Balloonary AI-powered tool to create, launch and manage digital ads
Please introduce yourself and your startup Balloonary to our readers!
Balloonary is an easy-to-use AI-powered tool to create, launch and manage digital ads across Google, Facebook and Instagram in a matter of minutes. The brainchild of founders, Brice Dondelinger, Bob Krier, Dylan Thompson, and Marc Donis.
How did you get the idea of Balloonary?
Before starting Balloonary, we launched Spoticle, a trusted travel guides app for the tourism industry. When Covid hit, things changed dramatically and as tourism came to a complete halt, we brainstormed our next project, creating a tool that helped people test their business ideas before launching. While testing this idea, we realised that where users really needed the help was with digital advertising, and that many small businesses are missing out on the benefits that online advertising can bring.
We sought to simplify the process and make it more affordable, seeking to help brands drive new customers to their website to give them the edge, as well as be seen by more people. This soon turned into Balloonary, and our main aim is to make the process of creating, launching, and analysing online ad campaigns fast and simple giving business owners the confidence to really explore and benefit from the world of online ads.
Why did you decide to start with Balloonary?
Balloonary was a natural continuation of uswanting to keep working together as a team even though we had to pivot away from the idea that initially brought us together.
What is the vision behind Balloonary?
Helping side hustlers, solopreneurs and micro businesses conquer the world of online ads to supercharge the earning potential of their small business.
Balloonary gives small businesses the power to stand out and get noticed by the right audience by giving them the expertise and tools that larger companies use for sales success.
How difficult was the start and which challenges you had to overcome?
Working on your startup is a rollercoaster ride and there is really a process to it. You have to identify the pain of potential customers, define a value proposition, then build out the solution, go to market, get feedback, fix bugs and so on and there really are challenges around every corner, while the market is constantly shifting. Your are in startup mode and you try to win one battle at the time, especially in the beginning when you are bootstrapped.
Who is your target audience?
Side hustlers, solopreneurs, micro businesses and micro agencies
What is the USP of your startup?
Our main USP is that no design or marketing skills are needed, simply enter a business URL and Balloonary’s AI will analyse the website and create high quality ads, launching campaigns in less than 10 minutes, on Facebook, Instagram, and Google. We are really 5x times easier and 10x faster than going via the ad platforms directly.
Can you describe your typical workday ?
Monday to Friday 9am to 5 pm does not exist. Balloonary supports 26 languages and we operate worldwide. The typical day starts with checking what happened while the office lights were off. We then usually have a quick team chat and set priorities for the day. We all have quite varied backgrounds and skill sets which are totally different but complement one another. Being 4 co-founders, we have split responsibilities and everyone goes after his milestones and deadlines and reaches out when we need to bounce ideas off each other.
There is a lot of hands-on, but working with several services providers, there is also a lot of coordinating and follow-ups to do. And somewhere in between we try to eat, drink more water, fail at exercising and cater to the needs of family life.
Where do you see yourself and your startup Balloonary in five years?
We see exciting new developments in online and digital marketing and we believe in the power of AI to assist business owners conquer those new channels with ease to grow their businesses.
Balloonary will be the go-to platform to give business owners access to custom and professional agency-level ads at a fraction of the cost and time.
What 3 tips would you give to founders?
Be bold, adapt and persevere
Thank you Brice Dondelinger, Bob Krier, Dylan Thompson, and Marc Donis for the Interview
Statements of the author and the interviewee do not necessarily represent the editors and the publisher opinion again.
