Pierre Herubel

Duolingo went from $70 to $369 million in annual revenue in 3 years.

Here are 4 growth strategies they used:

1. Large Market x Freemium Model

In 2022, Online Education was a $146Bn revenue industry. Duolingo addresses this huge market with an innovative freemium model. Users can access most content for $0 but can go premium with extra features for $6.99 monthly.

→ Address a deep serviceable available market (SAM) with a freemium model.

2. Activation and Retention thanks to Gamification

The hardest part of education apps is keeping users. For this, Duolingo's marketers analyzed popular mobile games. They added similar motivating game mechanics for retention; consecutive days streak, leaderboards, badges, or progress bars.

→ Use gamification principles to increase daily active users (DAUs).

3. Finding the Right North Star metric (CURR)

Duolingo's tried to increase the number of daily active users. After hundreds of A/B tests, they found that the Current User Retention Rate (CURR) had the best impact on DAUs. They created the “Retention team“ with CURR as a North Star metric. Definition in the comments.

→ Conduct A/B Tests to choose your teams' North Star metrics.

4. Turning the learning experience into a community

Duolingo added community features to cover the whole AARRR funnel: events, members' courses, referral features, or forums. They transformed the learning experience into a community experience.

→ Install community features to fuel the growth flywheel.

****

Those are 4 of the growth strategies they used to achieve this:

→ 575 million users in 2021
→ 9.6 million daily users in 2021
→ $3.4 billion valuation in 2022

Duolingo's ascent is a masterclass in product marketing and growth strategy.

This post is based on online research - Find the sources in the comments to keep reading about them. Have a look at the first article which explains points 2 and 3 with data.

2023: Massive shift in B2B Marketing.
2024: Time to revamp your Playbook:

- Stronger focus on content for brand authority
- Shift from cold outreach to social selling
- Wiser budgets spent on paid ads
- More targeted outbound

This 'revamp' is based on market realities:

→ B2B Buyers educate themselves with content & communities
→ Habits to trigger conversation on socials went from B2C to B2B
→ Paid ads work only if the creative and copy is extremely good
→ Email opens and replies collapsed since AI, but ABM still works

So early and growth stage startups should consider this new 'playbook'.

Let's breakdown its composition:

1. Content System as the Backbone of Your Strategy

You need to redefine content as the pillar of your marketing strategy. Because content is WHAT your audience sees and HOW they perceive you:

- High quality content that give them solutions? You are valuable.
- Poor quality content that regurgitate basics? You are a distant noise.

Build a content system on 3 layers (cf my post from yesterday) and publish high volume. Probably 20x times more than what you are doing now.

2. Social Selling in Social Media and Communities

People buy from people. It's time for you to shift to this paradigm with a core emphasis on social selling. You can do social selling with 3 tactics:

- Social Media: engagement and DMs where your audience spend time
- Your communities: create a place where members gather around you
- Your employees' network: put in place a system to maximize this

In 2024, best B2B Brands will be active on socials, build a community, and leverage personal brands.

3. Paid Ads For Better, Faster Content Distribution

You want more of your target audience to see your best content. Promote content around the problem you solve and your solution. Then, you can run 'book a demo' campaigns.

- Create demand: guides, videos, influencer ads, case studies
- Capture demand: book a demo, brand search ads, promotions, launches

4. Account Based Outbound

In 2024, you need to put intent at the center of outbound. And the best way to do this is to transition from an industry-based to an account-based method.

If tactics 1/2/3 are done properly, buyers will be all around you:

- Leaders consuming your content
- Accounts with buying signals (e.g. visit pricing page 3 times)
- Potential buyers in your community
- List of engagers on social media

***

There are multiple possible B2B marketing playbooks. This is one based on my past projects, experimentation, and research. Feel free to add your inputs.

Many marketers think B2B & B2C marketing are "similar".

But there is one BIG difference that changes everything:

The buying decision process is completely different.

