Here are the 14 Growth Mentors of August

1. Arpit Choudhury

Describe yourself

Hey everybody! I’m a huge proponent of tools that enable non-technical folks to do stuff that was previously only possible with code. I’m currently growing Integromat into the most-loved no-code automation and integration platform. Besides helping people adopt Integromat, I enjoy educating non-engineers about data and APIs. My goal is to enable entrepreneurs and tech professionals to become data-led by learning how to work with data and understanding the ins and outs of customer data. When I’m not thinking about data, automation, and APIs, I like to talk to my dog and cook with my wife.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Because I like to help myself by helping others!

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

It’s really simple — someone with a growth mindset is like to be challenged, is willing to take risks, and strongly believes in delayed gratification.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Customer Data and its impact on customer experience.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

When implementing product analytics and engagement tools at Integromat, we were struggling to figure out the best way to track user activity at the account level as one user can be part of multiple accounts on Integromat. This was a very hard problem as combining user activity across different accounts was a recipe for disaster.

After a lot of contemplation, we were able to solve this by creating a distinct ID for every user which essentially combined the user ID with the account ID. Our power users often have 3-4 different accounts and doing so enabled us to understand exactly what one does inside each account one is part of.

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2. Chad Carleton

Describe yourself

I’m Chad, the President and COO of a high-growth, multi-channel eCommerce company. We expect to do $70mm this year and have just under 100 employees. The company started in the side room of our house, nearly 20 years ago.

I consider myself an expert at fulfillment operations, Amazon and other third party sales channels, and eCommerce in general.

I’ve founded community organizations, such as our local 1 Million Cups Chapter, been a National Facilitator for Techstars’ Startup Weekend, and continue to organize local meetups with 8-9 figure eCommerce companies.

I’m a dad, a husband, and a servant leader. I find great joy in helping others succeed.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I love to contribute, and find that by contributing to others success, I often increase the chances of finding success in my own ventures.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I love to contribute, and find that by contributing to others success, I often increase the chances of finding success in my own ventures.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

A growth mindest begins with optimism — being optimistic and believing one can improve ones intelligence and abilities in order to achieve their goals.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Servant leadership. I take it very seriously and lead from the front in our organization. I provide the support behind our team members that helps them solve the problems we face.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

COVID hit in February and in 2 weeks our business was up 500% (from 400 orders daily to 2000). This has held steady for 5 months now.

To get ahead of any potential shelter-in-place we did the following:

• On-site campers for crews to live in, in case of travel restrictions
• Hired 50 people to accommodate increase in business, got them all designated essential workers .
• Split crews into two distinct crews, professionally cleaning between them, so we could confidently send one entire crew home in case of a positive case.
• Implemented a social distancing wristband that buzzes when within 6 feet of another wrist band.

An alternate:

In my younger days, I worked at a startup called CellARide, where we sold textable rideTags to automotive dealerships for customers to acquire information and generate textable leads for dealerships subject to Blue Laws (must close one day per week).

We had a hell of a time getting to leadership when cold calling, so I followed the weather each day and only called dealerships where it was raining. People don’t browse car lots when it is raining.

Got our first customers with this method. Went on to raise >$1mm

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3. Cristian Calls

Describe yourself

Growth marketing expert with more than 10 years experience specialised in scaling up startups and consolidating international brands. I have been at developing global strategies for brands such as: Expedia Group, Momondo group and Shell. I have also helped a couple of startups develop their online marketing strategy. If you’re looking for advice on leveraging best in class global strategies adapted to small business reach out.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Support startups and grow my network.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Adapt to your environment and be eager to learn every day.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Use of paid media strategy for growth.

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4. Elad Shmilovich

Describe yourself

I’ve been a founder, twice. Opened two companies, and closed one. And I bear the scars proudly. I’ve been there, in these shoes, and faced almost everything that you’re facing right now.

I’m also a big believer in Karma, and to give back. When I needed help, I had amazing mentors giving a hand and guiding me. My aim to to give back, and help others.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

When I was at Techstars Accelerator, I had some of the most successful people taking the time to help and guide – I aim to do the same, as I am doing today at Techstars and WeWork Labs.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Growth mindset is the basis of being a founder – test fast, fail fast, find the things that work and scale them.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Bouncing back from failures.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

Being able to generate content for WalkMe at scale (6 blog posts a week + 1 ebook every month) with 1 content writer.

The solution: took work processes from my experience as creative director, and brought together the whole team of non-content roles (SEO, social, email marketing etc) to a weekly brainstorm session. Remember that every person in your company has relevant knowledge. They all read, research, and live your company’s industry. Use them all for insightful and fast content generation.

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5. Fun-Lin Wu

Describe yourself

I’m a B2B experienced marketer with 12+ years of experience in demand generation, marketing operations, and retention/lifecycle marketing. Having worked for 3 tech startups, I am motivated to share my learnings and mentor those in a similar space!

