What are some cost-effective growth marketing strategies for startups?

There are indeed ways to pursue cost-effective growth marketing for startups! The key here is not only what is cost-effective but also what delivers an impact on the desired business outcomes. While this can look different depending on the company, a few tried-and-true approaches include:

• Content marketing

• Social media marketing

• Email marketing

• Referral programs

• SEO

• Growth loops (e.g., UGC)

• Free trials and freemium models

• Community-led

All of these approaches can be scaled appropriately depending on resources and budget. I'm taking the approach of little to no budget with my recommendations above. However, for early-stage startups, I highly recommend the approach of time-bound and low-budget experiments. If the experiment has legs and you are collecting helpful signals that can inform the strategy, then consider branching out into additional iterations and/or experiments.