Making Something From Nothing: David Perez of Daily Dose On How To Go From Idea To Launch
An Interview With Doug Noll
Take a break from the ideation process for a day or two, then come back to it and work through each step strategically. Set a timeline for yourself and stick to it. Inventing a product is a demanding practice that requires ample patience, time, and dedication. Don’t hesitate to ask experts for advice. Read about the industry and learn from others’ mistakes. The more you can build your own confidence and expertise, the more likely you are to succeed. Every business encounters setbacks; effective problem-solving minimizes their long-term effects.
As a part of our series called “Making Something From Nothing”, we had the pleasure of interviewing David Perez.
David Perez is the CEO and Founder of Daily Dose. The brand currently offers the award-winning Daily Dose Miracle Moisture Leave-In Conditioner which is formulated to be used on all hair types and conditions and is available on Amazon and DailyDoseMe.com.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dive in, our readers would love to learn a bit more about you. Can you tell us a bit about your “childhood backstory”?
I had a bit of a unique childhood. My father worked for a US company that sent him to work out of its Madrid office, so I spent the first 10 years of my childhood in Spain. It definitely helped me develop a global perspective because I had the fortune of building incredible friendships and visiting amazing countries starting at a very young age. When I returned to the US, I lived in the midwest but went to school and worked on the east and west coast. I consider myself very lucky to have had so much exposure to diverse cultures, languages, tastes and preferences, and I think it’s positively impacted how I approach my businesses and consumers.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“In business, as in life, the strength of your success lies in the company you keep; choose wisely, for they will lift you up or bring you down.” — Anonymous. As an entrepreneur, I have launched 17 diverse business ventures. My most significant successes have stemmed from partnering with individuals who possess complementary skills, fostering a well-rounded enterprise. Additionally, having business partners with complementary skill sets increases the likelihood of a successful business.
Is there a particular book, podcast, or film that made a significant impact on you? Can you share a story or explain why it resonated with you so much?
Currently, I thoroughly enjoy listening to the “All In” podcast, where four successful tech entrepreneurs, Chamath Palihapitiya, Jason Calacanis, David Sacks, and David Friedberg, discuss and share their views on topics such as the economy, the tech industry, political issues, social commentary, and poker. I find the conversations engaging, informative, and forward-thinking while maintaining a light and entertaining context, as if I am part of the group. As an entrepreneur, the podcast helps me consider how I can apply some of the insights to my own businesses.
Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion. There is no shortage of good ideas out there. Many people have good ideas all the time. But people seem to struggle in taking a good idea and translating it into an actual business. Can you share a few ideas from your experience about how to overcome this challenge?
Begin by validating your concept. Carry out both qualitative and quantitative market research to comprehend the category, the consumer, and the competition. Make sure there’s an opportunity to introduce a product with a unique selling point that resonates with the market.
Then, identify business partner(s) who possess complementary skills and are eager to explore the business. Examine the track records of these individuals, as “success begets success.” Adopting a team approach with accountability can help motivate you and your partners to create a comprehensive business plan and develop a product roadmap.
Often when people think of a new idea, they dismiss it saying someone else must have thought of it before. How would you recommend that someone go about researching whether or not their idea has already been created?
Creating a new version of an existing product should always be an option, as various products like phones, vehicles, computers, clothing, and furniture cater to diverse preferences. To succeed with your own version of an existing product, you must thoroughly understand aspects such as the marketplace, industry, trends, unique selling points, target demographic, competitive positioning, marketing strategy, distribution channels, and discoverability. Analyze case studies of similar products and identify competitive differentiators to refine your own product’s unique attributes. Develop a comprehensive brand plan and roadmap, addressing aspects like product design, color palette, brand tone, target consumers, retailers, and promotional campaigns. Establishing a solid position in the market and providing a compelling rationale for your product are essential.
For example, when developing Daily Dose Miracle Moisture Leave-In Conditioner, we iterated on various aspects, from naming and marketing to packaging and formulation, until we achieved a unique and special product. Despite the presence of other leave-in conditioners in the market, we identified a niche and established a significant position for Daily Dose.
The first step is to validate your idea through market research, identifying target consumers, competitors, and potential areas of improvement for existing products. Analyze negative reviews on e-commerce platforms like Amazon to pinpoint issues with competitors’ products and address those shortcomings in your own offering. When launching Daily Dose, we found that consumers complained about greasy hair after using leave-in conditioners, so we made sure our formula addressed that issue while maintaining performance.
Utilize tools like SurveyMonkey to gather insights about your target audience, test different brand names, and explore product benefits and features that inform your product design. Conducting numerous surveys for Daily Dose was not only helpful in building a product that resonated with the target consumer but it also proved helpful when pitching the product to retailers. Employing fact-based selling, leveraging quantitative and qualitative research, will significantly improve your chances of success.
What are your “5 Things I Wish Someone Told Me When I First Started Leading My Company” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
1 . Research your idea: learn about the marketplace, industry, competition, what works and doesn’t, successes and failures, understand potential legal issues, international nuances, retail — who’s succeeding and hurting, marketing trends. Understand distribution and manufacturing including bottlenecks, set dates, placement, timelines. Find experts in all areas and ask questions.
2 . Explore names: research names, ensure they’re meaningful internationally if you intend to go global, search websites and social handles to ensure they’re available, clear and trademark the name in appropriate categories and countries. A good trademark attorney might be expensive but is worth every penny.
