Growth strategy at a pre-revenue startup and growth strategy at a post-Series B company look completely different on the surface. Different team sizes. Different budgets. Different risk tolerances. Different definitions of what "growth" even means.
But underneath those differences, the fundamental questions are the same. I've spent 21 years moving between both contexts — running $8M+ enterprise programmes and bootstrapping products alone on evenings — and the framework I use at each stage is identical.
The stack, in order
I call it a "stack" deliberately. Like a tech stack, each layer depends on the one below it. You can't optimise layer three without having layer two working. Most growth problems I diagnose are actually misdiagnoses — someone is trying to solve a layer three problem when they have a layer one problem that hasn't been addressed.
Layer 1: Do you know who you're for?
Not "who could use this" — that's everyone. "Who loses sleep over the problem you solve?" That's your customer. If you can't name a job title, a context, and a specific pain, you're not ready to grow anything.
Layer 2: Do they know you exist?
This is distribution, not marketing. Marketing assumes you know your message. Distribution assumes you know your channel. Most early-stage growth programmes skip straight to "more content" or "more ads" without asking which channel is already working and why.
Layer 3: When they arrive, do they immediately understand the value?
Time to value. First session. The moment a user experiences what you promised them. If this doesn't happen in session one for most users, you have an onboarding problem. Not a retention problem — onboarding.
Layer 4: Does the value compound?
This is what separates products that grow from products that churn. The best growth vehicles I've seen are built on products where using the product more makes it more valuable — either through data, through network, or through habit formation.
Layer 5: Does it pay for itself?
Unit economics. LTV/CAC. The ratio that tells you whether growth is a good investment or an expensive habit. This is the last layer — not because it matters least, but because it can't be optimised until layers 1–4 are working.
Most growth programmes fail because they try to solve a layer 5 problem with a layer 2 solution. More acquisition spend cannot fix a product that doesn't retain. Full stop.
How to use this
Start at layer 1. Ask the question. If the answer is clear and specific, move to layer 2. If it's fuzzy, stop. Fix it. Move on only when the layer beneath you is solid.
This is slower than most growth teams want to move. It's faster than the alternative.