Basilis Kanonidis Shares His Insightful Career as a Growth Product Manager

In order to make your brand a mighty success, it is pretty essential to have an engaging forefront of the business because the audience’s interest comes first! 

And to drive awareness and interest toward your company or product, you need to build a strategic marketing plan. However, that’s quite tricky. 

I’m glad to have Basilis Kanonidis in our #ChampLifeSeries. He is the Product Manager & Marketing Growth Advisor at creativeG. Basilis has been working as a Strategic Google Cloud Product Advisor as well, and he knows well how to shape the future of digital businesses. He has been working as an Apprentice Product Manager at Shopify, so he is quite well-informed about product management.

So, to know more about Basilis’s latest happening, give a full read to this interview. 

Ashmal: Hi, Basilis thanks for joining us for our #ChampLifeSeries, starting with our first question. “share your career highlights with our readers.

Basilis: I have been in the “ Internet world “ for over 18 years. I see back, and this looks a little bit scary, but the changes that have happened are always keeping us motivated and to keep going. 

Ashmal: As a Growth Product Manager at CreativeG, how do you differentiate your services from others?

Basilis: There was a time when a client called me an “ Ideas Architect. “ You know, it is elementary to have an idea. But how easy is it to architect it from 0 to 100? Really hard. This is why we differentiate. We are capable of executing Growth on Products and Businesses. And that we prove it by running out own businesses, not only a product agency but a successful Real Estate Agency a Pizza Delivery Restaurant, and we invest in online properties ( or flip them ). That is why we do make a difference. We are not just trying techniques we have read but focusing on delivering results based on experience.

Ashmal: How’s your journey with CreativeG? How did you start? What were the significant challenges initially, and how did you overcome them? 

Basilis: I will not go ahead like we faced this problem, and we wanted to solve it, and bla bla. I started because I needed money. I keep doing it because of the fun and money. If I stop loving it, I will stop doing it.

Ashmal: Well, it’s been a while, and I have known you for a long time; you’re super fast! Recently, I came across your LinkedIn headline that excited me: you have been helping businesses with their startup and in their growth to make 7+ figures! My question is, how did you make it, and what strategies do you implement?

Basilis: There is no “ one size fits them all. “ Strategies have been generated based on a lot of brainstorming and understanding of the market & users. I will tell you that I am blessed; usually, I can come up with 1 – 2 ideas quickly that harvest the low-hanging fruits, and those help companies in the short run. Then, we can start working on bigger things, as we have already solved the problem of trust and execution. 

Ashmal: What’s the thought process before suggesting any solutions, and what are your plans to make it more innovative? Could you please share some growth hacking strategies you have applied to unleash the massive audience?

Basilis: Ah, this is a great question! You know, 86% of the companies never advertise their products correctly? You know some companies are big, like ASANA, for example, and they have some minor features that solve a more significant problem, and we have never heard about them?
There are two problems here:

1. We are not used to promoting the products properly and are not confident a product can sell itself. 
2. We are not communicating software updates. Building a Community, Socializing the features, etc.

Ashmal: A lot of SMM think that social media post engagement is challenging. What’s your take on this, and how can one improve it for their business?

Basilis: It is challenging, as we are not putting in as much time as we should. For example, have you seen a company twitting a small video for a feature of their product? Or moving towards “ training “ users? We decide to use social for boost conversions, but we do not understand the actual meaning, which is to build and grow a community of users.

Ashmal: Please share the list of tools you use daily in the process and operations.

Basilis: I am a huge fan of Clickup. I have been organized there my entire life, from hotels that I am staying in if traveling up to things I want to buy, customer projects, etc. 

Slack for Communication, Gmail for all emails. Of course, I am a big lover of WordPress and, lately, NoCodeAPI for some quick integrations when needed.

Ashmal: What’s the biggest motivation in your life? It would be great if you could also share success stories and awards?

Basilis: I am avoiding doing that. I can give you success stories and awards, but would that be the best thing about talking to me? No, right? For some reason, we combine success with awards or with success stories. Success would be to get enough money into an account so you can plan your future the right way.

Ashmal: It would be great if you give us a quick walk through your office or workstation. 

Basilis: Right now, I am fully remote. I have rented my home, and I am traveling around Greece. I am in the process of building something similar to the photo so that I can use it every summer. It is not simple, but I am sure that the time I will spend on it and the result will be magnificent. 

Ashmal: What sort of advice would you give newbies, and what things should they learn to grow? 

Basilis: Communities. One of the best things I did when I started was to get deep into the communities of things I wanted to do. WordPress & Product Management, I deepened into them as much as possible. That helps you make your name out there and start engaging with people and, of course, customers.

Ashmal: How can one build good leadership qualities? Please share your experiences.

Basilis: I do not think that building leadership qualities is easy. You need to be “ born “ as a leader. Yes, people can get trained, but it is not the same as having this “ Star “ on you. I have worked for bad leaders, and trust me, as much as they were trying to achieve it, they couldn’t. Reading doesn’t make you a leader, for sure.

Ashmal: Stepping aside from work, how do you enjoy your free time? Any particular activity that might fascinate our readers. PS: If you get a chance to win 100 000 billion dollars, what first thought would come into your mind?

Basilis: I am not a “ what if “ guy. I live and breathe for now, so, unfortunately, I can’t reply to that assumption. I can tell you that I enjoy reading, studying, and learning how I can be better in every aspect of my life!

Ashmal: It’s time for rapid-fire!

Rapid Fire Round 

And that’s a wrap-up! We are thankful to Basilis Kanonidis for his precious time and for sharing his long yet successful journey as a Growth Product Manager.