Perfect picture presentation for pals and family.
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Foldagram is a self-mailing, self-standing picture with a personal message. Users can create their own online, and we make their Foldagram and send it to any address the customer provides.
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Foldagram is one of the featured exhibitors at the DaVinci Inventor Showcase, which takes place on Oct 13, 2012 at the Denver Merchandise Mart. This is your chance to check out Foldagram and many other amazing innovations!
Recently, creator Jordan Bundy took a moment answer some questions about the telegram, photography today and preserving your memories …
What was the defining moment that led you to create this product? What problem does it solve?
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For the longest time, I wanted to find a way to make photo prints special. With other types of art, such as sculptures and paintings, there is a value from the difficulty of producing the work. With photography, it is so simple to make prints, the value is diminished. I was struggling with how to make a print exciting, how to send it effortlessly, how it would be displayed, and all these problems became the solution. An idea for a single unit that addressed all these issues came to me, and after several prototypes became Foldagram. The product and service make it easy to send real mail and photos, to display those pictures without magnets or frames, and to take communication off of digital networks and into the real world without a hassle.
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After you came up with the idea, how did you size up the market and decide who your customers would be?
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At this stage, a lot of brainstorming has decided who would be interested in this product and service. We looked at the problems we solve, and decided who would most enjoy combining the convenience of the internet with something physical. Then, we contacted people who wrote blogs for the audiences we felt matched. We have had great feedback from busy moms, photographers, military families and church groups.
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How did you go about naming your product?
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The name comes from one of original methods of long-distance communication, the telegram. Just like the telegram, our service makes it easy to make contact with someone far away. Since the beauty of our product is in what it creates when folded, we coined the term “Foldagram.”
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How long did it take you to create you initial prototype, and what problems did you run into along the way?
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The prototype went through many revisions until we found one we liked. We were very concerned about the look of the design, the type of paper, its durability and the quality. The main issue we had early one was with the paper. Certain printers use certain paper, and we found the typical photo printer paper wouldn’t work for Foldagram. In the end, we were able to find a high quality printer that could handle the perfect type of paper.
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Funding a new idea is always tricky. How did you go about lining up the money you needed?
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Our initial round of funding was conducted through Kickstarter, an all or nothing platform that lets people crowd fund for creative projects.
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Is this a product you’d like to produce and sell yourself, or are you wanting to license it to someone else? And if so, who?
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Currently we are producing the Foldagram ourselves, but are entertaining the idea of licensing it to printing companies. For now, we plan to bring it to market ourselves and see where it goes.
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What all channels are you using to market your product?
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We continue to promote Foldagram through blogs and social networks. Several other media outlets have expressed interest in featuring us, but are waiting until we launch. Also, we have made a partnership with a hotel. They will advertise our service to their guests on vacation, and we provide a photo of the hotel as an option. The hotel gets to advertise to whoever receives the Foldagram, and we reach new audiences.
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How many people do you currently have involved in your business?
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Right now, we are a team of two!
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How do you define success? What would hitting a “home run” look like in your mind?
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Hitting a home run for Foldagram would be partnering with a large company to add to their photo products. For example, Six Flags sells photos they take of guests on their roller coasters. One of our big goals is offering Foldagrams, which could be mailed wherever they like. That is more of a long term goal though. Right now, our big focus is on making a splash at the DaVinci Showcase!
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Where do people go to find out more about your product?
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Best place to find out more is http://thefoldagram.com.
