The Startup Deployment Schedule
March 29, 2024
Today, we’re talking about how to launch a new version twice a week. As your startup grows, maintaining a frequent release schedule becomes challenging.
In our Founder Spotlight this month, we feature Emily Dong, the Founder and CEO of Snout, which creates wellness plans for pets.
In 2015, I started a company called Pawprint. I was looking for a boarding facility for my dog when I learned that 1. all boarders and groomers require proof and vaccination and 2. vets were still faxing this information. Pawprint became the #1 pet health app and a useful tool for many, but frankly, it was tough to monetize. People didn’t want to pay for data they felt they owned.
Along the way, pet insurance companies kept approaching us to broker their product. It was a lucrative opportunity — I got licensed, licensed the business, and got to know all the pet insurance founders in the space. When we started, only 2% of pets in the US were insured. Today, 3% of pets are insured. While 50% is a high growth rate, it’s a far cry from what the industry was hoping to see. We sold Pawprint in 2020 and spent some time thinking through where we could create the most value.
Every day, people struggle to pay vet bills. Melanie Bowden, DVM, said it best during her famous TEDTalk: “There’s nothing more soul-crushing in life than having the skills to help something helpless, and you can’t do it because someone can’t afford treatment.” Pet insurance does not cover primary care and comes with high deductibles, exclusions, and copay. With the massive price hikes we’re seeing in vet care, people need options for their regular expenses. That’s how we arrived at Snout, the first wellness plan that pays veterinarians at the time of service.
I’m a solo founder. I’ve done a lot of founder dating along the way but ultimately found that it was far quicker to pivot and test new ideas solo. It took years and a lot of trial and error to find the right leadership team.
When I started Pawprint, I printed 3.5" x 2" (business size) cards and dropped off stacks of them, in person, at every grooming and boarding facility in LA, SF, and NYC. We got picked up by a couple blogs (Lifehacker was the most fruitful) and featured in the app store. In running Pawprint, I met many vets, groomers, and boarders and spent many hours in customer interviews. These vets became our first pilot customers for Snout.
Fail quickly. We’ve gone through multiple pivots. When the data didn’t reflect clear success, I would iterate, push harder, and do everything I could to make it work. In hindsight, I always wish we moved on faster and with greater conviction.
Founders are natural storytellers and salespeople. It’s easy for us to convince others and, most dangerously, ourselves of potential. One of the hardest things to do is to be honest with ourselves when something isn’t working.
That said, each iteration of the company has been a huge learning opportunity and we wouldn’t be where we are today without the wisdom from each chapter.
Getting used to failure and rejection — there are a lot of both on the founder journey. I was very achievement-oriented growing up and uncomfortable with the idea of both failure and rejection. One of the most important lessons I’ve learned along the way is success comes from what you make of the failures, what you learn from them, and how you get back up.
Learn more about Snout at www.snoutplans.com.
Thanks again to Emily for sharing your story!