Currently, I work as the Director of Retention Marketing at MongoDB, a database technology company.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

As someone with 12+ years of marketing experience and worked in tech startups for over 5 years, I feel incredibly fortunate in my success and am passionate to give back to the startup community.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

To me, a growth mindset for Tech or SaaS companies is all about understanding product-led growth. It is also extremely important to understand growth from both an acquisition and a retention perspective.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Full-funnel growth marketing: how to strategize from acquisition to retention.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

At a previous company, I increased top-of-funnel leads by over 50% while cutting spend by 20% within 6 months. In addition to optimizing the existing channels (PPC), I was also able to help identify 5+ new channels for the company.

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6. Michael Chiang

Describe yourself

Hey I’m Michael. I previously co-founded FitBark, a TechStars company where we build health and wellness products for dogs. I’ve also launched various mobile apps that have reached top 10 iOS as well as a trivia game for Uber rides (Joyride Trivia). Hit me up on anything start-up related including finding product-market fit and user acquisition.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I want to get better at mentoring fellow entrepreneurs on growth and product.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Learning constantly how to improve the user acquisition process for a product.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Finding product market fit because this is where most startups fail.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

Figuring out how to acquire users for a mobile game for cents on the dollar by negotiating tactfully with meme accounts on social media.

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7. Mike Moyer

Describe yourself

I am an expert in creating fair equity splits for startup teams. Most startup teams make commom, yet devastating mistakes when setting up their partnership. I can help you avoid mistakes and put you and your partners on a path that will be fair 100% of the time no matter what changes. I’ve done thousands of equity consultations.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Helping entrepreneurs is what I do for a living.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

The growth mindset is about concentrating on the implementation of productive systems that can be tried, tested and tweaked over time with a focus on beating yourself at your own game.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Fair equity splits. Good teams with good ideas and good execution often implode because they failed to form a good partnership. Conventional wisdom sets most teams up for failure. I am uniquely qualified to solve this problem and it is one of my most favorite things to do!

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

Startup lawyers have reported that 60% – 80% of founder equity splits wind up in dispute that requires legal intervention. In the past 10 years, thousands of startups have followed my equity split advice and not one ended up in such a dispute.

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8. Nadia Harris

Describe yourself

Hi! My name is Nadia and I’m the founder of remoteworkadvocate.com I have been leading remote teams all over the world, implementing strategic HR planning, hiring remote workers, and creating company culture to ensure maximum business excellence. I have worked with various startups in the IT, e-commerce, and marketing field and helped them to successfully scale their businesses in order to become A players on international markets.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I have worked with a wide range of startups from all over the world and supporting them within strategic HR planning as well as implementing scalable remote work solutions to ensure top business performance in line with the company’s mission, vision, and values.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

A growth mindset means being able to connect vision with operational aspects that are crucial to execute growth. If you are just a visionary and you don’t see and understand the current stage, you will never be able to create a step by step process of growth.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Strategic HR planning and hiring the right people being in line with the company’s real business needs (especially in remote teams). That’s you ensure that all your people become your ROI as well.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

I once with a client who was willing to hire 100 more IT people to work onsite in his office. However, the candidates with the right skills in the local market were insufficient and the company’s office was too small for such an amount of people. Therefore, I implemented a hybrid model – I assessed relevant talent pools in different locations that have become hubs with new, remote employees on board. That’s how the company saved a lot of money by not having to move to a bigger office and also they were able to hire the best talent worldwide without the necessity to relocate people, which was also cost-effective. Then we started working on the cultural transition from being a fully onsite company to become a hybrid one. That’s been an amazing journey!

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9. Nicolas Moulin

Describe yourself

Hi! I’m Nicolas, Online Business Manager at Brava Fabrics. My mission is to find the most efficient ways to increase sales, while keeping the same share of profits. I am passionate about ecommerce and numbers, and I love helping others navigate this very dynamic world.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Help businesses better understand ecommerce, increase their sales, and grow their team.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Growth is the sum of a lot of small changes, and implies a lot of testing. You never know what is going to work for you.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Conversion Rate Optimization.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

We created a very simple model to decide which products to highlight on both our website and ads, based on the Lifetime Value of these products if bought as a first item. We managed to increase our ROAS on first purchase as well as our CLTV and customer repetition.

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10. Nykki Yeager

Describe yourself

I’m a customer-focused leader with 10+ years of experience in tech startups across B2B and B2C. With experience in customer support, customer success, and product marketing, I have a diverse background, but it’s all connected by a common thread — bringing customers and companies closer together for mutual success.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Because I like to help myself by helping others!

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

A growth mindset is one in which you’re not limited by what you’ve already know. There are always more ways to test, learn, and improve!

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Aligning teams and strategy to meet customer needs and increase activation, engagement, and retention.

