Member story
“I was the only person learning how to do marketing, I had a lot of questions, and I didn't know how to get answers to them.”
Anna Pogrebniak
Marketing · AddSearch
Finland · addsearch.com ↗ · Nov 2020
The Work
Tell us about what you are currently working on.
I work in marketing at AddSearch, a search platform startup based in Helsinki. As effectively the only marketer in the company, I'm responsible for everything from content marketing strategy to Google Ads to paid acquisition.
My current focus is scaling Google Ads, which is a relatively new channel for me, while also iterating on our content strategy to drive more high-intent traffic.
Before
Before you learned about GrowthMentor, how did you deal with the challenges you faced?
I was working alone in a startup with no other marketers or marketing experts to help. And since I was basically the only person who was learning how to do marketing, I had a lot of questions. And I didn't know how to get answers to them.
I was trying to have lunches around Helsinki and just meet other marketers. But of course, I couldn't just bombard them with questions like, "do you think my landing page works? Do you think this text is good?" over a friendly meal.
Then a friend of mine advised me to check out GrowthMentor when I was about to hire a consultant. He said, "you don't really need the consultant to advise you, just chat with growth mentors instead."
The Decision
What ultimately compelled you to sign up for GrowthMentor?
My friend's recommendation, exactly when I was about to commit to an expensive consultant. The framing made it obvious: instead of one consultant, I could get 1:1 access to many specialists for the same monthly cost.
When I checked it out, I just fell in so much love with the platform as I got so much good advice from there.
Inside the Platform
What's your favorite thing about GrowthMentor?
Getting personalized, actionable advice for my exact situation, instead of generic content that I'd have to figure out how to apply to my specific case. The mentors take time to understand the context before giving recommendations.
What topics have you mostly discussed with mentors?
Content marketing strategy and Google Ads, primarily. My first session was about our content marketing strategy for our blog. We had great content but none of it was converting.
More recently I've focused heavily on Google Ads since I had to start spending much more on that channel. I booked a lot of sessions with different people to understand how Google Ads work, what the logic is, how to get the most out of the ads manager, and ultimately how not to spend thousands of euros on nothing.
The Breakthrough
Is there a specific session/mentor that stands out in your mind as super helpful?
My first session was with Foti about content marketing. The advice he gave us was that we should target the higher intent keywords, even if the keyword planner showed less volume.
This seemed so obvious when I heard it, but just because no one was saying this before in my team I never really thought about it like that.
The Transformation
How has GrowthMentor helped you?
Before my GrowthMentor calls, I had been managing maybe a few hundred dollars in budget per month. Right now our budget on Google Ads is much higher and I'm doing it with confidence and strong results.
Whenever something is really important and I can't solve it by myself, or I'm still learning, I just book a call. It's how I navigate every unknown unknown.
The Verdict
What three adjectives would you use to describe GrowthMentor?
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