Launching A Fitness Startup In The Middle Of a Pandemic With Tee Major

Last Updated on November 27, 2020

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About Tee Major

I’m Tee Major, founder of Tee Major Fitness, a tactical fitness brand, and Sqwod, the world’s first fitness app that uses the science of HIRT training.

As a fitness coach, elite-level athlete, and author of Urban Calisthenics by Penguin Random House, I’ve built my reputation training active-duty service personnel, and I’m the only coach to have trained every branch of the US military.

About Hero DNA

I launched my first start-up, Tee Major Fitness, in the middle of the “Great Recession” and my newest start-up, Hero DNA, amidst a global pandemic. I guess I love adversity and one would even say thrive on it. Both of my businesses were bootstrapped with money raised from e-book sales and Youtube ad revenue.

I started Sqwod because I believe everyone deserves to be strong and pain-free. This is manifest in my diverse career training Olympians, professional athletes, and every branch of the United States military. Now I want to provide people with a convenient tool that empowers them to train intensely, effectively, and safely at home.

Contents

How Did You Get Your First Several Customers Or Users? How Many Users Or Customers Do You Have Now?

When gyms shuttered and the industry went digital due to Covid-19, fitness-seekers and my clients followed to my various social and video platforms — signaling a willingness to engage in and spend on new workout formats. I quickly pivoted to creating an iOS app solution. We have hundreds of active users as of writing this. We launched on October 26th, 2020.

How Does Your Company Grow And Acquire New Customers?

In order to grow and acquire new customers, I took a Quant-based Marketing approach and used all FREE forms of traffic generation at my disposal. We send traffic generated through SEO, Content, Social, and Email directly to the App Store page.

What Actionable Tips And Tricks Do You Have For New Founders Who Are Looking To Get Their First Thousand Users Or Dollars?

Quant-based marketing is a framework for acquiring customers and promoting your business. It’s defined by two main features: 1. A specific, quantitative top-line goal that says what and by when. Instead of being overwhelmed by a single enormous goal, the entrepreneur who uses quant-based marketing views the top-line goal as an aggregation of many smaller goals. (This fits in nicely with my life and business philosophy of Kaizen.) These goals can be rearranged, magnified, or dialed back in order to optimize for X result in Y time frame. 2. Eliminate hope by naming, measuring, and reacting to every feeder channel. Quant-based marketing demands that you break down your marketing strategy into multiple tactics (your “feeder channels”) that are all distinct, measurable, and easily magnified or minimized.

As the entrepreneur, you’re able to see precisely what’s working – and to what degree. No more guesswork, and no more wasting time and dollars on a losing bet.
Under quant-based marketing, growth isn’t a gamble – it’s a science.

Quant-Based Marketing in 5 Steps:
1. Establish specific goals
2. Make your target list prior to launch
3. Find where your users are online
4. Test your messaging
5. Track everything

What Is Something You’ve Learned That Would Not Be Obvious To Somebody Who Hasn’t Worked In Your Space Before?

App development and marketing is easier than you think if you make a plan and spend your time wisely. Instead of spending time doing “social media marketing” and flailing around with random posts throughout the web, use Quant-Based Marketing to guarantee your success before you start. It also shows you exactly what streams are delivering leads vs. the ones that most people go after “just because.”

What’s The Craziest Thing That’s Happened To You (Good Or Bad) On Your Founder Journey?

When I started my company Tee Major Fitness in 2008, I set out to become one of the best fitness trainers in the world. I modeled a lot of my business after “Biggest Loser” star and celebrity trainer, Jillian Michaels. Fast forward to 2013, I was living the 4-hour work week life in Thailand and I received an email from her team. As it turned out, she found me on Youtube and wanted to work together. I was featured on her reality show and we went into business together shortly after having a call and meeting!