The Coder Who Hacked Our Growth: An Unexpected Marketing Win

In the fast-paced world of a growing startup, job descriptions can sometimes feel more like suggestions than strict rules. As the person in charge of hiring, my main goal has always been to bring in smart, driven people who can help us move forward. Our biggest bottleneck a few months ago was on the development side, so I was laser-focused on finding a talented programmer.

 

That's when I hired Riya.

 

Her technical interview was flawless. She was sharp, a quick problem-solver, and had a solid portfolio of coding projects. I brought her on board to help build out the backend of our new platform. For the first month, she was exactly what we needed—a dedicated, efficient coder.

 

But then, I started to notice her spending her lunch breaks doing something unusual. She wasn't just scrolling through social media; she was analyzing our competitors' ad campaigns. One afternoon, she walked into my office, looking a bit nervous.

 

"I know this isn't my job," she started, "but I was looking at our user acquisition funnel, and I think there's a huge opportunity we're missing." She then proceeded to lay out a detailed, data-driven marketing strategy. She had identified key demographics we were ignoring and even mocked up some ad copy and creatives. I was stunned. It was more insightful than anything our part-time marketing consultant had presented in months.

 

Intrigued, I gave her a small, experimental budget. "See what you can do," I told her, half-expecting it to be a one-off curiosity.

 

I was wrong. The campaign she launched was a runaway success. Our sign-ups tripled in the first two weeks. The cost-per-acquisition dropped by 60%. It was the kind of growth we had been dreaming of, and it was coming from the most unexpected place.

 

We had a decision to make. Riya was a good coder, but it was clear she was an extraordinary marketer. She had a natural instinct for it that couldn't be taught. We were faced with a classic startup dilemma: do we force this talented individual to stick to the role she was hired for, or do we pivot and let her talent lead the way?

 

For us, the choice was obvious.

 

We officially transitioned Riya from the development team to a new role as our Growth Marketing Lead. It left a hole in our tech team that we had to scramble to fill, but the impact she made on our business was undeniable.

 

 

Hiring Riya taught me a valuable lesson. Sometimes, the most important skill a new employee brings to the table isn't the one you saw on their resume. My job isn't just to fill a role; it's to find great people and then create an environment where their unique talents, expected or not, can truly shine. I was looking for a coder, but what our company really needed was a growth hacker. Luckily for us, I found both in the same person.

Popular posts from this blog

The 'To-Be' List: Ditching Resolutions for a Real New Year's Plan

The cursor is blinking on a blank document titled "New Year's Plan 2026." My coffee is getting cold. If I'm being honest, my "plans" from previous years look more like a wish list I abandoned by February. That gym membership that gathered dust. The language app that still sends me notifications, bless its heart. The ambitious goal to "read 50 books" that stalled out at book number four. Every year, I’d write a list of all the things I thought I should do. And every year, I’d feel like a failure for not doing them. This year, something feels different. Maybe it’s the fact that this last year has been... well, a lot. I'm not interested in a total life overhaul. I don't want a "New Me." I'm actually pretty fond of the "Current Me." I just want to be a version of myself that feels a little more intentional and a lot less burnt out. So, I'm ditching the "To-Do" list. This year, I'm making a "To-Be...
Read more

The Quest for 'me@mybusiness.com': A Business Email Story

 For the first six months of my business, I ran everything from MyBusinessName_88@gmail.com. I know, I know. I can feel the collective cringe from entrepreneurs everywhere. In my defense, it was easy. It was free. And it worked. But with every email I sent, I felt a tiny pang of imposter syndrome. Nothing screams "this is just a side hustle" quite like an email address that includes an underscore and your birth year. The breaking point came when I was trying to land my first major client. I had my proposal ready, my website looked polished, and my services were dialed in. I typed out the email, hit send... and then stared at my "Sent" folder. The email, coming from MyBusinessName_88, just felt... amateur. It was like wearing a sharp suit with a pair of old, muddy sneakers. I decided right then: it was time to level up. Thus began the great "business email" quest. I dove into a sea of options, and it was immediately more confusing than I expected. First, th...
Read more

10 Proven Ways For Students To Earn Money Online Without Investment.

Here are 10 proven ways for students to earn money online without investment : 1. Freelancing Skills Needed: Writing, graphic design, video editing, programming, etc. Platforms: Fiverr Upwork Freelancer Zero investment : Just create a free profile and offer your service. 2. Content Writing / Blogging Work: Write articles, blogs, product descriptions Platforms: iWriter  (Currently doesn't accept writers) Textbroker Medium (you can earn via Partner Program) 3.YouTube Channel Work: Create videos (education, entertainment, vlogs) Earnings: From ads, sponsorships, affiliate links No investment needed except time and creativity. 4. Online Tutoring Teach Subjects You Know: School subjects, coding, English, etc. Platforms: Chegg India Vedantu TutorMe 5. Social Media Management Manage Instagram, Facebook pages for local businesses or influencers. Skills Needed: Canva, content creation, posting schedule Start by offering your service to local sh...
Read more

The Secret I Never Got to Tell

There are some teachers you remember for the lessons they taught from the textbook, and then there are the ones you remember for the lessons they taught you about life. Ms. Alani was the second kind. She wasn't the "warm and fuzzy" type. She was sharp, observant, and had this uncanny ability to see right through the usual classroom drama. She commanded respect not by being loud, but by being quiet. Her classroom was a an island of calm. I was in eighth grade, and I was carrying a secret that felt enormous. My best friend, Maya, had confided in me about her family's plan to move across the country. It was sudden, and she'd made me promise not to tell a soul until her parents had finalized everything. For a 13-year-old, this was a heavy burden. I felt important, trusted, but also deeply sad and isolated. I wanted to talk about it, to process it. I wanted someone—an adult—to tell me it was a big deal, to validate my feelings. I found myself staying after class one Tu...
Read more

Beyond the Org Chart: A Redmond Story

Building 34 is its own kind of beast on a Tuesday. The air hums with the quiet intensity of a thousand keyboards, the scent of espresso from the micro-kitchen, and the unspoken pressure of the next earnings call. As an executive here, your calendar isn't a schedule; it's a game of Tetris, and you're always three blocks behind. My days are a blur of strategy reviews, product roadmaps, and forecast meetings. I live in Outlook and Teams, my world neatly segmented into 30-minute blocks. In this sea of blue-light and ambition, you learn to read people quickly. You spot the talent, the climbers, the coasters. And then there was Maya. Maya wasn't just "a girl in the office." She was an executive on a parallel track, managing the Azure data services portfolio while I handled the developer tools side. To say she was sharp is an understatement. She was the one in the Senior Leadership Team meetings who asked the one question nobody had prepared for. She could dismantle ...
Read more