How CapGenius Turned a First World Problem into a First Rate Service
From tangled headphones to spinning rainbow wheels to the ever classic broken nail, first world problems are pervasive and far reaching.Yet worse than forgetting your charger at home or having no wifi at a restaurant, not properly captioning the photo you spent hours editing can have detrimental consequences. (hello no likes!)Okay, so we’re slightly exaggerating, but most of us truly can relate to taking a stellar pic, editing it as if we were Dede Allen but then failing to come up with the perfect corresponding copy.CapGenius, the aptly named mobile solution, is aiming to cure us from this common conundrum.Having just launched last December, the company already has the online stratosphere a buzz with its clever offering.Jordan Verroi, CapGenius’s co-founder and COO, sat down with TechDay to explain what it takes to enter and succeed in a millennial driven market and what he envisions for the future of the company.
CapGenius launched only very recently but has already attained significant media attention. What do you believe it is about the company that has spurred so much initial interest?
We just recently launched Capgenius at the end of November (2016) with the intention of helping people write funny captions. Initially we saw our early adopters coming to our content keyboard for Instagram or Snapchat quotes. However, we noticed that they would return to use our keyboard at higher than normal retention rates because of our great content. We’ve realized that most people want to be creative and original but need a starting point to help them come up with funny and witty content depending on where they are or what they are doing.
What key partnerships have also helped foster growth and what do you look for when choosing to collaborate with another company?
We secured a long-term marketing partnership with media marketing powerhouse Betches. With an audience of over 6.5M+ specifically in our demographic, they are the perfect partner. Our audience has responded well and grown rapidly because of the great brand that they have built. Now that we have gotten past our “proof of concept stage” we’ve been able to take a step back and take more of a strategic look at companies wanting to collaborate with us. We have some awesome announcements coming up this summer with brands that align well with our audience and the mission of CapGenius.
To what extent has CapGenius' own Instagram feed attributed to the company's growth? How does the page's voice, content and, of course, captions, work to garner visibility and legitimacy?
Launching the keyboard using our Instagram feed as a growth factor has been great. We’ve seen that people are proudly using our hashtag (#CapGenius) when we are helping them create their own new content. We have been able to use a combination of our voice and content to create an all-encompassing and visible marketing plan which has grown on its own. It’s been amazing to see that we can stay so lean internally and incorporate some great strategies using and growing our Instagram feed to drive our target demographic to download CapGenius.
Have targeted ads on Instagram been your primary marketing push? What other more organic strategies has CapGenius employed?
Targeted ads on Instagram were our initial push and we’ve seen a domino effect since then. We really haven’t had to spend any money on marketing because of the organic growth of the keyboard. People love it, it works and they tell all of their friends about it because coming up with great content on the spot is such a common struggle with our millennial audience.
What do you envision as the future of CapGenius? Do you intend to expand to other platforms?
We are piloting Android and are fortunate to have already had some incredible larger conversations regarding curated categories. We are also looking forward to some exciting things evolving from our IP that surround the keyboard and functionalities we have secured, trademarked and patented. The great thing about CapGenius is that we have been able to differentiate ourselves from our competition because you can use our keyboard anywhere you use your normal QWERTY keyboard. Where you can only use a GIF in text message or email; CapGenius can be used across all platforms like dating apps, emails, group texts, Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat, and more!
What would your advice be to founders looking to integrate themselves within this sort of quirky, and self-aware online space? What's the tone and approach one should take when entering this millennial driven medium?
Successfully advertising to the 18-34 year old demographic is tough. We see extremely well-known companies having a difficult time approaching this millennial-driven medium because our audience is very competent and can spot an advertising trap from a mile away. The best way to engage this group of users it to do it organically and with a comedic approach. People want to share things with their friends, families and co-workers because it’s relatable, engaging and fun. Remaining authentic and incorporating humor has been the best way for us to acquire and retain new users.Jordan Verroi, Co-Founder and COOJordan grew up in Atlanta, Ga. and has always been driven by his entrepreneurial spirit. He worked as a top recruiter at Insight Global and has helped with the growth of several successful startups like Sir Kensington's, Pangea Swimwear and JP Crickets.