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20 Growth: Shopify's VP of Growth on Why Standalone Growth Teams Operate More Efficiently than Integrated Ones, Why You Should Hire as Senior Growth Leaders as Possible and The Biggest Mistakes Founders Make When Making Their First Growth Hires

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Jul 13, 2022

Luc Levesque, Shopify's VP of Growth, shares his journey from founding TravelPod to leading growth at Facebook and TripAdvisor. He explains why standalone growth teams function better than integrated ones and emphasizes hiring senior leaders early on. Luc dives into the significance of viral loops and how defining a solid north star can guide growth strategies. He also discusses essential traits for growth teams and the importance of strong CEO-growth leader relationships for success.

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ANECDOTE

TravelPod Acquisition

Luc Levesque's first company, TravelPod, focused on product over growth.
During acquisition talks, TripAdvisor's CEO's focus on SEO and growth metrics highlighted growth's importance.

INSIGHT

Viral Loops

A viral loop involves users inviting others to the platform through their actions.
Ideally, the core product functionality itself should drive the viral loop.

ADVICE

Shopify's Viral Loop

Leverage recommendations as a growth loop, especially with a strong product.
Constantly iterate on making recommendations easier for your users.

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Luc Levesque is currently the VP of Growth at Shopify and also advises companies like Twitter, Pinterest, and Quora. At the age of 21, Luc founded TravelPod, the world’s first travel blogging platform. 10 years later, TravelPod was acquired by Expedia, where Luc led the creation of two award-winning products: TripWow and the Traveler IQ Challenge. Luc then served as an executive at TripAdvisor, where he built and led the growth team which helped TripAdvisor become the world’s largest travel site. Luc was then recruited by Mark Zuckerberg to Facebook where he was an executive and led the creation of Messenger Kids.

In Today's Episode with Luc Levesque We Discuss:

1.) Entry into Growth:

When did Luc realise the power of "growth" within every company?
How did Luc subsequently make his way into the world of growth pose-selling his first company?
What does Luc know now that he wishes he had known when he made the entry into growth?

2.) Growth and Viral Loops:

How does Luc define "growth" today?
How should leaders choose what is the right north star to focus on for their business?
Should this north star change? If so, how often should the north star change?
How does Luc define "viral loops"? What makes the best viral loops today?

3.) Growth: Building the Team:

When is the right time for founders to start thinking about building a growth team?
Should it be standalone or integrated into other functions in the company?
Should the first growth hires be senior and tasked with hiring the team or junior and be more lean as a way to test growth as a new function?
What are the signals Luc looks for when hiring for growth?
What are the best questions that reveal the characteristics growth leaders need to have?

4.) Growth: The Action:

What is a growth decision Luc made without data? How did it go?
What are some growth tactics that have become stronger over time? What have died a death?
How should leaders know when to kill a new project vs continue and keep testing?
What are the biggest mistakes Luc sees founders make when building and scaling their growth team?