FT Start-Up Stories A winning commute
Aug 20, 2017
Katie Hill-Gottesman, the founder of Commuter Ads, shares how a packed train ride inspired her transit advertising venture focused on low-capital solutions. She recounts pitching to transit authorities and navigating a memorable pilot mishap in Dayton. Simon Stockley from Cambridge Judge Business School discusses investor biases, particularly the gender dynamics in venture capital. Katie also highlights her experiences as a female founder, from fundraising challenges to defining work-life boundaries while collaborating with her husband.
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Eureka On A Crowded Train
- Katie Hill-Gottesman and Russ Gottesman conceived Commuter Ads on a packed train after a Chicago baseball game when Russ suggested playing an ad to send people to nearby restaurants.
- They used their advertising background and a contact at the transit authority to pitch the idea and turned it into a business plan and launch.
Found Opportunity In A Hidden RFP
- They found an RFP buried in Dayton's procurement documents that allowed them to propose a novel location-based audio and text-scroll advertising system.
- The proposal won a six-month pilot and three-year contract, prompting them to quit their jobs and move to Dayton.
Use Existing Transit Infrastructure
- Commuter Ads taps into existing transit announcement systems to deliver location-based audio ads, keeping capital costs low.
- Their patents focus on leveraging that infrastructure while managing creative constraints like 15-second, 30–39 word limits.