landing page written on direct response principles. Visitors could buy a ticket or sign up for a seven-day email series about the workshop. After those seven emails, they flowed into the 500+ email follow-up system.
Best practices
- No dead ends. Every step leads to a next one.
- Build an evergreen always-on layer.
- Test, test, and automate what works.
Basic and advanced stacks
| Basic | Advanced | |
|---|---|---|
| Get attention | On the platforms where your audience spends time | On a platform where your audience gathers but competitors don't advertise or promote themselves |
| Get their details | So you can message them directly | Through a direct channel without banner blindness or spam fatigue |
| Expand access | Add more platforms that reach the same prospect | Add upcoming direct-message platforms on purpose |
| Example channels | Facebook ad → email list → LinkedIn connection | Answers on Quora → WhatsApp or Messenger → email + LinkedIn DM |
Be creative and combine many channels and tools. The key is the same every time: keep experimenting, and add every winner to your always-on layer.
Open the chapter 12 worksheet with the experiment template →