Be Brilliant with the Basics – The Amazon Way, with Jon Derkits
Jon Derkits
Jon is the founder of AUXO eCommerce, a consultancy that helps brands launch and grow on Amazon. Prior to AUXO, Jon was a leader at Amazon, managing a $2+ billion business and recruiting over 25k third-party sellers to the marketplace. At AUXO, Jon teaches brands how to think like Amazon and be "brilliant at the basics." He works with both large brands (including the #1 third-party seller on Amazon) and small brands to tap hidden growth opportunities, improve operations, and gain a share of voice through Amazon Advertising. He is a recognized expert in Amazon and eCommerce marketplaces and is regularly quoted in Bloomberg, Business Insider, CNBC, and the WSJ. Jon is also an active advisor to, and investor in, early-stage digital start-ups. He's a mentor at Chicago-based tech incubator, 1871, and recently joined the advisory board of Vexpo, a technology company that has created a wedding marketplace designed for today’s digitally centric couples.
What you’ll learn about in this episode:
- What the shopping cart test is and where he learned that lesson
- What it takes to succeed in a fast-moving and high-pressure environment like Amazon
- Why the first 100 days at Amazon are so critical and how they revealed what was already inside of him
- Why he chooses to focus on three long-term systems instead of goals and what those systems are
- What are the two mental models he leans into when making big decisions
- Why good intentions do not work in business
- Why the white-belt mentality is so critical
- What are the three things he looks for in a startup
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