In B2B:

- Multiple stakeholders with different roles and objectives.
- They collaborate in a shared "buying project";
- To purchase a solution that will drive ROI.

In B2C:

- One buyer or a small group of relatives;
- Aligned around a single decision.
- So they can decider faster.

As a result, the entire marketing job is different:

- The audience you target
- The message you share
- The content you create
- And how you distribute it

So you're either a B2B marketer, or a B2C marketer.

That said, there are of course common foundations:

- The need for targeting, value proposition, and messaging.
- The importance of a clear market positioning and brand.
- The mandatory social proof, trust, and external reviews.

And in the latest years, we've seen B2B getting closer to B2C;

- Rise of social media and communities as decision hubs;
- More room to influencer marketing and thought leadership;
- And the line between B2B and B2C is fading for solopreneurs.

What other similarities do you see between B2B and B2C marketing?

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CEO: "Our website doesn't convert, it must be the copy"
Me: "It could come from those 4 problems:"

1. Indeed, it could be a copywriting issue.

2. But it might be because of an unclear messaging;

3. Maybe, your value proposition (or offer) is not appealing;

4. Or, your target audience is not properly defined.

Now to be honest, it's rarely only a copywriting issue.

The problem is often rooted into a deeper marketing layer.

Because here's the truth:

Copywriting can't fix a broken marketing strategy.

- Fixing the headline won't make your offer "irresistible";
- Changing the ads won't create buying intent instantly;
- Posting content won't create a market problem.

CEO: "So what should I do for my website conversions? We need leads NOW!"
Me: "Take a deep breath, and get back to the basics:"

1. What is the market problem you're fixing?
2. Who is your ideal customer within this market?
3. How do you fix THEIR problem exactly?
4. What offer can you propose them?
5. What is your desired market positioning?
6. What is your unique selling proposition?
7. How do you show this offer with key messages?

Answer those 7 questions, then update the website's copy.

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The worst marketing scenario for B2B founders:

- Copy competitors' content with no direction
- Launch new tactics without clear roadmap
- Try a new hack, abandon, try another one
- Forget to track and analyze results

In other words: run in every directions.

The worst marketing scenario is when you don't have a clear direction. Or even worse, when you have multiple directions at the same time. One step ahead, two step backs, get lost, then start from scratch again.

An unclear direction is devastating for morale:

- Lack of clarity → "where are we going with this?"
- Decision Paralysis → "what should we do next now?"
- Poor results → "prospects are not interested right now"

From the market perspective, it's even worse.

- "I don't get what they do, it's always changing"
- "I think they boost revenue, but not sure how"

If you publish content, ads, or headlines and change all the time, your audience won't be able to 'position' you in their mind. You'll remain an unclear noise constantly fluctuating in the background.

Good news: there is a clear roadmap to set up a direction.

1. Marketing Strategy: Lay down the foundation

You need to constantly define and update the big 6 (Target Audience, Offer, Value Proposition, Positioning, Messaging, Brand Manifesto). They will be your leading light to make all your decisions.

2. Marketing System: Plan your efforts

Before trying to publish content, ads or pages, 'think systems' first. You need to install a robust roadmap to organize your marketing actions. For early stage startups, installing a marketing backlog is mandatory (link in comments).

3. Marketing Operations: Reach your audience

Becoming 'top of mind' is a game of repetition. You need to spread your messages coherently and consistently across all your channels. If you are solving a PURE problem and communicate how, you'll build momentum.

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This problem will make your marketing fail:

(And it’s more common than you think)

Stopping at basic customer information.

- "Our customers are CMOs"
- "They work for SMEs of 200 people"

Those are essential insights.

But you can't rely only on this.

You can’t stop at firmographics and job titles.

Without in-depth insights, you will:

- Have a generic messaging
- Struggle to handle objections
- Write poor copy and headlines

You'll build a generic positioning. Because everything starts from audience knowledge. Imagine how precise you could be with the right insights.

