Latest / Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast) / Part 2. My first fail: Why you can’t get attached to a name.

Transcript

Part 2. My first fail: Why you can’t get attached to a name. · Imagine If with Doone Roisin | Health, Wealth & Wisdom for Women (formerly Female Startup Club Podcast)

• 0:00
  Welcome back to my ongoing series where I share my journey in building a non-alcoholic wine company from scratch. In these episodes, I'm taking you through what's happening in almost real time, including the mistakes we make along the way. And on today's episode, we cross that first mistake. We named the brand Too Soon.
• 0:22
  But on a super duper serious note, first, I need your help. I need a favor. I need you to stop everything that you're doing. If you are listening to this and I'm talking in your ears right now, right this moment, I just need you to press pause and I need you to go into the podcast app.
• 0:37
  scroll down to where you see the stars and tap the five stars. And I want you to leave us the best damn review that you can think of. And even feel free to sign your name off so I know exactly which shining star you are. And if you do this, I can promise you one thing.
• 0:56
  Actually, I can probably promise you two things. But the first thing is that the show will continue on and on for a really long time because it'll help new ears find us. And two, because you sign your name, I'll know exactly who you are. I'll look forward to meeting you when we get to meet in person. And I'll be sending you eternal gratefulness. So go, go ahead. Press pause. I'm going to give you a second here.
• 1:23
  All right, so now you've done that and I'm eternally grateful, let's get stuck into this episode. This is Dune for Female Startup Club. Hi, hello. You've obviously just come from leaving me a review, so thank you so much. You're the best. I love you and I'm very grateful.
• 1:44
  Now, according to my lovely Pauline, who you will have heard me speak about, she's in my team, I need to break this early stuff down into super basic steps and a timeline so you know exactly what we've done in the beginning to get to where we are today, which is still very much in the beginning. So let me step you through it. Let me talk to you about the first early steps of starting this non-alcoholic wine brand and the first mistake that we've done.
• 2:11
  which I'm sure will be one of many. So for me, I feel like everything starts with a list, and then another list, and then a couple more lists. And that's the common theme around everything I do. And it sounds really silly, but I didn't know this before. And I never used to have working lists or spreadsheets or anything of that matter. But when I started working at Finder, and I was building out the content for the fashion vertical, it was, like,
• 2:39
  everything was a list that I would work my way through. And then I read Russell Brunson's book, which I think was called Traffic Secrets from Memory. He's got a couple, but it's really good, and I highly recommend you read that. But the list thing was really cemented for me, and the theme that he talks about in that book is around making your dream 100 list of everything, and just working through that 100, and then making the next 100, and moving on to the new list. So
• 3:07
  Lists. All about lists. Who would have thought I'd have so much enthusiasm on this matter? But before that, I want to quickly mention my mindset through the beginning of building this business. And if you listen to the show quite often, you'll have heard me talk about these two things before and the importance of these two things. So the first is goal setting. Okay.
• 3:31
  goals are key into knowing where you're trying to get to, whether or not that goal stays the same. That's not the point. Maybe you pivot, whatever. But it's about creating the goal and working out what the steps are that you need to take to get there. And then sticking to that. Because I often find that like...
• 3:51
  something might seem overwhelming and it's really hard to get from A to B. But if you actually break it down into the small incremental step by step by step and you make that list and you check it off, it's actually not that difficult. Nothing's really that difficult when you think about it. And the second thing that I keep in my mind is the notion of the 1% compound effect. And that is 100% how I get things done.
• 4:19
  I take really tiny steps, even micro steps, every day on repeat, and that moves me forward towards the goals that I've set for myself. I try to stay really focused on the things that I can do today that move me forward and not to get overwhelmed with anything that needs to be done in the future, especially if I'm not feeling super motivated. I ask myself, literally, why?
• 4:44
  What can I do right now, even if it's only a 10-minute thing that might move me forward incrementally by 1%? And the compound effect is just so powerful. And I see this every day with the show and what we're building here at Female Startup Club. Like, it all started with a list, literally a list. I was on a flight with Jeremy from Finder, who I spoke about in one of my other episodes. And we created this document, and I just worked my way through the list.
