We launched ONTRAPORT the same year Twitter kicked off, the year after Youtube. Unless you were a college student in 2006, we launched before you had a Facebook account. Even before Gmail was open to the public.
Over those intervening years, we’ve (mostly) bootstrapped this company from a team of three in a yurt to over a hundred team members, and well over ten thousand users in 34 countries.
We’ve launched (and later completely rebuilt) a vast software platform, handled nearly a quarter million customer support tickets, sent billions and billions of emails, helped run several eight-figure product launches, generated nearly $40m in revenue, and changed the company name 17 times*. We’ve had the unique opportunity to participate in the birth and growth of Software-as-a-Service and the online marketing software industry.
Most of all, we’ve learned a ton.
We’ve learned how to run an engineering team and build a scalable and stable product, how to grow and manage a complex business, how to build a team and company culture that works, how to support thousands of clients with a just a few reps, how to build a brand that reflects who we are and our commitment to quality, how to put on a major annual live event, how to sell, how to onboard new clients, and so much more.
We’ve also had the incredible opportunity to work closely with thousands of entrepreneurs all over the world. We’ve been inspired, amazed, and motivated by so many of them. And sometimes harassed by a few of them. Yes, that too.
Through it all, we’ve become a much stronger, much more capable company.
Over the next twelve months, we’re going to share some of what we’ve learned over the last decade, capabilities we’ve added, ways that we’ve improved and mistakes we’ve made. We’ll also share stories of some of our earliest clients, some of whom have gone on almost the whole ride with us.
Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours — or about ten years — of hard practice to become an expert at something. I’m not sure we’ll ever feel like we’re all the way there. But one thing is for sure… we’ve come a long way, and we’re pretty proud of what we’ve been able to accomplish, the difference we’re able to make for our clients, and our role in the larger market. And, while this may sound trite, it’s also true: we’ve never been more excited about the future.
Thank you for being a part of this incredible journey; for your support, your encouragement, your ‘constructive criticism,’ and for your continued trust. You, our clients, make it all worthwhile.
*Kidding. Just 3. Or 4.