Imagine if you knew this:

- "We know WHY, WHEN, and HOW they buy"
- "We know the PROBLEM they face daily"
- "We know what they've TRIED before"
- "We know their JTBD and OKRs"

With those answers, you can write REAL marketing messages.

Not just “We help CMOs boost revenue"

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PS: there is a complete marketing strategy masterclass in the Content-First Ecosystem. And you can get feedback on your strategy in the weekly Q&A.

I've audited personally 30+ B2B businesses in 2025.

Here is the FIRST crucial question I always ask:

From which channel(s) do your leads come?

And almost every time, there is a problem:

- Problem (1): expecting too many inbound leads from content

- Problem (2): not adding quicks wins (warm outbound, retargeting, partners)

- Problem (3): not committing enough efforts and discipline

So here's the first optimization I install with them:

Add warm outbound for short-term revenue.

Here's why:

They're often sitting on a goldmine of warm leads waiting to be contacted. But they don't do it because "they're waiting for inbound leads".

Warm outbound can take many forms:

- Following up on profile visits and engagement
- Scoring and prioritizing CRMs to target efforts
- Sending case studies to the right warm leads

But it always come with 2 ingredients:

1. Volume and discipline (send 20DMs / emails 30 minute a day)
2. The right method (flows, scoring, copywriting, tools)

This week, I'm adding a warm outbound masterclass to my Skool.

- How to install a warm outbound system
- How to score and prioritize warm leads
- What flows, tools, and processes to use
- What copywriting to use to get answers
- And all my warm outbound systems

It will be live at the end of the week!

- Domino 1: Your ICP is unclear
- Domino 2: Your positioning is broad
- Domino 3: Your messaging is vague
- Domino 4: Your offer becomes a buffet
- Domino 5: Your sales team struggles to sell
- Domino 6: Your revenue ultimately flatlines

When your target audience is off, everything else collapses.

That's the "ICP domino effect".

And it's the 1st pattern I've identified, working on over 600 marketing strategies. I can almost always trace bad results back to a lack of focus on one clear target audience.

To be exact, there are 3 types of "domino 1":

- Type 1: "We skipped ICP and went straight to tactics"

- Type 2: "We don't want to lose any opportunities"

- Type 3: "We've outgrown our original ICP"

So here's my advice:

Look at your 10 best customers, find the patterns, and go find 10 more like them.

Every brand now wants to have content creators.

But they miss ONE foundational rule:

They need to find their creator-audience fit.

They think:

- "Let's use the hot topics of our industry"
- "Let's use the viral and trendy formats"
- "Let's keep posting and it will work"

Maybe this used to work back in 2022, when competition was low.

But in 2025, content is a red ocean.

- You're directly competing with thousands of creators
- Commoditized or unclear content get skipped instantly
- The bar to stand out is really high, especially formatting-wise

That's why you need to find a clear creator-audience fit.

- Because what works for creator 1 won't work for creator 2.
- Because copying a winning format won't build your audience.
- Because people won't click "follow" without a clear reason why.

Now you might ask yourself:

- "What exactly is creator-audience fit?"
- "How can I find it?"
- "How do I know if I've found it?"

I will answer all these questions in my Wednesday's newsletter edition, so make sure to subscribe now.

Click "subscribe to my newsletter" to get it on Wednesday.

In the meantime, here's a quick overview with an infographic.

I just crossed 160,000 followers.

Since 2022, I saw the 3 phases of B2B content:

1. Blue ocean (2020 - 2023): low competition and high rewards. You could publish simple text posts and get hundreds of thousands of impressions.

2. Gold rush (2023-2025): Ads became expensive and outbound harder so more B2B businesses started content. Best practices were available everywhere.

3. Red ocean (2025-20??): high competition but same level of attention. The entry barriers got lower with AI creation so it's now difficult to stand out.

All of this happened in only 5 years.

Opportunity → Growth → Structuration.

But it hasn't reached the "saturation" phase.

In the wider context of B2B marketing, content is still a relatively new space compared to ads, webinars, or outbound for example.

