Future Founders’ Lab: An Interview with Clarence Tan

Jessica Das

Boddle Learning is a 14-employee technology company formed in 2018 that integrates classroom learning into 3D games. Teachers and parents of kindergarten through 6th grade students can invent and manage learning content, such as homework and tests, and embed it into the form of a 3D game, which helps students learn concepts and makes learning fun.

What is the backstory to Boddle Learning?

Clarence Tan has a background in game design and began his career by building casual games with friends, which eventually led to being hired to build games for companies. This caused Tan and his friends to form a company specifically to work on building games, all of which included an educational aspect. At a certain point, the group over committed themselves and were not able to meet their deadlines. Before they shut down the company, however, they wanted to build a game that they all enjoyed playing. Then, after the game was built, they added pockets within the game that enabled learning, which became the eventual premise of Boddle Learning.

Have you always wanted to be a founder and who was your inspiration?

Tan has always looked up to his dad who was a banker, but did not always want to be a founder. After college, Tan worked for nine months in the banking industry after deciding he didn’t care for it. His career completely changed when he was presented with the opportunity to take a pay cut and move to Colombia, which he accepted.

Who is an inspiration to you in the entrepreneurial field?

Tan does not have a specific entrepreneurial inspiration; however, his dad has been his inspiration in his career. His dad came to the U.S. with no money and through grit and hard work he was able to make it quite high in the banking world. His dad mentioned to Tan that his one regret was that he wished he had explored the entrepreneurial space more. Hearing his dad say that gave Tan the confidence to pursue this career in entrepreneurship.

Can you discuss some of your investments and what caused you to move to Tulsa, Oklahoma?

A lead investor, located in Tulsa, invested in Boddle Learning and it was determined that the company would have a better opportunity for success by moving to Oklahoma.

Pharrell Williams is another investor in the company. Edna, a co-founder of Boddle Learning, applied for the investment. After multiple meetings and an interview, Boddle Learning was awarded an investment from Pharrell Williams. Now, the company has access to Williams’ team if they ever need anything or have any questions.

What has been the most rewarding part of starting this business and what is your greatest achievement?

So far, Tan says the most rewarding aspect has been every time a teacher organically shares Boddle Learning with others on social media and talks about how much their students enjoy the games.

Specifically looking at achievement, Tan says Boddle Learning’s greatest achievement has been figuring out user acquisition. One of the toughest nuts to crack as a gaming company is how to acquire users at a low cost. Boddle Learning is currently acquiring users at under a cent per user, which Tan says is a good number for their field.

What is one of the most significant challenges that you face on a day-to-day basis?

Product development. Since Boddle Learning is building games, which is a mixture of art, coding and design, Tan says there are many different aspects that must come together to make a good product. Another small challenge Tan mentioned is the fact that many employees are located all over the world, so finding time to meet can be difficult.

In general, what is the most challenging part of being a founder?

Tan says fundraising is always difficult in the beginning, especially if you haven’t yet found your product market fit. Additionally, selling your idea can be difficult if you don’t have the numbers that are necessary to grab investors’ attention. Before Boddle Learning acquired their lead investor, Tan says they relied on accelerators and pitch competitions for funding.

What advice would you give a new entrepreneur?

Tan says to be smart about who you take advice from. Nowadays, advice can be abundant; however, not all advice is useful to your specific company. When seeking advice, Tan recommends trying to find people that either see the potential in your company, are involved in the field, or who have already been in your shoes.

What books do you recommend to people in the entrepreneurial field?

1. “Measure What Matters”- This book by John Doerr discusses objectives, key results, and the importance of time management.
2. “Venture Deals”
3. “Never Split the Difference” - This is a book about negotiation, but it can be used for conversation in general.
4. “Actionable Gamification” - Yu-Kai Chou’s book discusses what drives people to do things. It is very useful if you are building a product, especially because nowadays there are so many apps out there and it’s important to make sure that people want to use your product.