Northern Lights - Issue 18 - February 2023
NOW THERE’S THREE: ACTIONGLOW BROS PUT THINGS INTO GEAR AWAITING THEIR SHARK TANK PARTNER!
by AMY LANE
Dakota and Garret Porter look forward to Shark Robert Herjavec’s partnership and mentorship.
For the last 11 years, Dakota and Garret Porter have set their sights on action sports enthusiasts, lighting up rides on snow, water and land.
Now, fresh off a successful appearance on the TV show Shark Tank – where they snagged an investment and partner – the young Traverse City inventors of ActionGlow aftermarket LED lighting kits for sports equipment are planning to take their sales pitch on the road, in a cross-country bus tour to sell their patented colorful lighting systems to store owners face-to-face.
It’s the latest out-of-the-box marketing idea for brothers Dakota, 27, and Garret, 24, clients of Venture North Funding & Development who are now entering a new chapter of their business with Shark Tank investor Robert Herjavec as a partner.
The Porters’ Nov. 18 appearance on the ABC show and Herjavec’s $200,000 investment, for 30 percent equity, was a milestone and boost for ActionGlow2, the Porters’ newest version and their entry into retail markets.
“The biggest pivotal moment for our company was getting to ActionGlow2,” CEO Dakota Porter said, but Shark Tank has pushed the lighting systems – now available with a rechargeable battery and in color-changing modes – to the next level.
Branching Out with Robert
The duo see themselves working with Herjavec and his team as they branch into retail, tapping help, knowledge and connections in an area where the brothers have little experience. “We can learn a lot from Robert himself and his team,” Garret Porter, COO, said.
And there’s this: The ability to use the “as seen on Shark Tank” label in marketing. It’s a “stamp of approval” that “just kind of gives us that level of credibility,” Garret Porter said.
It’s also a badge of achievement for entrepreneurs who started in their teens and stuck with their path, proving doubters wrong. Until recently, they’ve hand-assembled all orders and have generated sales with little marketing other than letting their product – which started as “shiny lights on snow boards that no one has seen before” – sell itself, Dakota Porter said. It “is something that other people are going to see and gravitate towards immediately.”
The Porters have worked that eye-catching angle, finding opportunities and watching snowboarders, surfers, skiers and others who use ActionGlow market the product for them.
For example, the Porters have donated ActionGlow to the World Surf League, decking out the professional surfers’ boards with the lighting systems and flying to France to be there for competition and make connections with athletes.
They also send free product to influencers around the world – surfers in Germany, France and Hawaii, bikers in Switzerland, skiers in France, among others – generating boundless social media exposure and followers, for the cost of a lighting system. They currently offer nine different lighting systems: Snowboard, ski, wakesurf, wakeboard, surfboard, stand-up paddleboard, kayak, longboard and bike.
“We’re always thinking outside the box, trying to do interesting things to get our name out there, and have people follow along,” Dakota Porter said.
The colorful custom ActionGlow bus is ready to hit the road for the Porters’ cross-country media/marketing tour.
On the Road with ActionGlow
Now, comes the bus tour. In a 65-passenger school bus they’ve converted into a touring home, emblazoned on the outside with colorful action-sports murals, the brothers plan to travel the country, meeting up with small surf, bike and snowboard shop owners to sell them on ActionGlow.
“When we stop at these boutique shops…we want to create a personal connection with the owner of that store” – get to know owners and their business and make an impression via the brothers’ product and story, Garret Porter said. That unfolding story includes filming social media videos at the retail stops, documenting the tour and to be posted on YouTube. “It’s kind of like our plan to win over all these small store owners all over the country and (have them) promote our product to customers for us,” Garret Porter said.
The two anticipate being on the road six months, working much as they do now via computer and cell phone. Order fulfillment will come through a Wisconsin manufacturer retained late last year. That move was another milestone, enabling production levels not possible with hand-assembly and removing an issue that previously led the brothers to shy away from marketing.
“We were scared that if we got a huge influx of orders, we couldn’t handle it,” Garret Porter said. Added Dakota: “At the time, us just focusing on word-of-mouth, was all that we could keep up with. We knew if we deployed marketing tactics, we couldn’t keep up with demand.”
Figuring It Out as They Go
The Porters don’t have a specific tour schedule and hope along the way to also meet up with professional athletes, influencers and entrepreneurs, as well as stop at schools to do presentations. They said if they are able to close their Shark Tank deal before the marketing tour that would be ideal as they “would love” to have Herjavec introduce them to business owners and others around the country. As for how they’ll select retail stops and gauge whether they will bear fruit, they plan to learn as they go.
