Application — Growth
Tortuga already has 7,920 reviews at 4.6/5 on its site. That proof is an asset I'd carry into every ad.
Who I am
- Former COO of Tabs. Built its creator program to 100M monthly social impressions, and the paid ad engine alongside it.
- Founded Mainstreet, a consumer home-services platform: a team of 70, $25M raised (Greylock, Khosla, YC, Tim Ferriss). It failed.
- Before that: Quintessential Ventures, an early seat at a high-growth startup, and entrepreneur-in-residence at Prehype.
- I'm moving into growth specifically. The creative and top-of-funnel work is what I want to be doing every day.
What I noticed
- Travel Together Pro 34L is $525.00, struck down from $600.00, while Pro Backpack 34L sits at $300.00. Two similar names with different prices ask a first-time visitor to decode the line.
- Compression Cubes (Set of 2) is $79.00, and its page says "Save $20 when you purchase with a backpack or another accessory." That offer is a ready ad hook.
- Free shipping starts at $95 for US orders, while faster delivery is $30 or $50 flat. Travel Sling costs $95.00, so one accessory alone clears the line.
What I built
What I'd do here
- My KPI: scale ad spend, hold target CAC. Everything else follows, from a $25.00 Travel Pouch to a $525.00 Travel Together Pro 34L.
- Week to week: launching a bunch of different experiments, losers killed early. Packing cubes, hip belts and the Pro 40L each get their own hook.
- Creators: carry-on-only business travelers, long-trip backpackers and budget-flight packers, each showing a Pro 40L packed with Compression Cubes.
- Reporting so you never have to ask. Daily CAC. Weekly what we learned. Monthly cohort payback, split by bundles and single bags.
- Event tracking I'd spec and work through with your team. That part isn't me. Bundle discounts apply at checkout, so those events matter.
Month one
| Metric | Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Creators live | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Creator videos / week | 0 | 14 | 28 | 42 | 56 | 70 |
| Landing pages live | 1 | 3 | 5 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
| New ads / week | 12 | 12 | 12–20 | 12–20 | 20 | 20 |
| Unique experiments | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 6 |
Creators come on two a week, reaching 10 live by week six. Each posts the same number of videos a week, up to 70 at the end. New ads and landing pages follow the creators, and experiments grow from 2 to 6. Proposed.
Creator videos a week = creators live × videos per creator. Week 1: 0 × 7 = 0; Week 2: 2 × 7 = 14; Week 3: 4 × 7 = 28; Week 4: 6 × 7 = 42; Week 5: 8 × 7 = 56; Week 6: 10 × 7 = 70.
How I'd start
- Build a claims sheet from your own pages: compression, hip belt weight and return window, each worded exactly as you publish it.
- Brief the first two creators on the Pro and Lite carry-on story, with one hook per video and one variable per test.
I'd love to chat if this makes sense. Grab a time here.
Danilo