Be an InventHer by Mina Yoo

Author:Mina Yoo
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sasquatch Books
Published: 2019-10-21T16:00:00+00:00

InventHer Profile

Judy Edwards

Squatty Potty

THE POWER OF PR AND POOPING UNICORNS

Judy Edwards was in her sixties when she faced a common problem: constipation. A medical professional advised her to use a stool to raise her knees while on the toilet. It worked, and she started trying to make adjustments to get the stool just right. Soon she had her son and husband working on prototypes, and the Squatty Potty was born.

The first Squatty Potties were wooden and painted in Judy’s garage. Judy gave them out to friends and family for Christmas, with a handout they made about the benefits of pooping in a squatting position with information downloaded from the internet. The gifts were received with laughs and good cheer. About two weeks later the calls started to come in, with the recipients raving about how the product changed their lives. The Edwards family knew they had a hit.

They struggled through their first manufacturing challenge, finding a factory in China, but it was a slow process, as language and cultural barriers kept them from thoroughly explaining the concept to their representative. Eventually they found a native speaker who could explain the squatting concept, and a design was finalized. In a leap of faith, they ordered 20,000 Squatty Potties, which arrived in a rented warehouse in their Utah town. “How in the world are we going to sell these?” Judy thought. A good day saw ten orders come in. But Judy’s son had some marketing savvy—he reached out to health bloggers, offering free Squatty Potties for review. They took him up on it, and blog posts began appearing, singing the praises of the little stool. Orders began rolling in.

Then came the first turning point: a call from The Dr. Oz Show. Judy’s husband, Bill, took the call and assumed it was a prank played by his son. He laughed and said, “Sure, and I’m Barack Obama.” He quickly realized his error. The Squatty Potty was featured on the show. Orders were now pouring in. Soon, another spike in sales hit. They didn’t know why at first, but discovered that the product was discussed on The Howard Stern Show, with sidekick Robin Quivers gushing about it. Sales went through the roof. Other celebrity raves followed, including ones from Sally Field, Bryan Cranston, and Jimmy Kimmel. Apparently everyone really does poop and can use a little help. The Squatty Potty was a bathroom star.

Then came the second turning point: a call from the show Shark Tank and an invitation to pitch it on television, in front of an audience of nearly 5 million people. Within twenty-four hours of the show airing, they had sold $1 million worth of Squatty Potties. At this point, Judy and her family had spent almost no money on marketing—some fortuitous PR and high-profile spots had gotten the word out.

Judy and family were not content to sit back and coast. Now they had some money to work with, so they tackled marketing head-on. Their main challenge was how to talk about pooping without sounding gross.

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