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11. Piotr Koprowski

Describe yourself

I’m Piotr, I work as a Head of Strategy at Optimal Marketing. I’m passionate about creating a full-funnel, data-driven growth strategy for both B2C and B2B. I can also help in-depth in Analytics, CRO, and Paid Acquisition. Let me help you with your growth.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I’ve noticed I thrive on problem-solving and tackling new challenges, and I want to give back to the community that allowed me to grow fast.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Always learn new things, always challenge your hypothesis, and treat every solution like an experiment.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Creating a holistic growth strategy based on data.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

I’ve inherited an e-commerce account that struggled with paid acquisition – ROAS was low, CPA high and the client stopped believing in growing their business this way. After analyzing their data, I’ve noticed that while conversion-driven ads have good top-line, people might convert from lack of awareness building (they have 15+ days sales cycles). So I increased the focus on the awareness stage of the ads showcasing different products and benefits and re-built the remarketing structure. Fast forward 3 months, I scaled the paid ads from ~25k/m to ~150k monthly, while increasing the average ROAS from ~8.5 to ~14 and hitting the yearly revenue goal… in June.

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12. Rachael Pilcher

Describe yourself

I’m a B2B + SaaS conversion copywriter specializing in data-driven copy that generates more leads and revenue for innovative brands.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

My biggest reason for applying is that most startups I talk to don’t have the budget to hire someone to help with their copywriting – and they have no idea how to collect the data they need which can help them create better messaging and a stronger identity that lets them rise above the noise – there are so many amazing ideas out there that deserve the chance to hit the ground running, especially in the competitive SaaS startup space, so I’d love to be able to guide them with their sales and marketing copy.

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Growth mindset to me means that “everything is figure-outable”. Learning and growth have no end point – it’s a constant path of self-directed learning, learning from others, and not being afraid to put the work in (especially when things get hard!).

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

How to collect effective customer research and apply it to increase conversions for website copy, emails, ads, landing pages, and all other moving parts of the marketing funnel.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

Finding a fresh way to showcase a startup’s amazing customer support process (uncovered in the research process) to display on their home page without it ending up looking like a cliched version of everyone else’s!

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13. Simon Kreienbaum

Describe yourself

I’m a former Performance Marketer turned MarTech founder. I’ve spent more than 25kk € on Facebook Ads and through managing high budgets have found love for the more technical side of things. So for the past years I have been developing small tools with Python, GoogleSheets & AppScripts and various Ad Platform APIs. With my startup kitchn.io I am now hoping to bring “scripting” and “tooling” to a wider audience of Marketers helping them help themselves with tools, tech & automation.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

I constantly consult startups in my proximity on Marketing-related topics and really, really enjoy it. I have also heard good things about your platform from Michael Taylor (Co-founder at Ladder.io) with whom I am in touch with!

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

Develop & test hypotheses, iterate fast & systemize your learnings. Continuous growth comes from repeatable results, so there are 2 parts to it: 1) “Finding what works” and 2) Exploting it to the max. If you can systemize both, you are winning at whatever you’re doing.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Scaling & Automating Facebook Performance Marketing.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

Back in 2015 I was working JUNIQE.com, an ecommerce platform for affordable art. We were using Smartly.io at the time to manage our Facebook ads. A core feature was what they called “Dynamic Image Templates” – essentially placing ugly product images into more prettier templates and therefore having beautiful Retargeting ads. We were paying a % of our ad spend for the tool which was 9k € / month. So I developed a 100 line Python script (barely knowing what I was doing) that replicated the logic and generated and uploaded 30000 beautiful product images. Saved us the 9k / month from that point forward.

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14. Victor Eduoh

Describe yourself

Hey, I’m Victor Eduoh. I coined Product-Led Storytelling-a product-focused form of content marketing, which blends strategy and copywriting into highly-engaging reads that turns articles into direct customer acquisition tools. My unique approach to SaaS content marketing helped me land work with clients such as OpenView Partners, QuickSprout, Product-Led Institute, and others. It’s also responsible for an invitation to become an Ambassador of the Product Marketing Alliance.

In just one sentence, why do you want to become a growth mentor?

Because I like to help myself by helping others!

In your words, what does a growth mindset mean to you?

A growth mindset, to me, is a blend of endless inquisition to challenge the status quo, continuous experimentation, careful observation, and critical thinking. The result of this would to always evolve and keep pace with the ever-changing demands of growth.

If you could mentor a startup on one topic, what would it be?

Blending SaaS content strategy & copywriting into product-led stories.

Describe an out of the box solution to a complex problem that made you proud of yourself?

At first, I wasn’t sold on the idea of Product-Led Growth. But, I decided to keep my biases to the side and study the concept in-depth.

From here, I discovered something interesting – some SaaS companies were driving real growth using a form of content marketing that revolved around their products. Notably, products with freemium or trial business models.

These findings validated the concept of PLG to me on a personal level.

Closer observation revealed to me that SaaS content marketing if adjusted to the propositions of Product-Led Growth, can become a direct customer acquisition tool.

Piecing all these together led me to coin Product-Led Storytelling. I went on to develop implementation frameworks for this concept, and it has earned me speaking engagements, numerous clients, and an invitation to become one of Product Marketing Alliance’s Ambassadors.

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Interested in becoming a growth mentor?

What we’re looking for:

• Growth marketers, product managers, and designers, with extraordinary track-records of success
• Inspirational founders that have “been there and done that.”
• People that take joy in helping other people.
• At least 5 years of demonstrable experience working in growth.
• GrowthMentor is a #givefirst platform. You should be cool with mentoring for free until you have three reviews.