Since 2003, Linkedin grew from 500K to 530M members.

Here’s how…

2003 – 2007:

1. Reid Hoffman and his team manually invited well-connected people in the industry.

2. Viral growth (importing contacts, invitations sent via email).

3. Public profiles launch (SEO).

2008 – 2011:

1. Dedicated growth teams (~15 people) focused on acquisition.

2. Translated into local languages. Result: +100% lifts in growth per language.

2012 – …:

1. Dedicated growth teams focused on acquisition, activation, connections, retention and resurrection notifications.

2. Switched from the focus on numbers to a focus on the quality of leads.

3. Optimization for mobile phones.

4. Focus on partnerships/integrations (target users who are already on another platform).

5. More translations into local languages.

6. Focus on growth in China, India, and new markets: Germany, Japan, healthcare.

7. Focus on more A/B tests, faster.

8. Paid ads for users with high LTV.