Final week, Hinge launched the tenth anniversary version of the Excessive Development Research. In the event you haven’t downloaded it already, why not do it now? It’s okay—I’m not offended. Simply don’t neglect to return again!
We’re mighty happy with this milestone. However our curiosity in high-growth companies started method again in 2007, once we started amassing information for a report we launched the next 12 months titled Defying Gravity. Its title could or could not have been influenced by successful track within the Broadway musical Depraved. Right here was the report’s cowl, which can or could not have been impressed by Mary Poppins:
It wasn’t till a couple of years later, nevertheless, that we started learning this group of high-performing companies extra systematically. In 2016, we launched our first annual Excessive Development Research. We segmented our pattern into three development classes:
- Excessive Development—companies that had not less than a 20% compound annual development fee over three years
- No Development—companies that achieved zero or detrimental development
- Common Development—the remainder of the sphere
Right here’s what development charges appeared like in 2016:
Listed here are the numbers right this moment:
Remarkably constant, proper?. However quite a bit has modified below the hood.
How Issues Used to Be
Over the previous 20 years, advertising and marketing and enterprise growth have undergone a major transformation. Once we began learning skilled companies, most companies have been on an everlasting quest for the holy grail of recent enterprise growth: the word-of-mouth referral. Most of those referrals got here from present purchasers, and relaxation have been generated by constructing consciousness the old style method: in-person networking, conventional promoting and sponsorships.
These actions required quite a lot of time, principally from companions and senior executives. Once they weren’t rubbing elbows at Chamber of Commerce occasions, tradeshows and conferences, these leaders have been busy producing billable work for purchasers.
On the time, advertising and marketing concerned creating slick-looking brochures and different printed supplies to help the companions’ enterprise growth actions. Most companies had an internet site, however its perform was primarily to help in-person enterprise growth. It was a spot potential purchasers may go to learn in regards to the agency, its companies and its administration group. Like a brochure that required a pc to learn.
The issue with this entire method to enterprise growth is that its attain was restricted by the point individuals may spend out on this planet making connections. Whereas some companies have been uncovered to new markets by talking and networking at regional and nationwide occasions, their potential to achieve new markets was nonetheless confined by the variety of individuals they may see.
An enormous sea change got here within the early 2000s with the rise of on-line search—particularly Google—and search engine marketing (search engine optimization). {Most professional} companies leaders have been gradual to acknowledge the potential of those applied sciences. However over the subsequent decade and a half, search, together with different digital advertising and marketing methods similar to pay-per-click promoting, would utterly change the way in which advertising and marketing labored.
Not surprisingly, we additionally witnessed a dramatic shift in the way in which consumers of companies behaved. The variety of referrals that companies obtained started an extended, regular decline. On the similar time, the variety of consumers who appeared on-line to discover a service supplier soared, finally changing into the commonest method consumers discovered about skilled companies companies. As an alternative of asking associates and colleagues for a advice, they appeared on-line. They learn up on their enterprise issues. They watched a variety of webinars.
Fairly quickly, many of those of us latched onto a specific skilled or agency, which they trusted and got here to admire. At this level, the sale was just about within the bag each time the prospect was prepared to purchase.
It was wonderful. Content material advertising and marketing may drive actual gross sales—a variety of them! Companies that used to have native or regional reputations discovered themselves reaching keen audiences across the nation, and even the world. For these companies that acknowledged the worth of manufacturing high-quality content material and knew find out how to assist individuals discover it on-line, the potential to develop appeared limitless.
Now, let’s shut our historical past books and speak about what’s taking place proper now. I’ve chosen two units of information from the 2025 research to border the dialogue.
A As soon as-in-a-Technology Problem
First up is a listing {of professional} companies companies’ prime challenges.
This chart reveals the highest 5 enterprise challenges throughout all segments in our analysis pattern. The primary problem, “incorporating synthetic intelligence and automation into your enterprise,” leads by a commanding 13 proportion factors. It was talked about by over half of the pattern—the strongest displaying we’ve seen for any single problem since we started our research. That features the pandemic years’ runaway prime concern: “unpredictability within the market.”
This discovering means that AI is poised to change into a disruptive power like we’ve by no means seen earlier than. Regardless of the expertise’s bumpy begin, most agency leaders look like taking it critically. As AI matures, it guarantees to ship extraordinary new efficiencies, insights and energy. Companies that may harness its potential early-on may take pleasure in a major aggressive benefit. Those who fail to spend money on these applied sciences, nevertheless, may discover themselves outmoded, out of date and out of the image.
On the similar time, many professionals fear that AI may take their jobs. Consultants imagine this can be a very actual risk, with lower-skill, rule-based duties most in danger. Many routine accounting, authorized, information evaluation and related actions could also be largely automated within the coming years. Extra complicated processes in all probability aren’t far behind. True experience, nevertheless, seems to be protected. No less than for now.
Clearly, AI offers enterprise leaders lots to fret about.
The following merchandise on this checklist can be value discussing. Companies are noticing quite a lot of competitors from companies they’ve by no means encountered earlier than. This might be defined partially by the “pandemic impact”—professionals who left jobs at massive companies in the course of the Nice Resignation to start out their very own companies. The Census Bureau experiences that new enterprise job purposes within the skilled companies sector are up 45-50% over pre-pandemic ranges (and elevated 90% for companies of all stripes).
One other contributing issue is mergers and acquisitions. Ongoing consolidation is eradicating many small and medium-sized rivals (and a few big ones, too) from the map, creating open territory for brand spanking new gamers to fill.
The Rise of the Experience Marketer
The second chart I’d to discover is that this one:
This chart reveals high-growth companies’ prime advertising and marketing priorities for 2025. The highest three objects have remained the identical—and in the identical positions—over the past three years. Transferring into this checklist for the primary time is the fourth merchandise: “creating thought leaders.” I imagine this new emphasis on thought leaders represents a basic shift in the way in which savvy companies method advertising and marketing. In actual fact, each merchandise on this top-five checklist helps this method. Let me clarify.
Content material advertising and marketing in a single kind or one other has been round endlessly. Nevertheless it actually turned a go-to advertising and marketing technique when companies started utilizing search engine optimization to make their content material seen on Google. As I described in final week’s Pivot, the introduction of AI summaries and different modifications to Google’s search outcomes pages have depressed typical content material advertising and marketing’s potential. And many individuals marvel what’s going to take its place.
Content material advertising and marketing isn’t going away. It merely has to evolve to suit the brand new guidelines.
A rising variety of high-growth companies notice that the true worth lies not within the measurement of their content material library, however within the visibility of their consultants. By giving individuals entry to their experience in all of the locations these individuals are consuming business-related content material, good companies can construct a loyal following. It’s not nearly being discovered on Google anymore. It’s about being current within the numerous locations their viewers goes to find out about their enterprise challenges—blogs, conferences, podcasts and social media platforms, to call just some.
Essentially the most profitable companies will 1) know the place these related locations are, and a couple of) find out how to current their experience in a method that engages their audiences and builds loyalty. All the opposite actions on this checklist—creating content material, differentiation, social media advertising and marketing and outreach—straight help this experience advertising and marketing technique.
How are you addressing right this moment’s market challenges?
Pleased advertising and marketing!
Don’t neglect to seize your free copy of the 2025 Excessive Development Research Government Abstract! There’s heaps to be taught!
