The Shopify Growth Show

Today, we focus on the why as much as we do the how when it comes to starting businesses and being successful in the launchpad space. Mark Sandeno brings his insight from starting several successful businesses and shares strategies on how to take your successes and re-invest them wisely. Key Ideas from this episode:Where should you focus your timeStructuring teams for successHow does Airbnb sell experiencesThe benefits of diving in too fast and too earlyBest practices for launchpad agenciesWhen is a successful business not worth pursuingWhat makes the experience app specialWhy is it important for founders to build relationships with other foundersResources:Experiences AppHelpful HumanJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Listen to today’s episode about how Paul Graham, Y-combinator Founder, gives advice on how to come up with startup ideas.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:The blog post How to Get Startup Ideas by Paul GrahamWhat makes Paul Graham impressiveMain takeaways from the blog postOrganic vs recipe startup generationBest quotes from the blog postSome of the best points from the postDisagreements with the blog postWhy this read is iconicWho should read this blog post and whyResources:How to Get Startup IdeasJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Today, we're sharing financials.  From losing $400k in 48 hours to hitting $2M in sales, I bring my business partner on to talk about the lessons learned growing our agency. Plus, hear how we met and become partners - it's not the traditional story.Here are some of the lessons learned running the agency:Niche Down in Your FocusFocus on Systems and OnboardingValue Based Pricing Invest in a premium website if you charge premium pricesCulture is EverythingResources:Losing $400k in 48 hoursJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In today’s podcast episode, you’ll hear from Ben Wilson, who has his own podcast: How to Take Over the World. Listen in to hear about the energy, charisma, and common traits of people like Jobs, Edison, Napoleon, and Alexander the Great.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:How Ben came up with the name and concept of his podcastTraits you need to have to take over the worldThe energy of the people who are the best in their fieldsHow to maximize where energy goesThe function of charismaWhat it means to be half-insider half-outsiderAn unexpected common trait among leadersHalf-baked startup ideas that Ben hasThe nicest thing someone has done for Ben in his professional careerResources:How to Take Over the WorldJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In today’s episode, we discuss an iconic blog post from Nathan Barry -  The Ladders of Wealth Creation: a Step-by-Step Roadmap to Building Wealth. Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:Who Nathan Barry and his path to creating ConvertKitThe main takeaways from the blog postWhat is the Ladder of Wealth CreationHow building wealth as a skillInvesting your time in wealth creation or wealth creation skillsWhy SAAS companies should have their own ladderDisagreements with the author’s workWhy this is an iconic readWho should read this blog post and whenResources:The Ladders of Wealth Creation: a Step-by-Step Roadmap to Building WealthJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Nathan Barry is the CEO of ConvertKit, an email service provider that's gone from idea to $30M in ARR with zero funding.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:Nathan’s explains his framework: Ladders of Wealth CreationShould you start something yourself or acquire a businessWhy you should focus on a small niche when competing against a powerful incumbentHow he has grown ConvertKit from idea to $30M ARRHow he approaches capital allocation and leverage as a bootstrapped ownerHow to attract talented people when you have less money to offerWhat aged well and what didn't with Nathan's book Authority Resources:Nathan BarryConvertKitAuthority Jim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In today’s episode, Miguel Fernandez talks about Capchase and how he was able to raise over $280M.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:What problem Miguel wanted to solve with Capchase and whyWhat the people who borrow from Capchase use the money forAdvice for bootstrap founders that are worried about raising moneyHow Miguel approached growing at such a large scale so quicklyWhat makes Miguel good at salesMiguel’s half-baked startup ideasThe nicest thing anyone has done for Miguel in his professional careerResources:Miguel FernandezCapchaseJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In today’s conversation, we talk about with Charles Myslinsky about how to choose the right path to go down, whether the windfall from Wal-Mart changed his life, and what changes so that the timing of a project goes from wrong to right.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:The right path to go down when it comes to ventures that could be rocket shipsWhether the windfall from the Wal-Mart sale was life-changingLessons learned from working with Marc LoreHis half-baked startup ideasHow to define product and what Charles’s job title meansHow the CEO of Ojo decided he wanted the company to be product-ledWhere Ojo is goingThe nicest thing anyone has done for Charles in his professional careerResources:Charles MyslinskyOjoJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In today’s episode, you’ll hear from David C. Baker, author of The Business of Expertise. Listen to learn about the tactics that can help you stay in the category of a thought leader or a decision-maker, the mistakes people make when positioning an agency, and how you should be thinking about pricing for your agency.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:The difference between being a decision-maker and an order-takerTactics to stay in the category of a thought leader or decision-makerMistakes in positioning an agencyExamples of how people starting today should focus their positioningWhy you should start with strategy and not executionHow you should price your services as an agencyA good margin for an agencyThe right size for an agency and the return for selling an agencyHow someone who wants to be a thought leader should think about contentDavid's half-baked startup ideasResources:David C. BakerThe Business of Expertise2BobsJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Can you be a leader and be lazy with your time and personal contribution to the workplace? Today’s episode is about an iconic read, in this case, a blog post by Andrew Wilkinson. In the post Lazy Leadership, he discusses delegation, building a machine, and working smarter instead of harder. Listen to the episode for a discussion about the blog post including the overall messages of the post, the best quotes from the post, and who needs to read this post the most. Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:What “Iconic Reads” is all aboutWho is Andrew Wilkinson?What does “Lazy Leadership” mean and the main takeawaysBest quotes from the blog postWhat we agree and disagree with about this blog postWhy this is an iconic readWho should read this blog post?Resources:Lazy Leadership by Andrew WilkinsonAndrew WilkinsonJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook