When your dog wants to sit on your lap while you’re working, what do you do?
Most of us just try to work awkwardly around our pup while they make themselves comfortable.
But this founder had a different idea…
He created a product that solved this problem so well that it made $488,623 on Kickstarter.
Here’s his story.
Meet Andrew Mueller – the founder of SeatMate and proud dog dad to Willie, his Dachshund co-worker.
Like millions of other pet owners, Andrew found himself constantly distracted during work. Willie would beg for attention, trying to climb onto his lap or chair while he was trying to focus. It’s a struggle any pet owner knows all too well.
But instead of just accepting it as part of pet ownership, Andrew saw an opportunity. With his Dachshund as inspiration, he decided to create something revolutionary: the world’s first office chair designed specifically for pets.
It wasn’t an overnight success. They went through three different prototypes, gathered feedback from veterinarians, and refined every detail until they had something special – a compact, pet-friendly chair with a built-in collapsible ramp that could support pets up to 50 pounds.
The internet fell in love. Before they even launched, SeatMate had racked up millions of likes and views on social media, building a community of followers who couldn’t wait to get their hands (and paws) on the product.
And on May 7, 2024, with the help of my team at LaunchBoom, they launched on Kickstarter.
The response was immediate. They raised $211,177 in just one day… and by the end of the campaign, they had made $488,623 for their Kickstarter launch.
This wouldn’t have been possible without a well-executed pre-launch marketing strategy.
Let’s dive into what that was.
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SeatMate’s pre-launch marketing strategy
Making over $488,623 in 30 days is no easy task.
And hitting that milestone takes a combination of different marketing tactics, with the most important marketing tactic being the pre-launch.
More specifically, building an email list of real buyers before you launch your campaign.
The best way to do that is by using LaunchBoom’s Reservation Funnel System.
Here’s how it worked.
1. SeatMate drove traffic with Meta Ads
Meta ads are the first step to build a pre-launch email list. This is how SeatMate drove traffic. They tested many different variations of copy and imagery, but here was their best performing ad.
2. SeatMate collected email addresses on a landing page
The landing page is where they explained their product and collected email addresses. The landing page looked like this:
By the way, this is a screenshot from our LaunchKit software that all LaunchBoom Creators get access to.
3. SeatMate collected $1 reservations
This is the most important step and why we call this funnel the Reservation Funnel. SeatMate had this VIP offer for putting down a $1 reservation:
- A guaranteed 40% discount
- An invite to their VIP groups
The most important thing to know is that people who put down the reservation were way more likely to buy (30 times on average, in fact).
SeatMate got funded on day one
Leading into the launch, Andrew had 3101 people who had put down a $1 reservation deposit. Remember, there’s no better predictor of launch success than the reservations.
And just like we thought, their launch was a success.
On the first day, they made $211,177.
By the end of the campaign, they had driven $488,623 in revenue from 1,696 new customers.
This was all possible because they followed the LaunchBoom system, which is laser focused on getting creators the highest return on their investment.
Because at LaunchBoom, our goal is not to launch a successful product, but to launch a successful business.
Do you have an innovative product like Andrew?
We can help you turn it into a real business (or dramatically grow your existing business).
We’ve worked with over a thousand product creators.
If you want to be the next one…
Click here to talk with a LaunchBoom expert.