“That’s going to be part of the fun, that’s going to be the learning experience,” Garret Porter said. “We will get (to know) what’s going to be a lucrative stop, what’s not.
“When we started at 13 and 16, we didn’t know anything. And that’s one of the reasons we’ve been able to make it this far,” he said. “We didn’t have any egos” and were “willing to focus, learn from people.
“It’s the same thing with the road trip. We don’t know, but we’ll figure out as we go.”
The bus tour fits into other 2023 marketing efforts that include a heavy focus on ActionGlow’s social media presence. One challenge the Porters have faced has been to generate enough content that is “trending” with their demographic – action sports enthusiasts between the ages of 15 and 25 – to push on social media channels.
“We see the bus marketing tour coinciding with this perfectly, as there will be no shortage of content to upload/use for paid social media ads,” Garret Porter said. “Through these ads, (Facebook and Instagram) we are able to target specific people, with specific interests, in specific parts of the world. The customization that is available through social media ads is truly remarkable.”
True Determination
At Venture North – where the nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution and President Laura Galbraith have had a longtime relationship with the Porters – Galbraith said she hopes the bus tour introduces the Porters to new clientele, builds their brand outside of northern Michigan, and generates sales.
“I think they can replicate the same excitement and determination that we have experienced in northern Michigan,” Galbraith said. “They have a great product and they excel at selling their brand.”
The brothers were just 15 and 18 when in 2013 they tapped their first business loan from a Venture North predecessor loan program, for equipment, supplies and inventory they needed to ramp up assembly for holiday sales.
In 2016, Venture North supplied a second loan for website redesign and in 2019 and 2022, the Porters received mini grants from a Venture North program that helps loan clients obtain professional services and technical assistance. Late last year, after the Shark Tank episode filmed but before the brothers knew if it would air, they obtained an additional Venture North loan to purchase inventory to meet anticipated demand.
Galbraith said one element that’s helped the Porter brothers be successful and get to where they’re at, is “true determination.” That includes applying to Shark Tank four times, with each application requiring a high level of work and commitment, she said. The Porters’ grassroots marketing has also been a success, Galbraith said.
She added that “the Porter brothers have presented to a multitude of local angel investors, community members and pitch competitions over the past ten years. They are professional, energetic, and memorable. They are beloved by the community.
“Finally, I think they are a great team. They have been able to advance their skillsets to complement one another.”
Dakota and Garret pose with Phill Bourque, the LA-based artist who, along with the Chicago mural/art agency Muros, are responsible for the specialized artwork-emblazoned tour bus.
Help for Entrepreneurs
Galbraith said that when Venture North works with entrepreneurs, marketing assistance is a common request. Business owners want to increase sales, reach new customers, be more visible or meet other goals, and the first question Venture North asks, is their specific plan. “We want to better understand the product, pricing, people, promotion and place,” she said.
Venture North sees a variety of marketing needs in clients and work typically starts with refreshing the marketing plan. The client then might identify ways to implement the plan like rebuilding the website, social media campaigns, direct mail, or search engine optimization.
Clients can tap into an online resource available through Venture North that offers free templates and videos on money, management and marketing, or they might avail themselves of free marketing strategy coaching from Venture North consultants.
To help clients implement strategies, Venture North is growing its pot of mini grant funding and lending capital, Galbraith said. “Our mini grants go up to $2,500 and can pay for website rebuilds, social media campaigns, new logos, it’s really flexible. A mini grant can offer a way for small businesses to secure data, technical resources and tools that help define and reach markets to support things like growth in revenues, improved margins and a better understanding of market appeal by product type.
“Our loan programs provide a flexible, affordable source of capital for projects that exceed the mini grant maximum of $2,500.”
Stay Tuned!
It’s important for businesses to understand their target market and the best marketing channels to reach them, Galbraith said. The Porter brothers, for example, know their target market isn’t necessarily into TV or radio ads; they’re on social media.
“We really like to do just crazy, wacky guerilla marketing tactics that we know fit really well with our demographic,” Dakota Porter said. “The number one thing that we’re focused on is thinking outside the box. Like with the school bus trip.
“We’re anticipating it bringing in a significant number of new customers, followers, people who get to know us on a personal level.”
Amy Lane is a veteran Michigan business reporter whose background includes work with Crain Communications Inc., Crain’s Detroit Business and serving as Capitol correspondent for nearly 25 years. Now a freelance reporter and journalist, Lane’s work has appeared in many publications including Traverse City Business News.