And there are still growth opportunities:

- Visual content (such as infographics)
- Entire teams publishing content
- Sponsored thought leadership
- Collabs with other creators
- Content with influencers
- B2B social live events
- Build in public

So let's move forward with new growth opportunities.

And never forget the 1st rule:

"You can't lose if you don't quit."

🎉 My new warm outbound masterclass is live!

3 reasons why you need to start warm outbound in 2025:

- Reason (1): You'll get higher ROI on your content (because not every warm prospect becomes an inbound lead).

- Reason (2): It's the fastest way to generate revenue pipeline and close deals with a higher velocity.

- Reason (3): For early stage B2B, it's a better tactic than cold outbound (you get more replies, calls, and deals).

Yet most B2B businesses prefer to contact cold prospects:

- Because “there are more people in cold audience”
- Because “we don’t know how to do warm outbound”

But the truth is that warm prospects:

- Consumed your content
- Already know your value
- Saw your case studies
- Have existing trust

Well... I prefer to contact them in priority.

So if you want to get my system;

I'm adding a warm outbound masterclass to my Skool.

- How to install a warm outbound system
- How to score and prioritize warm leads
- What flows, tools, and processes to use
- What copywriting to use to get answers
- And all my warm outbound systems

Join here: https://lnkd.in/gVeDss8u

Founder: "What's the 1st step for a good marketing strategy?"

Me: "Avoid these 3 marketing mistakes:"

1. Unclear strategy with no ICP and broad positioning
2. Weak systems with no KPIs and siloed teams
3. Poor execution with inconsistent efforts

Because here's the truth:

To do good marketing, you first need to avoid doing bad marketing.

That's why reverse engineering works well.

You can identify wrong decisions and do the opposite:

- Shiny object syndrome → Focus on one opportunity
- No ICP → Focus on one ideal customer profile
- Outdated tools → Update the tool stack
- Slow Backlog → Do weekly sprints
- No KPIs → Choose a key metric
- Siloed teams → Align them

At least that's true for strategy and systems.

Because when it comes to execution, it's not that simple.

For example, you cannot simply "write great copy".

What you need is:

- The actual skills (how to write copy)
- The clarity (what you want to write exactly)
- The consistency (keep writing until it's good)
- The experimentation (keep iterating based on results)

So when it comes to marketing operations, it's always about those 4 elements.

Skills, clarity, consistency, and experimentation.

That's the test and iterate mindset.

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I've seen hundreds of ambitious marketing plans:

- "We'll create a new category"
- "We'll launch 4 channels at the same time"
- "We're not a SaaS, we're an all-in-one advisor"

And I understand the point, it's good to have a vision.

But the best brands out there have realistic marketing plans.

- They know what plan they can afford.
- They stick to the plan (even when it's hard).

So here's the process:

1. Come up with a realistic (and clear) plan
2. Stick to it for a long period of time

Those 2 steps put you ahead of a lot of marketing "plans".

Marketer: "What should I focus on in 2026?"
Me: "Start with my 4 mandatory rules:"

- Rule (1): You need to know WHO is your audience, before choosing HOW you want to be perceived.

- Rule (2): You need to define HOW you want to be perceived in order to decide WHAT to say.

- Rule (3): You need to know WHAT to say, before choosing WHERE to say it.

- Rule (4): You need to define concretely HOW you're going deliver your value proposition.

It might sound simple.

But it's even easier to mess up.

- Spamming emails without a clear message;
- Hosting webinars without a value proposition;
- Writing a positioning statement without a clear ICP.

And the reason is always the same:

→ "We need quick results"

But the truth is that you can't get long lasting results without the right foundations. It’s like building a sandcastle, you might have something today, but tomorrow, you’ll have to start from scratch.

So remember:

To nail your marketing strategy, you'll need to:

1/ Define WHO your is audience
2/ Choose HOW you want to be perceived
3/ Write WHAT you want to say
4/ Decide HOW you deliver transformation

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2025: time to build your warm outbound system.

