Before launching the product, having an email list prior to launch is more than just a marketing tool. It can also be a source of input from future customers on how to develop the best product for them.
Introduction
In this episode of Shopify Masters, you’ll learn from an entrepreneur who succeeded in launching a successful product by growing an email list before launch.
Who is Will Africano?
Will Africano is the co-founder of GNARBOX: a company developing products and solutions to enhance your multimedia management experience. Through this email list, we started sending messages and conducting surveys, bringing all these people into the product development experience.
How to Find the Right Co-Founder for Your Startup
How to Build an Email List Before Launch
What Matters to Angel Investors Compared to Venture Capital
Don’t miss an episode! Subscribe to Shopify Masters.
Show Notes
Store: Gnarbox
Social Media Profiles: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram
Recommendations: Startupers, The O.S. Canvas (published on Medium.com), Intercom (Shopify app), AirTable, Trello, Slack, BV Accel (Shopify agency)
The Conversation
Felix: Today I’m with Will Africano from Gnarbox. Gnarbox develops products to enhance the multimedia management experience. Founded in 2015 and based in Santa Monica, California. Welcome, Will.
Will: Thank you, Felix, thanks for having me.
Felix: Yes, tell us more about the product. You gave a quick overview, but what is the product that made you famous?
Will: Yes, Gnarbox is a powerful backup device for content creators who prefer to travel without a laptop. The core idea and principle behind it is to create a compact computer optimized for backing up photos and videos so that the content creator does not need to bring their laptop with them. With built-in Wi-Fi, you can use your phone or iPad with our dedicated mobile apps to manage, view, and start editing files, allowing you to set up your workspaces when you return to your computer. It’s a solution that has been very successful in the field.
Felix: I see. Do you have experience in starting businesses or creating products in the past?
Will: No, actually I did not have any previous experience with that.
Felix: This is a very technical product to start with. You’re talking about software and hardware, and you’re dealing with something that contains a lot of valuable data for customers. Where did you start making the decision to move in this direction?
Will: Yes, I think like any other entrepreneur, it was a matter of trial and error. We started with one idea, and by “we” I mean myself and the other founder Tim Viss. We began brainstorming ideas while driving back and forth to Los Angeles and the Eastern Sierra Mountains, recording data in the mountains, capturing landscapes and videos. On our way back, every time we were in this tangled mess of computers trying to swap footage, create backups, set up shared editing spaces. Even when we got back to our homes and returned to our jobs from 9 to 5, we were ready to start editing in the evenings, setting up videos and photos we wanted to capture those moments we created on weekends.
On those trips, we started creating mobile apps to enhance our sharing experiences. But what we ultimately discovered was that our biggest problem was backup in the field, the need to have a computer, battery constraints, and trying to get the files from the cameras onto the network as quickly as possible. We focused on that and the development process. It really took us a year before we arrived at the concept of Gnarbox. From a technological standpoint, we met… there was a fourth founder we had, and there was a third who left along the way. Through the experience of one application, there was a new tech specialist who joined our team.
And then…
With a background in hardware, we introduced a new concept. What happens if we take, for example, “BeagleBone” or “Raspberry Pi” and start assembling them together to create this backup device? Then we started designing the tough requirements for it, and we did that. We created a significant challenge. How can you make a computer fit in your pocket and, at the same time, be waterproof? It produces a lot of heat. And at the same time, be completely waterproof so that it traps all that heat. We created a truly vintage piece of hardware. Yes, it really took an army. It took our entire community. Everyone we met in our network to reach the market for the first time. Gnarbox 1.0 was funded through Kickstarter and was a great success. More than $500,000 was raised in 30 days, based on the concept. It took us two years to launch it to the market, and nearly 10,000 units were sold in less than a year. It was amazing to see the demand for the product.
Felix: Yes, you didn’t have any experience in launching products. It seems your partner, whom you were doing these trips with, has no experience either, but you have another co-founder who has the experience.
Will: Exactly. Yes, it was always about looking for a tech partner to join us and help us design the system and build the team more and more, hiring more and more people and building a team that consisted of 23 people mainly composed of software and hardware engineers.