• 5:14
  And I think who was on the list? It was like my dream list of women who would want to be on the show. And now so many of those women have been on the show because I worked through the list. And, you know, I just checked off a little bit every single day. And then now the compound effect when I look back on the last 12 months from when I started to where I am today, it's just, you know, I mean, it blows my mind every single day. But I digress. Let's get back to the lists
• 5:44
  So we have this idea. It's January. You remember. And...
• 5:50
  From there, we kind of needed to check out the market. We needed to see what other brands were doing in the space. We needed to know if someone was doing this really well already to kind of figure out whether there was something for us here. And so this was really step one. We wanted to know what other brands were doing. And we started, you know, it's just so basic. We just started by ordering every non-alcoholic wine that we could to do our own tasting, to do our own reviews. And...
• 6:15
  And you guessed it, documented in a list. Actually, it was a spreadsheet. But I think from memory, we probably ordered around 50 to 100 bottles, you know, over the course of, I don't know, let's say a month, maybe two months. This was not a lengthy process, because in all honesty, most of it went down the sink. And
• 6:38
  when it came to the branding side of things, nothing spoke to me at all as a millennial woman, whole lot of nada. It all felt like there was no brand, there was no story, everything was cheap, and it felt nasty, and it tasted nasty, and it looked nasty. And so that process, I imagine, for other categories might be very different, especially if it's something in like,
• 7:03
  you know, the beauty industry or something that comes out of the pantry where there are other options that are great and other people who are doing things well. But for me and for us, what we felt like was there wasn't too much going on that really got us excited. There was one brand that was kind of cool, not in terms of the brand and the story around it, but in terms of the, I guess, the taste and the feeling that you had.
• 7:32
  But again, it was a really low price point. And we knew from the very beginning that we wanted to do something that was premium and that was better for you and that spoke to us and that was different in terms of the look and feel. And so...
• 7:51
  Yeah, it basically was a pretty quick process for that independent research piece of the puzzle. That's not to say that we haven't tried things from other areas, like a lot of the products that are coming out of America, for example, we couldn't get access to because they weren't distributed in the UK. So that's a bit of another story. But from our research in the UK and Europe, we started with that list. And so while all this was in the works, we started brainstorming a name, and we started
• 8:19
  And for some reason, literally in the first hour of thinking about the name, we thought about Vivi. And because we're creating a French non-alcoholic wine company, we knew that we wanted a name that worked in both English and French. It was easy to read. And it wasn't millennial, like an edgy word, you know, that we see a lot of at the moment.
• 8:45
  And so when you're finding a name, I think there's a few different ways that you can go about it. You can obviously hire a design agency that will help you with naming and they'll help you with the processes. Maybe you have something that comes to mind quite quickly, which is what happened to us. Or, you know, you do your own research and you come up with something great. So we wanted something that felt classic and we wanted something that felt timeless and,
• 9:13
  And so we land on Vivi quite quickly. And that just kind of by default becomes the name from there on out. Yeah, so we don't think too much of anything because that's the name. But here's the thing that I somehow missed along the way, and I'm surprised that I totally missed this moment and that I forgot to do this, but...
• 9:33
  A name doesn't work if you can't trademark it. And spoiler alert, everything is bloody trademarked in the US. Like literally everything. So my understanding of how the trademarking system thing works, because I've never done this before, is that there are what's called different classes, like a whole bunch of different classes, which is essentially the different categories. And...
• 10:01
  You need to trademark under those certain categories or classes and you can't really infringe on someone else who has something that might be similar because, you know, then they'll come after you and you can trademark the name, you can trademark your, like, your logo and then I think you can trademark a couple of other things, like, in the process. But basically...
• 10:29
  We didn't think of all this at the time. So we have this name that we like. And we do a quick search online. It shows nothing in that kind of category with the same spelling. Like Vivi for wines is like, if you do a Google search, it's fine. We go ahead. We buy ViviWines.com. And that's it.
• 10:46
  We start posting our reviews of the non-alk wines to a different website, and we're off to the races. We're on a roll. We're locked into Vivi. I think we asked some friends what they thought, that kind of thing. Anyway, we start looking for a branding designer, and at some point, we realize quite suddenly that, oh heck, we literally didn't check the trademark at all. Hadn't even been on the website.