Start with these 3 foundations (to make it work):

- Foundation (1): You need to have a precise ICP so you focus your efforts only on signals that matter.

- Foundation (2): You need to prioritize the warm prospects with the highest intent thanks to a scoring system.

- Foundation (3): Your warm messages must be contextualized, personalized, and have the right timing.

In other words, you need a system behind the execution.

And the best way to do this is to create your "warm outbound cascade".

(I show you how step by step in my new masterclass https://lnkd.in/gVeDss8u)

Founder: "But what is a warm outbound cascade?"
Me:

It's a sequence of steps you take to complete the process.

It can be done manually to start, and then automated.

Overall, the cascade has 5 connected steps:

- Step 1: be crystal clear on your ICP (and build a prompt)
- Step 2: collect intent signals from your content
- Step 3: score warm leads in CRM to prioritize
- Step 4: send personalized emails and DMs
- Step 5: iterate with the best flows

And you should not skip any of them.

That's how you go from a spray and pray approach to a fully integrated warm outbound approach.

Build your warm outbound system in my new masterclass, available in my course.

6 Rules to find your creator-audience fit:

Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/guS4y6eP

I've generated 50M impressions with content.

Here are 7 quick tips to apply TODAY to grow:

1. In Q4 of 2025, start talking about 2026 because people are planning forward, not backwards.

2. Analyze your best 30 pieces of content and ask yourself "what do they have in common?" then use the answer as a starting point to create your signature format.

3. Open a doc and call it "swipe file", then add news, inspirations, benchmarks, taglines, videos, ideas, etc. Open this doc when it's time to write.

4. If you're too busy to create content, use the video-first process. Start from videos (new recordings or existing) and use the transcript to create content.

5. When you've finished writing a post or newsletter, read it again. And ask yourself "can I find a better hook inside the text?", you'll update your hook 90% of the time.

6. Use frameworks to frame the information you want to share. For example, a side by side comparison called "bad vs good" will guide the audience and give them a way to approach the information.

7. Best practices or best performing formats won't necessarily work for your account. There is something called "creator-audience fit": people follow you for a specific reason. Ask 30 people WHY they follow you and give them more of this, not more of what works elsewhere.

Which one are you trying?

Here's your 4-week content creation plan:

(to kick off 2026 with a clear roadmap)

Week 1:

- Top 10 List
- Client Interview
- Before and After Story
- How We (outcome)
- Industry News
- Celebration

Week 2:

- Best Practices
- Industry Trends List
- Industry Report
- Podcast Clip
- How-To Guide
- Company News
- Problem Agitate Solution

Week 3:

- Founders’ Story
- Case Study (Full)
- Expert Tips
- Live Q&A Session
- Results Announcement
- Quote
- Launch Offer

Week 4:

- Case Study (Overview)
- Opinion
- Client Testimonial
- Poll
- Build in Public
- Resource List
- Comparative Analysis

At the end of the 4 weeks you'll have created 27 types of content.

Then, if you follow the 1 = 15 rule, you'll transform those 27 pieces of content into 405 additional pieces.

That's how you start a content flywheel.

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I've coached 50 early stage founders in 2025.

And all mistakes stem from THIS problem:

The lack of focus.

Or more precisely, the fear of focusing.

Because when starting, founders always say this:

"I don't want to miss any opportunity."

So they end up stacking offers, targeting everyone, doing more "strategic thinking", and changing business models.

Way too complex for the stage they're in.

And all of this delays the real early stage growth driver:

Selling ONE offer to ONE audience to fix ONE problem.

Join the Content-First Ecosystem, and I'll show you how.

I've been a marketer for 9 years.

This is the most surprising question I've been asked:

"Testing sounds interesting, but it's not for us. Can we skip to the results phase?"

This came right after I explained the "test, iterate, scale" methodology.

It was in 2021.

And after that, I realized something very important for my career.