Felix: Yes, I think it’s important to collaborate with a partner or form a team or hire those who will fill the gaps you have. How did you find your partner … because the part you were lacking was the technical part. How did you find this partner to fill that gap?
Will: Yes, we were on startupers.com, I believe. And we were doing something like speed dating with tech specialists. Through these discussions, we began to define our vision and what we wanted to create, and at that time it was close to saying, “We’re going to close the book on our ideas here and move forward.” Then when we met our founder and started mapping out the hardware roadmap, we realized it was an important answer that helped us fund our operations as well as solve the market problem.
Felix: That site you went to, was it called startupers.com?
Will: Yes, I think it … that was a long time ago. I believe it was startupers.com. It was a way to meet other people trying to create something.
Felix: Yes, basically if startupers.com is no longer around, the idea is that there is some kind of dating site for co-founders where you can try to find suitable partners. So what were you looking for? How do you determine … especially if someone is there from the beginning. What are you looking for in that person to ensure that they will be a good fit for the current team?
Will: We believe that in the very early stages, it’s about culture and shared values, mutual enthusiasm, and dedication. Because you’re making significant commitments and sacrifices and time. So of course, you need to meet certain technological requirements, but for us, we felt in the end it was about experience, cultural fit, and a shared dedication to the problem we were all facing. And that’s what helped us connect with each other.
Felix: Is this something that can be known through conversation alone, or are there other ways people can do to ensure that there is a good fit before that commitment?
Will: Yes, sometimes it’s just a leap of faith because it can cause issues and divisions between founders. That’s something that actually happens, and you want to be very cautious with that when starting out. I think you live in a high-risk, crazy environment where you need to go with your feelings a little. And through a number of conversations, that’s how we decided. There were conversations where within 10 minutes we started generating many ideas that would solve many of the problems in our vision. We had this shared passion for solving the problem we were all facing. And that’s what helped us connect with each other.
Felix:
Is this something that can be understood through conversation alone, or are there other ways that people can do to ensure that there is a good fit before this commitment?
Will: Well, I think at the very early stage, it’s about shared culture and values, enthusiasm, and dedication. Because you are taking on significant commitments and sacrifices and time. So of course you need to meet certain technological requirements, but for us, we believe in the end it was about experience and cultural fit and shared dedication to the problem we were all facing. And that is what helped us connect with each other.
Felix: Is this something that can be understood through conversation alone, or are there other ways that people can do to ensure that there is a good fit before this commitment?
Will: Well, I think at the very early stage, it’s about shared culture and values, enthusiasm, and dedication. Because you are taking on significant commitments and sacrifices and time. So of course you need to meet certain technological requirements, but for us, we believe in the end it was about experience and cultural fit and shared dedication to the problem we were all facing. And that is what helped us connect with each other.
Felix: What are some things you can do to mitigate disagreements or misalignment after starting to work together, and then years later it becomes clear that things are not going well? Are there things that can be done to alleviate that?
Will: Well, I think there are many reasons that lead to these disagreements. This is my first company, so I can’t imagine I have a lot of experience in understanding how to mitigate the occurrence of disagreements. It’s a sh
Source: https://www.shopify.com/blog/gnarbox-list-building
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container .lwrp-list-item{
width: calc(12% – 20px);
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item:not(.lwrp-no-posts-message-item){
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item img{
max-width: 100%;
height: auto;
object-fit: cover;
aspect-ratio: 1 / 1;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item.lwrp-empty-list-item{
background: initial !important;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-link .lwrp-list-link-title-text,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-no-posts-message{
}@media screen and (max-width: 480px) {
.lwrp.link-whisper-related-posts{
}
.lwrp .lwrp-title{
}.lwrp .lwrp-description{
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-multi-container{
flex-direction: column;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-multi-container ul.lwrp-list{
margin-top: 0px;
margin-bottom: 0px;
“`html
padding-top: 0px;
padding-bottom: 0px;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-double,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-triple{
width: 100%;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container{
justify-content: initial;
flex-direction: column;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-row-container .lwrp-list-item{
width: 100%;
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item:not(.lwrp-no-posts-message-item){
}
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-link .lwrp-list-link-title-text,
.lwrp .lwrp-list-item .lwrp-list-no-posts-message{
};
}
Leave a Reply