Founder@ Interview
Interview with Greg Fisher
“I would definitely say to start small, even as small as focusing on your product or service, on a specific demographic or locality, and be patient and give it time…“- Greg Fisher
Today we feature Greg Fisher, the founder at TripShock . We hear their story in their own words, their successes, their challenges and their insights.
Let’s start by getting to know you. Can you please tell us a little bit about you and what you do?
I’m the CEO of TripShock.com and Waverez.com. My background is primarily in digital marketing. I went to school for tourism management and earned a bachelor’s from the University of Central Florida.
A great introduction and start to this interview. Can you please tell us, how did you start, from what age, and what made you decide to change direction and start?
I was in my 20’s working in a hotel prior to launching TripShock. I had a lot of guests that would come to the front desk asking for things to do and I was referring them to local attractions and activities just because I wanted to provide great customer service. When you get a lot of these owners and managers that come to the hotel and they want us to promote their business, I looked at it as an opportunity because they wanted us to recommend them and I had an active audience of customers that wanted us to suggest things to do, so I thought it would be a great idea if I could generate commission for myself and my team by recommending these tours.
At the time, there wasn’t really a good way of documenting that. There needed to be some processes in place in order to validate that someone actually went on the tour or booked a rental. I connected with a local businesswoman who owned a tour business and she had a similar idea. We joined forces and built the TripShock booking engine so we could allow anyone to make reservations online and earn a commission.
Thank you for that insight. So can you tell us…What does your business do and where is your company based?
TripShock is based in Destin, FL, and is an online marketplace for tours and activities. TripShock connects tourists with the best local businesses to create a wealth of unforgettable, family-friendly travel experiences. Our personable team of innovators and local experts combine to deliver an incredible user experience, creating lasting impressions and simplifying the travel planning process. Travelers visit the TripShock website to find the best things to do in the area and book tickets right from their mobile devices.
What’s the story behind your success? What led to your aha moment? how did you get to where you are now?
I just haven’t really given up. There have been a lot of times when I’ve been tested because of hurricanes and oil spills and all sorts of different things that would make someone want to change professions or close down the business. Still, I’m very motivated and ambitious, so that’s been the reason for where we’re at today. After I got through my learning phase of how to run a company, I really depended on and trusted a lot of people, and decided not to micromanage.
I let people do what they need to do to perform and get things done. I trust in hiring the right people, and surrounding myself with other motivated professionals has really helped. My business partner Alex Benko has been extremely helpful, and having good business partners goes a long way. You have someone you can depend on, and if you’re burnt out you know that they can take the reins and give you a break.
Thank you for sharing that. What’s been your life’s biggest lesson so far?
The biggest lesson is not to grow too fast and make decisions based on where you’re at right now. A lot of times, I wanted to believe that we were bigger than what we really were and that led me to make foolish and careless decisions. It’s important to know where you’re at and make decisions based on where you’re at in your company’s life cycle. An example of that would be making a big advertising purchase knowing that you don’t even have the inventory to pay that back or making high-level hires knowing that you can’t afford those hires right now and they’re going to be a burden on your business long term. The biggest test for me was the BP oil spill that hit when we first started. At that time, I was young and inexperienced.
It was between 2010 and 2011 when we were just getting things going and we didn’t really have a lot of money. There were about two to three people working at TripShock. The other two people were part-time. I made a decision, and for me being as young as I was and inexperienced, it was a really mature decision. We were in multiple destinations selling tours at the time and I decided to get rid of all the markets other than Destin and Panama City Beach. They’re our legacy ones, the ones we first started with because I noticed that we were never going to sell tours in the other markets. We didn’t have the funding.
I had to look at what I was capable of doing with the resources that I had at my disposal, and I didn’t have the resources to market TripShock nationwide or even region-wide. The company contracted and we let go of some people. Over the next two years, I was able to restart the company from a different angle by thinking smaller and more local, and that was a great decision. If it wasn’t for that move, TripShock might not even exist.
There’s not a whole lot I would do differently because I made the right decision. I would have never grown that fast or tried to grow that fast if I had to do it all over again. I would have kept local, done what I was capable of, and I wouldn’t have stressed myself out. I also would have stayed within the panhandle and made sure we grew there before moving into other destinations.
I wish I knew more about programming. I wish I was more involved with the industry so that I have a better pulse on what’s coming down the pipe.
If you were to go back in time, what piece of advice would you give to your younger self?
I would definitely say be patient and trust people. Lean on people for help, be honest, and wait for that opportunity instead of trying to grow too fast or prove anything. You don’t have to prove anything to anybody. When it comes to being an entrepreneur, I don’t think I could do it any differently. I’m meant for this.
We’re nearly halfway through our interview so it’s a great time to ask how does your business run. What three tools make your business run better?
A good CRM to keep up with customers and their history and details. A good communication program. We use Skype to communicate with all departments. Google Docs We found out about them through previous experience with other businesses, projects, and researching online. When you hire a new employee, a lot of times they bring with them ideas and better ways of doing things. We have a dedicated team to run them. Before using these tools, we were using Microsoft Office.
If we didn’t have these tools, we couldn’t run our business. Things have changed. It’s not like it was years ago when you could use fax machines. You have to use these new tools. That’s just where the technology is going. Tools that I’m interested in exploring are QR codes. I’m interested in seeing what else we could utilize with QR codes now that most phones have their own readers. They’re a game changer and have essentially made your phone into a mobile kiosk.
What do you know now that you wished you had known before?
I wish I knew more about programming. I wish I was more involved with the industry so that I have a better pulse on what’s coming down the pipe.
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What has been your greatest or proudest achievement or moment?
When we first started, I remember the day when we had $3000 in sales. I was so ecstatic, I couldn’t believe it. And now, we do $3,000 in sales in two or three minutes. I’d have to say when we hit $250,000 in one day in sales, that was a big accomplishment.
What future life goals do you want to achieve and why?
I want to have complete financial independence. I want to be able to live without the fear of a medical bill potentially making me broke. I just want to live without the worry about money. With TripShock, I want to keep investing money back into it whether it be hiring more people or improving the software. I feel that if I continue to do that, we’re going to slowly become one of the bigger companies, and once we reach that certain level, then we can focus on profitability. Afterward, I can kind of flip the switch and say now we can work on providing more value to our employees, higher wages, and bigger bonuses because we have reached that plateau as a company
To finish our inspire questions…”We believe that sharing inspiring words can inspire others.” If there was one positive thing you would say to someone to inspire and empower them what would it be and why?
I would definitely say to start small, even as small as focusing on your product or service, on a specific demographic or locality, and be patient and give it time. It’s very hard to build a brand and build a business. It’s very hard to get a sale. It’s hard to get someone to buy a product. Don’t give up and be open to criticism. You are one person. Don’t think everyone is like you. If your product is for people like you, then make sure you’re advertising to that demographic and know that demographic really well. Get feedback and understand who your customer is.
“Thank you it has been great learning more about your founder story and TripShock “
To learn more about TripShock Visit Tripshock.com
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