Frictionless Growth Marketing

Growth marketing was built on continuous improvement — experiment, optimize, compound.
But for many brand leaders today, growth no longer feels like it’s compounding. Despite more data, more tools, and more optimization than ever before, ROI is slipping and hitting growth targets is getting harder.

That’s not a discipline problem.
It’s a growth marketing model problem.

In this pillar episode, I break down why the traditional growth marketing model — including the AARRR framework (Awareness, Acquisition, Activation, Retention, Referral, Revenue) — is no longer optimized for how modern consumers make decisions. Built for scale and efficiency in a general-market era, these models struggle in today’s fragmented, identity-driven landscape.

Drawing on insights from the American Marketing Association and a conversation with Bennie F. Johnson, this episode explores:


Why growth marketing optimization is breaking down despite best practices


How scale without intention creates friction across the funnel


Where identity friction shows up across Awareness, Acquisition, Activation, Retention, and Revenue


Why relevance — not reach alone — is now critical to sustainable growth


How an identity-layered approach helps growth compound again

This episode focuses on diagnosing why growth marketing stopped compounding — not tactical fixes, but how the underlying model needs to evolve to reflect how people actually make decisions today.

If growth feels harder than it should, this episode explains why — and sets the foundation for what modern growth marketing requires now.

Find out what's slowing your growth - www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/quiz

Interview with Bennie F. Johnson, CEO of AMA - https://www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/trust-in-marketing-bennie-f-johnson/

How to use data to increase customer success for all - https://www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/ep-146-how-to-use-data-to-increase-customer-success-for-all-with-deborah-pickett/

Modern marketing excels at personalization — until it reaches one consistent area where many brands still break down, costing them growth and frustrating customers in the process.

In this milestone episode, Sonia Thompson explores The Glitch in Modern Marketing — and why brands that are otherwise sophisticated in growth marketing and customer acquisition often hesitate, stall, or retreat when identity enters the picture.

Marketers know how to tailor products, experiences, and messaging by behavior, lifecycle stage, and preferences. But when personalization intersects with human identity, that rigor often disappears — replaced by assumptions and a return to “general market” thinking.

This episode breaks down:


Why identity shapes how customers decide what’s “for someone like me”


How general market marketing quietly creates friction and lost sales


Why asking customers to adapt is no longer a neutral choice


And how integrating identity completes personalization — instead of complicating it

If growth feels harder than it should, this episode will help you see what’s been missing — and how to fix it.

Find out what's slowing your growth: www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/quiz

Many brands are finding that the growth strategies that once worked aren’t delivering the same results anymore.

In this episode, Sonia Thompson breaks down the marketplace shifts reshaping brand growth strategy in 2026 and beyond — and why traditional growth playbooks are falling flat.

From trust becoming a real constraint on growth, to discovery happening in entirely new ways, this episode explains what’s changed in the market — and what brands need to do differently to grow today.

If your brand’s growth feels harder than it used to, this episode will help you understand why — and how to adapt your brand growth strategy for the market we’re actually in.

Take the Frictionless Growth Quiz to identify where your brand may be creating hidden friction: frictionlessgrowthlab.com/quiz

Also mentioned in this episode:

Episode 198: The Growth Strategy Behind Crayola's Global Initiative Engaging 17 Million Kids | Brand Strategy and Customer Acquisition Case Study - https://www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/brand-ecosystem-crayola/

In year one, Crayola launched a global initiative expecting to engage about 500,000 kids. Instead, more than 2 million participated. Five years later, that same initiative now engages over 17 million kids across more than 120 countries.

In this episode, Sonia Thompson breaks down the brand strategy and customer acquisition approach behind that scale with Crayola’s Chief Marketing Officer. Together, they explore how the brand designed a global initiative rooted in inclusive marketing principles — and how focusing on engagement across the customer journey became a powerful engine for building trust, relationships, and long-term growth.

You’ll hear how Crayola:


Used brand strategy to design a global initiative that scales year over year


Approached customer acquisition through participation, not promotion


Built an ecosystem across products, experiences, and content


Applied inclusive marketing to engage diverse audiences worldwide

This conversation offers a clear lesson for modern brands: sustainable growth comes from engaging customers throughout the journey — not just reaching them once.

If you’re curious how other billion-dollar brands are driving growth in today’s market, I’ve linked my Billion-Dollar Brands Roadmap in the show notes. It breaks down the strategies leading brands are using to build relevance, trust, and loyalty at scale. - www.frictionlessgrowthlab.com/roadmap

Crayola Creativity Week 2026 - https://www.crayola.com/learning/creativity-week

Marketing is shifting — and many brands feel it, even if they can’t yet name it.

In this episode, Sonia Thompson speaks with Bennie F. Johnson, CEO of the American Marketing Association, about the AMA 2026 Marketing Trends shaping the future of modern marketing and growth marketing.

They unpack how trust in marketing, AI in marketing, and audience fragmentation are rewriting the rules of growth — driving up customer acquisition costs, raising expectations for relevance, and reshaping how brands build credibility in identity-driven communities.

Drawing on insights from the AMA’s 2026 Future Trends in Marketing research, this conversation explores what’s changing beneath the surface — from responsible artificial intelligence, inclusive leadership, and evolving workforce models to the implications for growth strategy in today’s complex marketing environment.

🎧 A must-listen for CMOs, growth leaders, and brand strategists navigating the next era of modern growth marketing.