2020 and Q1 '21 recap

The Highs

• Successful validation of 3 products that generated revenue. Built 2 of those products:

  • FountainOS: Built. People paid $0.50 for refills to water stations (marketplace transactions).

  • DrinkwareOS: Built. People bought QR water bottle stickers (DTC product).

  • WaterTruckOS: Tap-on-Demand. People bought water refills of reusable jugs with 100% repeat orders (marketplace transactions). Validated (telephone number, paper flyer, Venmo) but have yet to build software MVP.

• Reduced 2020 burn rate to ~$200K, a fraction of previous years. 
  

The Lows

• In March 2020, FountainOS pilots with Seattle and Philadelphia were put on hold due to COVID-19. 

• In March 2020, Foot traffic at airports, Tap's FountainOS go-to-market, dropped 95% overnight. 

  • Foot traffic finally back on the rise in April 2021.

Product

• Relaunched the homepage (Q4 2020).

  • Launched the network analytics page (Q4 2020).

• Launched FountainOS (Q3 '20 - Q1 '21)

  • Stations have a unique webpage, which captures maintenance reports and accepts payments.

  • Stations roll up inside of Venue Pages, ex. LAX (Feb 2021).

    • Broader pilot roll out delayed until post COVID-19 re-openings in May/June.

    • Will build growth mechanisms into the product, e.g. auto-tweet of metrics and emailed reports to the customer service department, to create an inbound sales funnel.

  • Here is a presentation of Tap's go to market roll out of FountainOS at airports for 2021.

• Launched DrinkwareOS (Q4 /Q1)

  • Via a QR sticker or NFC tag, refillers can easily log their hydration, tally their plastic bottles saved, and find water anywhere with a water compass.

• Launched Rewards Program (March 2021).

  • Tap users earn entries to win a prize (e.g. $25 Amazon Gift card) for logging their refills in DrinkwareOS.

  • Organic signups driven through content on Instagram.

  • Additional ways to earn entries will include adding stations, reviewing stations, and paying for refills. 

Commentary:

In 2018 and early 2019, I definitely “got ahead of my skis.” I stepped on the gas on what I thought was product market fit. I got impatient. I ramped marketing spend too early. I was overconfident. I made all the common mistakes that serial founders make, according to NFX. 

By mid 2019 Tap was fully distributed, with a minimal, core team and low burn rate. Tap had 100% continuity of business in 2020 when the pandemic hit, but foot traffic at airports, its go-to-market, dropped 95% overnight. So I went into product building mode for a full year.

Tap’s 2020 spirit animal was the bear. I hibernated (reduced burn) and quarantined in my den (building product and reading water books). After cutting my salary to $0 in June, I was able to bring 2020 burn down to $202K, 1/6th of Tap's first year, while releasing 5x as much software.

The mission of eliminating the single-use plastic water bottle became more essential than ever as the plastic pollution crisis soared in response to COVID-19. My conviction never waivered. In early Sept '20, I closed the remaining friends/family tranche of Tap's seed round and invested $94,000 personally. In 2021, Tap is much less reliant on future dilutive rounds of funding, e.g. $500K lasts 25-30 months at the current burn.

For water to remain a human right for all, it must have a price, and therefore, water stations will become water ATMs (micropayment in return for water) as we move further from a world of water abundance to water scarcity as the result of climate change. Tap is well positioned in 2021 for water fountain & venue re-openings, and beyond as the world catches up with understanding the quality of, the consumption of, and the true cost of its most precious resource.