• 11:17
  And so for us and anyone for that matter building a brand, you actually need to make sure that you're A, not infringing on someone else's IP, but B, that you're actually able to own yours, especially if you're creating an asset to sell. You need to own the trademark. You need to own your IP. So, yeah.
• 11:36
  And actually, my girlfriend told me just to double check. She gave me this pointer because there was a brand she knew of in the US, which was in the beverage space with a similar sounding name. It was Vivi, but it was not exactly the same. It was spelled differently. And so what do you know? I go on the USPTO website, or I think it's USPTO, to check the trademark. And for all the classes or categories that we need,
• 12:02
  They have a similar name. They have Vivi in the beverage industry for all the things. So fail, fail. We really don't have a name.
• 12:12
  And as you can imagine, this is super frustrating and it's pretty crazy that we actually overlooked this really simple step. So long story short, we're back to no name, calling it the non-alc wine brand, while we explore a new name that for sure can be trademarked because we didn't want to get into this process of applying and then them kind of saying, no, hang on, hang on, hang on. This is too similar to us and whatever. We just wanted to go back.
• 12:40
  through a trademark process that's a bit more straightforward and hopefully something that we can do ourselves. So that's the next step that we had, which was the name debacle. And, you know, we're still not sure on what the name is going to be. And we've been doing some exercises and I've been reading a French English dictionary to look at words and, you know, doing the whole thing. Yeah.
• 13:02
  We're going to have to circle back to the name in another episode once we've landed on something and once we've put through the trademark. So I can wrap that story up for you. But back to the early steps. In addition to all of that, we were really just reading a lot, reading different research reports and papers on the category, making assumptions and theories based on what the data was telling us.
• 13:26
  And we were using research to really validate the idea and the size of the market. And we're still doing this because, like you know, we're really early on in the journey. So this is circa...
• 13:39
  I don't know, let's say, I mean, we were researching like from as soon as it started. So since February, essentially. And yeah, we're still reading and we're still researching and we're keeping an eye on what's being written about online. We've signed up to a few industry or trade publications. I can't remember the name of the one.
• 13:58
  I think it's IWSR or IWRS or something like that, but they have some really great insights into the beverage industry, like the alcohol industry, but also the growing kind of emerging markets and emerging opportunities for non-alc, especially in beer, wine, and spirits. And, yeah, it's really interesting. It's really cool to keep in the loop. We've connected with a few people from there, and we're starting to reach out to people in the industry
• 14:28
  part of that kind of like research side of things, which has been cool.
• 14:33
  And yeah, all this stuff, I guess, sounds really basic, but it is so important to have great insights and an overview of the market and to see where you think the gaps are. And for us now, it just seems so clear, like a really big, clear space that no one's doing a higher price point, premium, better for you product that speaks to the millennial woman and the millennial consumer who wants beautiful packaging and wants a beautiful brand and wants that ritual to be...
• 15:02
  you know, just as good as the real deal. So I guess the other thing to keep in mind is like, and what this all comes back to with research is like, just because you think something is a great idea, it doesn't mean that it is.
• 15:18
  Because we all have a million ideas, right? I've had a million, million ideas. But it doesn't mean that the market's big enough to explore it. And it doesn't mean that it necessarily is the best idea. And it doesn't mean that you might be uniquely positioned to create that idea and bring it to life. And that's not to deter ideas, but it's just to say, like, you need to do your research. You need to be sure of what you're getting yourself into because...
• 15:46
  As we all know, it's a long journey and it's tough and there's lots of ups and downs. So you've got to be sure that you have the enthusiasm to go all the way.
• 15:57
  Yeah, you really need to research the market. You really need to research the opportunity. And then I guess you also need to go out and get data from your potential target customers. You need to start talking to people. And again, this comes back to the importance of network and start outreach. Start talking to people about what they think, what their reactions are, have they ever experienced this thing that you're trying to solve? Yeah.
• 16:23
  And see if they think the same things as you do. You need to really know if you've missed something that's important that you hadn't considered yet. But that's a whole other thing. And the customer insights actually comes a little bit later in our journey. It came more recently. So I'm saving a deeper dive into that for another mini episode that's coming up. I'm going to tell you specifically...
