Growth Channel Testing Framework

A systematic approach to growth planning and channel testing that helped Teachable scale from $10k to $800k in monthly recurring revenue through disciplined revenue targeting and testing.

Core Growth Planning Framework

• Set specific monthly growth targets instead of "grow as fast as possible"
• Work backwards from revenue goals to determine required growth activities
• Account for every dollar of planned growth through specific channels
• Plan 12 months in advance at scale ($10M+ ARR)
• Adjust for seasonality and schedule 4-5 major events per year

Revenue Planning Process

• Calculate target growth rate (initially 30% month over month)
• Factor in existing churn rate
• Determine exact revenue number needed each month
• Break down revenue target into specific channel contributions
• Track performance against targets monthly

Growth Channel Testing

• Test new channels when existing methods don't meet targets
• Examples of successful tests:
  • Price increase campaign: Offered old pricing to existing users for 1 week
  • Summit events: Coordinated 15-20 partners for massive promotional event
  • Started at $25k MRR from first summit
  • Scaled to $130k MRR from recent summit with 60k signups

Performance Monitoring

• Track success rate of meeting targets (hit ~30% of time)
• Document specific reasons for missed targets
  • Failed enterprise sales
  • Underperforming partner promotions
• Use data to improve future planning and modeling
• Avoid "great idea trap" by requiring ROI justification

Framework Evolution

• Initially used for 1-2 month planning
• Evolved to 12-month planning at $10M ARR
• Added sophistication:
  • Churn rate modeling
  • Seasonality adjustments
  • Budget allocation
  • Team resource planning
• Increased focus on organic growth at scale
• Transition to paid acquisition when organic ceiling reached