Marketing is often perceived as a magic button.

Press a button → get leads

Or an alternative;

Press a button → go viral → get leads

But when you're a marketer, you know that:

Marketing is all about patience, iteration, and consistency.

"We are targeting CEOs, they are the decision makers"

Good in theory, but:

- What industry?
- What type of company?
- Why would they buy now?
- What's their buying process?
- What's their actual day-to-day?
- What objectives are they focused on?

A target audience is NOT just a job title.

Because this kind of broad targeting leads to broad messaging:

- "We target CEOs" → "Boost your revenue"
- "We target CMOs" → "Get more leads"
- "We target CFOs" → "Save costs"

Instead, you need a precise ICP (ideal customer profile).

Here's what you need:

1. Start with company firmographics
2. Get specific on the job title
3. Understand why they buy 
4. Map the buying process
5. Know what they need

That's how you build a real marketing strategy.

Biggest mistake I see in B2B revenue strategy:

(Read this to increase your revenue in 2026)

Focusing only on adding new qualified opportunities to the pipeline...

...when the sales and upsell systems are inefficient.

Let's call it the "pierced basket syndrome".

Here's what happens:

1. You get leads through marketing and SDRs actions (content, ads, outbound...)

2. But the sales system is not efficient (low closing rate and low initial contract value)

3. And the upsell system is not efficient or nonexistent (low number of upsells and customer lifetime value is not maximized)

As a result, the business is leaking potential revenue.

That's a pierced basket.

Now, here's how to fix the leak.

1. Acknowledge these 2 rules of sales

- Rule 1: It's easier to close a qualified prospect you're already in conversation with than to find a new one from scratch.

- Rule 2: You're far more likely to make a repeat sale with an existing client than with a stranger.

2. Activate more levers than "let's get more leads"

Across marketing, sales, and upsells, you can:

- Increase the quality of opportunities (e.g. go upmarket)
- Increase your show up rate, and closing rate
- Increase your sales velocity (how fast you close)
- Increase the initial average contract value ($iACV)
- Increase the contract duration (e.g. 1 month to 6 months)
- Increase the number of upsells and cross sells
- Increase the number of clients that become ambassadors

Easier said than done, but at least it's diversified.

So the business is not stuck on "getting more leads".

3. Focus on upsells so you can reinvest in marketing

Upsells are a great lever to grow revenue.

The reasons are obvious once you think about it:

- Reason 1: No marketing spend needed as the prospect is already your client.

- Reason 2: Upsells accelerate your CAC payback (you recover acquisition costs faster)

- Reason 3: Because there's no acquisition cost on existing customers, you free up budget to reinvest in marketing.

**

That said, the volume of opportunities is also important:

- You need volume to test and iterate to reinforce the system
- At some point, you need volume to hit the target

But the point stands: it's not the only lever available.

CMO: "We struggle to organize marketing efforts."

Me: "Here's the 1st fix to structure your day-to-day:"

Divide the marketing efforts into demand generation and demand capture.

Here's the difference:

1/ Demand generation

Most of your target audience is not ready to buy. You need to create content for them for visibility, awareness, authority and consideration.

2/ Demand capture

A small segment is ready to buy. You need to install a system to capture inbound leads and an outbound system to reach out based on signals.

Now here's where it gets complex:

You need to continuously balance both.

Otherwise, the entire system will be fragile.

That's the demand gen equation.

Here are two scenarios that happen often:

1. The business invests a lot in demand generation activities (podcasts, socials, reports...). But the demand capture system is not robust enough (CRM is not segmented, pages are not optimized...) so there are revenue leaks.

2. The business creates a robust demand capture system (everything is perfect). But they don't generate enough demand because there are not enough activities (content, awareness ads, partnerships...)

Both scenarios are fixable with the right playbook.

But I'd prefer to be in scenario 1.

I've worked on over 600 marketing strategies and I noticed one thing:

When you figure out the demand generation part, the rest is just about focus, investment, and time.