How to Prioritise Growth Hacking Ideas and Experiments
As a growth expert, I often say success is about making smart choices, especially regarding what you spend your precious time and resources on. With countless ideas and experiments vying for attention, prioritizing effectively is crucial. Without a clear ranking system, it’s easy to get overwhelmed and waste resources on low-impact projects. For example, if you have limited resources, investing in a high-impact idea, like improving the checkout process, can lead to significant gains, while focusing on a less impactful change might yield different results. That’s why I rely on powerful methods to rank ideas and experiments, ensuring the most impactful ones get implemented.
Let me share them with you because, trust me, picking the right ones can make all the difference!
Key Takeaways
- Prioritize the right ideas and experiments for effective growth strategies.
- Use the ICE (Impact, Confidence, Ease) Scoring Model to evaluate potential projects quickly.
- Apply Bryan Eisenberg’s TIR (Time, Impact, Resources) system to balance quick wins and long-term impact.
- Use the PIE (Potential, Importance, Ease) framework to focus on high-value areas while considering implementation challenges.
- Involve team members in scoring and adapting these frameworks to improve decision-making and resource allocation in growth strategies.
Method 1 : The ICE Scoring Model
I use a handy tool to pick winning projects: Impact, Confidence, Ease (ICE) score. It’s a simple yet powerful tool developed by Sean Ellis at GrowthHackers and Morgan Brown, a startup advisor.
Here’s how you can use it:
- Impact: How much will this idea help you if it works?
- Confidence: How sure are you that the idea will succeed?
- Ease: How simple is it to test this idea?
Rate each factor on a scale of 110, then multiply the scores. That is,
ICE Score = Impact * Confidence* Ease
For instance, let us assume the following scenario
I’m a product manager for an e-commerce platform looking to improve conversion rates. I have brainstormed several ideas with my team, but I must first decide which one to implement.
Here are three potential ideas:
- Implement a ‘One-click Checkout’ feature
- Add User-generated product reviews
- Create a loyalty program
For this scenario, I am going to apply all three methods to show how you can apply these frameworks to find the best solution
Now, let’s go through the ICE scoring process:
One-click Checkout
- Impact: 9 (This could significantly reduce cart abandonment)
- Confidence: 7 (We’ve seen it work well for competitors)
- Ease: 4 (It requires some complex backend changes)
ICE Score: 9 * 7 * 4 = 252
User-generated Reviews
- Impact: 7 (Social proof can boost conversions)
- Confidence: 8 (It’s a well-established practice in e-commerce)
- Ease: 6 (Relatively straightforward to implement)
ICE Score: 7 * 8 * 6 = 336
Loyalty Program
- Impact: 8 (Could increase repeat purchases)
- Confidence: 6 (It’s new territory for us)
- Ease: 3 (Requires significant planning and ongoing management)
ICE Score: 8 * 6 * 3 = 144
Based on these ICE scores, here’s how I’d prioritize:
- User-generated Reviews (336)
- One-click Checkout (252)
- Loyalty Program (144)
While the One-click Checkout has a high potential impact, its complexity lowers its priority. Though potentially impactful, the Loyalty Program ranks lower due to low ease and confidence scores. Conversely, despite having a lower impact, the first choice is attractive due to its high confidence and ease of implementation.
This example shows ICE helps balance impact, confidence, and feasibility, guiding logical decision-making in growth strategies.
Method 2 : Time, Impact, and Resources (TIR)
Another great tool is the TIR system. It was created by Bryan Eisenberg, known as the godfather of conversion optimization. TIR looks at:
- Time: How long will it take to implement and see results?
- Impact: How significantly will it affect our primary goals?
- Resources: What personnel, tools, or budget are required?
The TIR formula involves scoring each initiative based on three metrics: Time, Impact, and Resources. Each metric is scored on a scale from 1 to 10, where 1 is the lowest and 10 is the highest. The overall TIR score is then calculated as the average of these three scores.
TIR score = (Time Score + Resources Score + Impact Score) / 3
Let us evaluate our scenario using the TIR method.
First option: Adding User-generated product reviews
Metric | Score |
Time | 7 |
Impact | 7 |
Resources | 8 |
TIR Score = (7+7+8) / 3 = 22 / 3 = 7.33
Second option: One-click Checkout
Metric | Score |
Time | 5 |
Impact | 9 |
Resources | 6 |
TIR Score = (5+9+6) / 3 = 20/3 = 6.67
Third option: Creating a loyalty program
Metric | Score |
Time | 6 |
Impact | 8 |
Resources | 5 |
TIR Score = (6+8+5) / 3 = 19/3 = 6.33
After applying the TIR model to each idea, we get the following scores:
- One-click Checkout: 6.67
- User-generated Product Reviews: 7.33
- Loyalty Program: 6.33
Based on these scores, ‘UserGenerated Product Reviews’ would be the most attractive initiative to implement first, followed by ‘OneClick Checkout’ and then the ‘Loyalty Program.’
Method 3 : Potential, Importance, and Ease (PIE)
The PIE framework, developed by Widerfunnel, ranks and prioritizes experiment ideas based on three key factors: Potential, Importance, and Ease.
How PIE Works:
- Potential: Estimating the potential uplift or improvement based on analytics and user feedback.
- Importance: Evaluating the initiative’s value and significance regarding traffic volume, conversions, or business impact.
- Ease: Assessing the idea’s complexity and feasibility, considering technical and organizational hurdles.
Each factor (Potential, Importance, and Ease) is rated on a scale of 1 to 10.
PIE Score = (Potential+Importance+Ease) / 3
Let’s apply the PIE framework for our scenario:
Implement a One-click Checkout Feature
- Potential: 8
- Importance: 9
- Ease: 4
PIE Score: (8+9+4) / 3 = 21 / 3 = 7
Add User-generated Product Reviews
- Potential: 7
- Importance: 8
- Ease: 8
PIE Score = (7+8+8) / 3 = 23 / 3 = 7.67
Create a Loyalty Program
- Potential: 6
- Importance: 7
- Ease: 5
PIE Score = (6+7+5) / 3 = 18 / 3 = 6
Based on their PIE scores, the ideas are ranked as follows:
- Add User-generated Product Reviews: 7.67
- Implement a One-click Checkout Feature: 7
- Create a Loyalty Program: 6
Based on these scores, User-Generated Product Reviews are the top priority, followed by One-click Checkout and the Loyalty Program.
Tips for Using These Tools
No matter which method you choose, being consistent is key.
Here’s what I do:
- Use a shared spreadsheet to track ideas and scores
- Get different team members involved in scoring
- Keep checking and updating scores as we learn more
- Change the framework to fit my needs (if required)
These tools are guides, not strict rules. So, the best growth experts know when to trust their gut (which comes from doing lots and lots of experiments) and when to rely on data.
Wrapping Up
Learning to rank ideas and experiments well is crucial for any growth expert. Using tools like ICE, TIR, and PIE, you can make better decisions, use your resources more wisely, and ultimately get better results for your business.
These methods have helped me a lot in my work and can help you too.
Give them a try and see how they can boost your growth efforts!
References
Brameld, S. (2024, April 25). The PIE framework: a prioritisation framework for growth marketers.
Retrieved from https://growthmethod.com/pie-framework/#:~:text=The%20PIE%20framework%20(developed%20by,of%20each%20of%20these%20criteria.
Davis, A. (n.d.). Conversion Rate Optimization Agency/Company in USA.
Retrieved from https://experimentzone.com/blog/6-best-split-test-scoring-models
Toxboe, A. (2023, March 1). ICE Scoring model.
Retrieved from https://learningloop.io/glossary/ice-scoring-model