406: Vacation Tracker: 60 Waitlist Signups to $2M Bootstrapped SaaS - with Lav Crnobrnja
Aug 8, 2024
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Lav Crnobrnja, co-founder and CEO of Vacation Tracker, shares the story of creating a leave management tool born from necessity. He discusses balancing rapid product launch with reputation, emphasizing prioritizing problem-solving over perfection. Lav dives into validating product concepts, the significance of customer feedback, and the transition from service to product success during the pandemic. He also explores customer engagement strategies for startups and even touches on his 30-year passion for music as a creative outlet.
Vacation Tracker was born from real struggles of managing employee leave, emphasizing the importance of addressing genuine market needs.
Direct customer engagement during the startup phase allowed for valuable feedback, helping to iteratively develop features relevant to users' needs.
The shift towards targeted content marketing significantly improved lead generation, leading to better conversions through addressing specific audience pain points.
Deep dives
The Origin of Vacation Tracker
Vacation Tracker emerged from the struggles faced by a growing team at a previous services company that relied on cumbersome Excel spreadsheets to manage employee leave. During a company hackathon in 2017, Lav and his team decided to build a software solution to streamline this process. They created a simple landing page to gauge interest and initially gathered around 60 email sign-ups, but it took nearly nine months before they responded to market demand by launching their product. This delay taught Lav the importance of recognizing real market needs and the potential demand for their solution.
The Launch Experience
After launching with a six-month free beta, Vacation Tracker attracted 20 users from the initial waitlist, with 10 becoming active. Lav personally engaged with customers through demos and customer support, which fostered relationships and valuable feedback. A memorable moment came when the first paying customer signed up for $25 per month, symbolizing a significant milestone for Lav and prompting a celebratory lunch. However, challenges soon followed, including a database wipe that hampered operations and revealed the need for improved content strategy to attract the right audience.
Customer Engagement and Product Development
At the core of Vacation Tracker's growth strategy was Lav's belief in direct engagement with customers during the startup's early stages. By leveraging customer feedback, the team iteratively developed relevant features, such as helpful notifications about team members' leaves, which were critical for planning and project management. Additionally, they focused on creating relevant content that spoke directly to their target audience, leading them towards a better understanding of customer problems and needs. This customer-centric approach was vital in transitioning from a free beta to a sustainable paid product.
The Marketing Strategy
Vacation Tracker's marketing strategy heavily relied on consistent content creation, focusing on high-quality articles that addressed customer pain points. Partnering with a former CMO from a successful time tracking product, the team published articles at a brisk pace, initially gaining traction but later recognizing the need for more targeted content. They shifted to producing articles that highlighted specific issues faced by their audience, directly linking those issues to how Vacation Tracker provided solutions. This strategic pivot allowed them to capture the right type of traffic, resulting in more qualified leads and conversions.
Navigating Transition from Services to Product
Navigating the transition from services to a product-based business was challenging for Lav, particularly during personal upheaval. Initially splitting time between Vacation Tracker and the services company, he realized that focusing entirely on the product was essential for its growth. Hiring a general manager for the existing services business freed up Lav's time, allowing him to prioritize Vacation Tracker and implement customer-focused strategies. Eventually, as Vacation Tracker gained momentum and annual recurring revenue approached $2 million, Lav made the decision to shut down the services company and fully commit to the product.
