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Heath Butler sits down with Ayoola John, AKA AJ, formerly Product Manager at Facebook and Coinbase who is now working on his own startup—an AI assistant for community managers called Astronaut. AJ shares how he jumped from Chevron to Facebook to now working for himself. Having immigrated from Nigeria, AJ has witnessed many different communities and now seeks to help community leaders nurture their own communities with AI. In this episode, Heath and AJ talk about the revolutionary power of AI, how to channel it into a startup, and the vital steps in ensuring great product market fit while following through with a world-changing vision.
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Today, Heath talks with Mercury CMO Melissa Turowsky on the evolution of marketing and how big changes are forcing venture backed startups to reevaluate how they think about marketing function, customer acquisition, and the talent required to achieve their business goals. In the episode, Melissa retells her journey through startups and marketing from New York to Houston and how she arrived at Mercury. She also explains why you should “go for the gold” when hiring for talent, talks on metrics in marketing strategy, and lays out the difference between ‘vitamin’ and ‘painkiller’ strategies for cutting through advertising noise.
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In this episode, Heath talks with Steven Carter, Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Otto, formerly TeleVet. In college, Steven saw a demand for a horse-selling version of CARFAX. So, he filled the gap. Similarly, after seeing a demand for a tele-vet service, Steven helped start what is now the number one tele-vet service in the world, Otto. Heath and Steven discuss the pivotal moments and pressing challenges of starting a company and helping it grow. Sometimes, this means stepping back and steering the boat in unseen ways—such as hiring a new CEO. Listen in to hear the humbling hero’s journey of tech startups.
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Samantha Lewis, Partner at Mercury and Kauffman Fellow, joins the show to talk about her experience as a millennial VC and the impact she hopes to have in venture as a woman in a male-dominated field. Focusing on impact investing in the web3 and FinTech space, Samantha has an eye for innovation and a heart for diverse founders, entrepreneurs, and investors. Talking points for this episode include Samantha’s experience in the Kauffman fellowship, investing with ESG in mind, and the future generation of VCs.
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Today, Heath welcomes Adrian Fortino on the pod to discuss the tumultuous journey: the good, the bad, and the ugly in starting a startup. Adrian is the Managing Director at Mercury at the Midwest office in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He tells his story of being a founder and emphasizes the importance of learning to understand the ‘no’s. Adrian and Heath talk about navigating the zero to one journey, pitfalls to avoid in an uncertain economic environment, and what to focus on in the early building stages of a startup.
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In this part-two episode, Heath sits down with Aziz Gilani from Mercury Fund to discuss the current investing environment while also touching on topics such as pricing and fundability. They talk about how entrepreneurs can best build relationships with VCs and how founders should be thinking about their businesses to thrive in the current environment.
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Aziz Gilani, Managing Director at Mercury, joins host Heath Butler to talk about the current economic environment and the impact it’s having on founders looking for funding. As a member of the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, Aziz brings his economic expertise to the pod and gives some insight into when we might see funding return to “normal” conditions. Talking points include inflation, economic recession, and Mercury’s current investment habits during this time.
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This week, Heath sits down with Sid Upadhyay, Co-Founder and CEO at WizeHire to explore why grade-A talent matters in a startup. Sid talks through the pre-product market fit stage and the hiring process, touching on the most critical decisions that a founder should make early on in the bootstrapping journey. Finding what good versus great looks like for each role is crucial, Sid says—and that it all does boil down to going slow first so that you can grow fast later.
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Blair Garrou, Co-Founder of Mercury, joins the inaugural episode of Go Slow Grow Fast to talk about how hiring grade A talent impacts fundraising valuations. In today’s down market, startups need to be extremely focused on the intersection of product market fit, company performance, and a solid team of employees. Blair walks through the founding of Mercury, Mercury’s own methods of evaluating product market fit, and how founders can benefit from hiring grade A instead of settling for B+.
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Explore Mercury's innovative podcast crafted specifically to guide startups through growth hurdles. Gain practical wisdom from experienced investors, advisors, and accomplished founders, customized to your unique path. From surmounting funding hurdles and mastering the product-market fit to broadening your customer reach and fostering a growth-focused mindset, "Go Slow to Grow Fast" addresses the complete spectrum.
