GE 240: How CanvasPop’s Genius Customer Acquisition Strategy Out-Innovated the Competition [podcast]

Hey everyone! In this episode I share the mic with Adrian Salamunovic, co-founder of CanvasPop, a service that lets you create gallery-quality canvas prints.

Tune in to hear Adrian discuss his career path as a serial entrepreneur, including DNA11 in which they turned DNA code into abstract wall-art (no two prints are alike!), how he started CanvasPop with just $35,000 and earned media, and the marketing tactics he’s used, such as putting the first 100 customers’ prints on a digital billboard in Times Square during the Christmas season as part of their launch campaign.

Download podcast transcript [PDF] here: How CanvasPop’s Genius Customer Acquisition Strategy Out-Innovated the Competition TRANSCRIPT

Time-Stamped Show Notes:

• [00:41]Before we begin, please leave a review and rating and subscribe to the Growth Everywhere Podcast!
• [01:14] Adrian is a “serial entrepreneur”; he’s never held a full-time job, as has been doing this since he was 16.
• [01:30] CanvasPop is one the web’s leading personalized wall-art companies. Print any picture from any source.
  • [01:50] Brand-focused, direct-to-consumer, vertically integrated company.
• [02:17] DNA11 was started by Adrian and his best friend; they took DNA code and turned into abstract wall-art; no two prints are alike.
  • [03:03] It became a $1 million company and it morphed from there.
• [03:58] DNA11 was started with $2,000. CanvasPop was started with $35,000.
• [05:11] They used technology to streamline the canvas-creating process and have amazing customer service.
• [05:33] Adrian is passionate about earned media.
  • [05:42] Adrian believes CanvasPop was successful because of great PR.
  • [06:25] He is self-taught when it comes to PR.
• [06:39] Think about what makes your company remarkable and align that question with something that is trending in the media.
  • [07:25] There is something to be said about developing a relationship with a journalist or publications.
  • [09:06] There has to be remarkability or a spin to capture a journalist’s attention; there are a number of angles to work to attract a journalist and their audience.
• [10:10] As part of a launch promotion, CanvasPop offered a deal to the first 100 people: print with CanvasPop and we’ll put it on a digital billboard in Times Square during the Christmas season (fifteen seconds per photo).
  • [10:55] This worked to CanvasPop’s advantage, because Reuters was running a special deal: they were giving you a free picture on the board for every press release that you gave them.
  • [11:18] The whole thing cost him about $10,000, which was significantly less than it would have been had Reuters not been running the deal.
• [11:53] They still use earned media as a big part of their PR strategy.
• [12:44] The bigger your company, the less earned media brings helps bring in a surge of customers.
• [13:44] CanvasPop was the first company to accept Instagram photos for printing.
  • [14:15] This gave them some great publicity and they were the only company doing this, so they got a wave of business.
• [14:43] “The best artists steal.” Adrian thinks you should look to similar companies, see what works, and improve upon their service.
  • [15:25] You want to “out-innovate” your competitors.
• [16:20] Whether you are growing too fast or not fast enough, there is always going to be some sort of struggle for your business.
  • [16:35] Entrepreneurs should be expert problem-solvers.
• [17:12] Adrian has learned that focus, discipline, and consistency are boring; but the key to success.
  • [17:52] Eric recalls that the X.AI CEO said something similar.
• [18:35] Do advisory work on the side, which may help you have perspective and give back to your primary business.
• [19:06] He doesn’t advocate working 14-hour days, but he acknowledges that there is a time at every startup where that may be necessary.
  • [19:47] Three days per week, Adrian will try to fit in a workout.
  • [20:09] Adrian likes to block out his time for different tasks (i.e. email, research, meetings)
  • [20:30] He likes to be home by five at the latest.
• [20:56] You need to balance out your life.
• [21:05] He would tell his younger self that “it’s a marathon, not a sprint”.
  • [21:25] Adrian feels as if he spent his 20s sprinting.
• [22:07] Adrian loves Pipedrive, a CRM system. He loves it, because it uses an interface similar to that of Trello.
• [22:51] He also uses MuckRack for PR purposes; it looks at what journalists are writing and tweeting about.
• [23:37] Adrian absolutely loves TypeForm, because it takes something painful and almost makes it enjoyable.
• [24:31] Adrian recommends the books, E-Myth and Play Bigger.
• [25:37] Adrian’s favorite podcasts at the moment is “Legends and Losers” and “99% Invisible”.

Resources From This Interview:

• CanvasPop
• DNA11
• X.AI
• PipeDrive
• Trello
• MuckRack
• TypeForm
• Must-read books:
  • The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael E. Gerber
  • Play Bigger: How Rebels and Innovators Create New Categories and Dominate Markets
     by Dave Peterson & Christopher Lochhead
• Adrian on Clarity.fm
• Adrian on Twitter

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