The Shopify Growth Show

Imagine launching a brand and making a million in sales in just a week. In today’s episode, you’ll hear from Brian Lockard, who launched a brand that aims to bring nurses shoes that make them feel like the respected professionals they are. Listen to the episode to hear what Brian has to say about founding BALA shoes: why he decided to market to nurses specifically, what it was like to go in on the brand 100%, and what Brian is doing to reach the next level of growth.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:How Brian came up with the idea for BALA nursing shoesWhy Brian selected nurses as a market instead of going more broadlyHow Brian approached his finances when he was starting upThe influence that working at Nike had on the BALA When Brian started to see that they had a product that people wantedHow BALA’s launch aligns with the narrative about fundraisingHow Brian came up with the name BALAThe most unexpected challenge Brian has hadBrian’s favorite toolsAdvice Brian would give to a D2C founder starting todayThe nicest thing anyone has done for Brian in his careerResources:Brian LockardBALAJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Referral programs sound good, but how do you make them work? That’s something that today’s guest can talk about with authority. Louis Nicholls is the CEO and co-founder of SparkLoops, a referral tool for newsletter growth. Listen to today’s interview as Louis discusses some advice for launching a referral program, creative things to try with a referral program, and what prompted the idea for SparkLoop in the first place. Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:What SparkLoop doesAdvice for launching a referral programCreative things to try with a referral programJames Clear’s referral programWhere the idea for SparkLoop fromThe baby steps to get tractionWhen to go all inThe key drivers of growth for SparkLoopHalf-baked ideas that Louis likesAdvice Louis would give on starting a courseWhat helped SparkLoop get to its level of scaleThe nicest thing someone has done for LouisResources:Louis NichollsSparkLoopLouis on TwitterJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Imagine wanting to solve a problem that you are having, then having your efforts turn into a brand that's featured on Shark Tank. That’s what happened to today’s guest, Yve-Car Momperousse. Listen to today’s interview to hear what Yve-Car has to say about how Kreyol Essence was born and started gaining traction, how to build communities and market within them, and deciding where your brand goes next. Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:What gave Yve-Car the idea for Kreyol EssenceHow Kreyol Essence started getting tractionFinding an audienceWhat getting traction does for your mindsetAdvice for people who want to build a community and market that wayHow the brand got onto Shark TankWhat Shark Tank did for the brandNavigating where to take your brand nextHow it’s been to run a business with a significant otherExpanding and introducing new products in a brand that was launched on a flagship productThe nicest thing that someone’s done for Yve-Car in her professional careerResources:Yve-Car MomperousseYve-Car on InstagramKreyol EssenceJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

In this episode, I talk about how you can build a culture you're proud of with small tweaks to how you communicate to your team and how you run your meetings. Hope you enjoy today's episode. RESOURCES:What You Do is Who You AreJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

There are so many startups out there. How can you know which ones you should keep an eye on? In today’s episode, we’ll talk about some of the ones that are high up on our radar. Listen in to hear about some of the top startups that have caught our attention and why we’re keeping an eye on them. Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:Psychiatric help and prescriptions onlineWhat kind of pain point is solved by online D2C psychiatric helpPersonalized allergy relief startup by PicnicGetting money for your startup with MainStreetBillo helps e-commerce companies make ad videosReady-made StoryBrand websites at One Week WebsiteBrex started as a startup targeting startupsBitClout is a cryptocurrency created for the general publicPrivacy allows for the creation of single-use cardsThe use cases for PrivacyTelegram is used for messaging, document and image sharing, and moreThe way people order cars these daysResources:LinaPicnicMainStreetBilloOne Week WebsiteBrexBitCloutPrivacyTelegramJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

A by-product is a secondary product made in the manufacture of something else. The lumber yard has sawdust as their by-product. It’s obvious because it literally piles up.  A by-product is much harder to spot when you work in the digital space.In this episode, I talk about how to find your by-product and give examples of by-products for other companies.RESOURCES:What's Your By-ProductJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

What does a startup accelerator do and why does a founder or founding team need one? Today, you’ll find out as you listen to an interview with Isaac Kato, managing director at Techstars Seattle. Listen in to learn what a startup accelerator actually does, why founders want it, and what founders can do to pique the interest of a startup accelerator like Techstars.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:Isaac’s role and backgroundWhat a startup accelerator isThe main selling point of a startup accelerator for foundersWhat someone can do to stand out with their ideaThe questions answered by traction and what kind of traction Techstars is looking forFounder/market fitIndustries that Isaac is interested inApplications of virtual worldsIsaac’s experience with Stanford and HarvardWhat Isaac is thinking about as he takes on new thingsIsaac’s work in IcelandHelping founders with critical thinkingResources:Isaac KatoIsaac on TwitterTechstars Seattle AcceleratorJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

How do you find the right employee or co-founder that could take your business to the next level?  By working in public and showing my work, I have been able to use to find my top hires. Here are some tips on how I show our culture to get the right people to come to us.  Hopefully, it can help you. Resources:Show Your WorkWhat You Do Is Who You AreJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

Listen in to hear what Billy has to say about getting started on his path, the mindset of a startup, and his company’s current size and growth.Topics Discussed in Today’s Episode:How Billy started his company and got on the path he’s on nowThe rise and fall of Billy's side project that got killed by the government What success does for your mindsetThe use case for a chatbotHow the company’s customer intelligence inform building new productsWhen it made sense to go all in and investAdvice for B2B SAAS companies for virtual events and setting big goalsHow to leverage your networkEvolving from demos to free trialsBilly’s half-baked startup ideasThe nicest thing anyone has done for Billy in his professional careerResources:Billy BatemanChatFunnelsJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook

What's your number? Do you know what you're working towards and how much money you want in the bank?  Here is the framework I use to answer that question:First, here are three simple options for how to think about income:Option 1: Break-EvenOption 2: I’m Feeling ComfortableOption 3: F-You MoneySecond, What are your options for hitting your number?  Obviously, there are lots more than the three but I am laying out three scenarios for income.   Scenario 1: The Employee with Golden OptionsScenario 2: The VC-Backed Founder with an Exit PlanScenario 3: The Bootstrapped Founders with Cash Flow DreamsFinally, how do you decide? The truth is that it's not about money but the life you want.RESOURCES:What's Your NumberJim Huffman websiteJim's TwitterGrowthHitThe Growth Marketer's Playbook