• 16:44
  what research we did into our customer insights and what we're doing, because we're still in the process. And yeah, I figure if we keep these episodes short-ish and sweet, I'll be able to do kind of smaller episodes, but more frequently and keep you in the loop with the journey. Some other upcoming topics that you can expect are around our business partner and how we decided, you know, how to split up this imaginary company in terms of equity.
• 17:14
  I want to do some stuff around the money thing and how we're funding it, how we plan to fund it, what it costs so far, and then obviously the customer insights. And, you know, I'll probably talk more about lists again. So that's all for today. And I'm going to see you next Saturday. Saturday feels like a good day for mini episodes, in my opinion.
• 17:38
  And a few quick things I just want to mention that I personally think is really cool. Number one, Hype Club is in full swing. By the time you've heard this, we will have had our first live workshop. It's hosted by our resident systems and processes queen, Sylvia. Yeah.
• 17:58
  Basically, this is a spreadsheet like no other. It's perfect for any stage of your business and will keep you proactive, in control, and organized with clarity across your business with structure and set goals. It's called the Sales and Marketing Tracker, and it's all like numbers and all the things that I'm not good at. So even though I'm recording this before the workshop has happened, I'm super excited and I know I'm going to learn a lot.
• 18:24
  But I know what you're thinking. You've missed this session because obviously you're hearing about it in hindsight. So how does this help you now? Well, everything is recorded. So even if you join us today, even if you join us tomorrow, even if you join us next week, you can access the workshop and the spreadsheet for yourself in our library. You can also hop into the group and ask any follow-up questions to Sylvia and basically get everything that you need to...
• 18:51
  Win, I guess. And number two is our first modern mentor session kicks off on the week of August the 2nd with Kaylee from Sustow. If you're developing something innovative or you're looking to learn directly from someone in the personal care space or the hair care space, rather,
• 19:10
  you'll find so much value speaking directly with her and getting her brain power for your business. So make sure you sign up if you're going to sign up before August the 2nd so that you can catch that live session.
• 19:23
  In the pipeline, we also have Alison Moss from Taipei Deodorant joining as a mentor who spoke on the show a couple of weeks ago. Sashi Chandran from Tea Drops and Alexandra Daughter from Kusama Rum over the coming weeks and months. So we have a lot to be excited about and so many brilliant minds to be learning from.
• 19:44
  And aside from that, I just want to give a shout out, a special shout out to some of the women who have joined Hype Club that I'm really excited to get to know. We have Marlene from Switzerland who joins us with a jewellery brand that's supporting local artisans from all corners of the world called Anona Jewellery.
• 20:02
  And Laura from Brooklyn, New York, joins us with her brand called Nurture, which is a wellness company whose mission is to empower people to heal through herbal and natural products. So super cool stuff. I love seeing what other founders are doing, and I can't wait for us to learn from each other.
• 20:21
  Last thing, we're on TikTok these days at Female Startup Club, so come check us out. And we're actually also looking for a US-based TikTok content creator. So if you know anyone or you follow anyone who is awesome, please do slide into my IG, my Twitter, my LinkedIn, whatever. You probably know the drill by now, but it's at Doon Roisin, D-O-O-N-E-R-O-I-S-I-N in all the places.
• 20:46
  And send me those links. Send me those cool creators that you're loving at the moment. That is all for today. I'm going to see you next time. Bye.
• 21:13
  Hey, it's Dune here. Thanks for listening to this amazing episode of the Female Startup Club podcast. If you're a fan of the show and want even more of the good stuff, I'd recommend checking out femalestartupclub.com where you can subscribe to our free newsletter. We send it out weekly covering female founder business news, insights and learnings in D2C, and interesting business resources.
• 21:38
  And if you're a founder building an e-commerce brand, you can join our private network of entrepreneurs called Hype Club at femalestartupclub.com forward slash Hype Club. We have guests from the show joining us for intimate Ask Me Anythings, expert workshops, and a group of totally amazing, like-minded women building the future of D2C brands.
• 22:00
  As always, please do subscribe, rate and review the show and post your favorite episodes to Instagram stories. I am beyond grateful when you do that.