Each chapter pairs a raw, often hilarious story from inside the startup with the growth lessons behind it: the only 3 metrics that matter, viral growth strategies, the media hacks that landed Snap in The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times, and building a culture of constant innovation.
My Epiphany at Lehman Brothers
The Early Lessons Learned from IAmFreeTonight.com
Does Our Product Suck?
Bet The Company
The Growth Rocket (100,000 New Users in One Day!)
From Revenues of $3 Million to $19 Million in Two Years
My $78 Million Week
Successful on the Outside, Scrambling on the Inside
Solving Problems and Sustaining Growth through Vision, Values, and Data
Tinder Cracks the Code
My Innovator’s Dilemma
Making “The Grade”
My Reboot
Around the world
Published in 6 countries
Translated editions from China Youth Press, TurnAround, Galaktyka, Yuan-Liou, and MCBooks.
United StatesClifford Ventures
ChinaChina Youth Press
South KoreaTurnAround
PolandGalaktyka
TaiwanYuan-Liou
Also published in Vietnam (MCBooks).
About the author
Cliff Lerner
Founder, investor, and author. A Cornell graduate who started as an equity analyst at Lehman Brothers, Cliff co-founded Snap Interactive with his brother Darrell, and later served on the board of Bumble Inc. Today he usually has five or more companies in flight across consumer social, dating, and fintech.
EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2012 Finalist, New YorkDeloitte Technology Fast 500 #36 overall · 4,412% revenue growthCo-founder, SNAP Interactive Went public · 120M+ users · $100M+ revenueAuthor, Explosive Growth Published in 6 countries
Explosive Growth is Cliff Lerner’s startup playbook from scaling Snap Interactive to more than 120 million users: viral marketing, PR, product, the three metrics that matter, Tinder and Bumble lessons, and losing $78 million along the way.
Is Explosive Growth well reviewed?
Explosive Growth averages 4.5 out of 5 stars from 900+ reader ratings: 4.4 stars from 600+ Amazon ratings and 4.6 stars from 300+ Audible ratings. Benzinga named it one of the “Best Startup Books of All Time” and Entrepreneur called it a “Top Growth-Hacking Business Book.”
Has Explosive Growth been translated?
Yes. Beyond the United States, Explosive Growth has been published in China, South Korea, Poland, Taiwan, and Vietnam.
Where can I get Explosive Growth?
Explosive Growth is available on Kindle, in paperback, and as an Audible audiobook narrated by Daniel Greenberg.
Who is Explosive Growth for?
Founders, entrepreneurs, growth marketers, and anyone who wants to know what building a startup is really like. It is not a glamour story: it pairs the hard-won lessons with the growth hacks behind them, from viral loops to press hacks. They are built on how people share, not on any one platform, so they still work today.
Who wrote Explosive Growth?
Cliff Lerner co-founded Snap Interactive, was an EY Entrepreneur of the Year finalist, and served on the board of Bumble Inc. Under his leadership, Snap Interactive ranked #36 overall and 9th in the Internet category on Deloitte’s 2012 Technology Fast 500.
Andrew WeinreichInventor of social networking · Founder of SixDegrees
Michael LazerowFounder of Buddy Media, sold to Salesforce for $700M+
EntrepreneurRead the review ↗
United StatesClifford Ventures
ChinaChina Youth Press
South KoreaTurnAround
PolandGalaktyka
TaiwanYuan-Liou