When and how to invest in new acquisition channels | Adam Grenier (Uber, MasterClass)

Adam Grenier is the former Head of Growth Marketing and Innovation at Uber, where he helped build Uber’s growth infrastructure from the ground up. He is also the former VP of Product and Marketing at Lambda School, and former VP of Marketing at MasterClass. These days, Adam is a growth and marketing advisor to many companies, as well as a teacher through Reforge. In today’s episode, Adam shares how to determine whether a new channel is worth exploring, the rise of the growth CMO, and how improv classes can improve team bonding and create a more positive, “yes” culture. He also speaks candidly about his own struggles with burnout and depression and shares some incredible tools that have helped him along the way.

Listen now on Apple, Spotify, Google, and YouTube.

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Where to find Adam Grenier:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/AKGrenier

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/akgrenier/

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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Thank you to our wonderful sponsors for making this episode possible:

• Whimsical: https://whimsical.com/lenny

• Coda: http://coda.io/lenny

• Amplitude: https://amplitude.com/

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Referenced:

• OTT: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Over-the-top_media_service

• Grin: https://grin.co/

• Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers: https://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Chasm-Marketing-High-Tech-Mainstream/dp/0060517123

• Hacking Marketing: Agile Practices to Make Marketing Smarter, Faster, and More Innovative: https://www.amazon.com/Hacking-Marketing-Practices-Smarter-Innovative/dp/1119183170

• Adam’s Twitter thread about burnout: https://twitter.com/akgrenier/status/1285275433282359296

• Why Buddhism Is True: https://www.amazon.com/Why-Buddhism-True-Philosophy-Enlightenment/dp/1439195455

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:35) Adam’s background

(05:34) How improv can improve creativity and collaboration

(13:09) What we’ll cover in this episode

(13:52) Determining when an acquisition channel is a good match

(25:38) Advice for how long to test a new channel

(30:11) Emerging platforms that are worth exploring

(36:53) Influencer marketing tools

(37:55) When to broaden your audience

(41:22) What is a Growth CMO?

(49:36) Why marketing leaders should learn product development

(51:32) Red flags that your CMO isn’t a good fit

(55:33) Dealing with depression and burnout

(1:03:00) Tools to help you through difficult times

(1:05:20) Signs you’re facing burnout

(1:07:15) What’s next for Adam

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