3 . Create a plan: define your brand. Create a brand mission, vision, tenets/pillars, guidelines, guardrails, color palettes, packaging, logo treatments, timelines, milestones, and roadmaps
4 . Align key stakeholders: ensure everyone involved in the brand understands its positioning, target, key milestones and values. A lot of people have a great idea and they want to begin executing immediately. It saves time and money when you actually sit and map out your vision.
5 . When you go to market: continue to track trends, speak frequently with your customers/partners/consumers, be flexible and anticipate urgent issues. Have a gameplan and an exit strategy. You may never want to sell, but it’s good to know your options
Let’s imagine that a reader reading this interview has an idea for a product that they would like to invent. What are the first few steps that you would recommend that they take?
Research the product thoroughly. Understand the competition and any patents they may hold. Determine if your product is differentiated enough to launch. Write a positioning statement — what does this product stand for? Consider all its pros and cons. Develop a plan that includes your overall objective, short-term and long-term vision, and strategies for achieving your objective across all disciplines: branding, manufacturing, financing, placement, and marketing. How will you execute it from start to finish? How will you fund every step? What is your projected timeline, and does it align with retailer timelines and seasonality?
Take a break from the ideation process for a day or two, then come back to it and work through each step strategically. Set a timeline for yourself and stick to it. Inventing a product is a demanding practice that requires ample patience, time, and dedication. Don’t hesitate to ask experts for advice. Read about the industry and learn from others’ mistakes. The more you can build your own confidence and expertise, the more likely you are to succeed. Every business encounters setbacks; effective problem-solving minimizes their long-term effects.
There are many invention development consultants. Would you recommend that a person with a new idea hire such a consultant, or should they try to strike out on their own?
Everyone has strengths and areas for improvement; no one is truly proficient in every aspect of effective business development. If you’re an expert in product development, design, or marketing, concentrate your efforts in those areas. Utilize your network of connections in other fields like finance, manufacturing, and sales, and seek advice as needed. If you don’t have specialists in certain areas, it’s certainly beneficial to consider hiring consultants to assist and guide you on the right path.
What are your thoughts about bootstrapping vs looking for venture capital? What is the best way to decide if you should do either one?
The majority of businesses I have started were bootstrapped. This approach offers the advantage of starting with a smaller amount of cash and no dilution. I co-founded three CPG businesses in the last five years by bootstrapping a single product launch. Although it took considerably longer to scale, I was able to learn along the way and apply these lessons across multiple businesses and subsequent product launches. We did take several loans from Amazon and Marcus, which allowed us to accelerate growth.
Positive dilution arises when business partners contribute unique strengths and share the risk of initial capital expenditures. This is not to say that raising VC money is a bad idea — for the SaaS company I co-founded, Convertro, we went the VC route, allowing us to scale the business quickly and achieve a timely exit. Without VC funds, this company would not have had the resources to compete. Therefore, the best approach depends on the nature of the product you are building.
Ok. We are nearly done. Here are our final questions. How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
All companies should consider incorporate a charitable aspect, wherein a percentage of proceeds are donated to a meaningful cause. With Daily Dose, we are extremely proud of our partnership with an exceptional organization called Charity: Water. Every purchase of Daily Dose contributes to providing a daily dose of clean water for communities in need. Daily Dose donates 2% of proceeds towards clean water projects worldwide. Since 2019, we have supported programs in India, Uganda, Madagascar, and Malawi. As your business thrives, it will create a more significant positive impact on a worthy cause.
You are an inspiration to a great many people. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
It is deeply disheartening to learn about the increasing issues related to mental health, particularly among children and teenagers. This crisis appears to be escalating. Factors such as bullying, trolling, misunderstandings, and the unattainable perfection portrayed by social media contribute to this situation. Moreover, the world has become somewhat divided. Our product, Daily Dose, aims to instill confidence in people by promoting the concept of diverse, natural beauty. Beyond just our product, it would be wonderful to see a movement that truly celebrates each individual’s uniqueness and their inner and outer beauty.
We are very blessed that some of the biggest names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US, with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
I’ve been able to bootstrap and launch multiple brands, largely due to the Amazon Marketplace, which enables anyone with a new product to reach millions of Amazon customers. Thousands of entrepreneurs have also built businesses thanks to Amazon. Having the opportunity to meet Jeff Bezos, express my gratitude for the opportunities he has created, and learn more about his customer-centric approach would be truly amazing.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
About the Interviewer: Douglas E. Noll, JD, MA was born nearly blind, crippled with club feet, partially deaf, and left-handed. He overcame all of these obstacles to become a successful civil trial lawyer. In 2000, he abandoned his law practice to become a peacemaker. His calling is to serve humanity, and he executes his calling at many levels. He is an award-winning author, teacher, and trainer. He is a highly experienced mediator. Doug’s work carries him from international work to helping people resolve deep interpersonal and ideological conflicts. Doug teaches his innovative de-escalation skill that calms any angry person in 90 seconds or less. With Laurel Kaufer, Doug founded Prison of Peace in 2009. The Prison of Peace project trains life and long terms incarcerated people to be powerful peacemakers and mediators. He has been deeply moved by inmates who have learned and applied deep, empathic listening skills, leadership skills, and problem-solving skills to reduce violence in their prison communities. Their dedication to learning, improving, and serving their communities motivates him to expand the principles of Prison of Peace so that every human wanting to learn the skills of peace may do so. Doug’s awards include California Lawyer Magazine Lawyer of the Year, Best Lawyers in America Lawyer of the Year, Purpose Prize Fellow, International Academy of Mediators Syd Leezak Award of Excellence, National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals Neutral of the Year. His four books have won a number of awards and commendations. Doug’s podcast, Listen With Leaders, is now accepting guests. Click on this link to learn more and apply.
