Who is Ryan Maya?

Meet Ryan Maya, the Founder at Beyond Braid!

About Beyond Braid

Beyond Braid is a braided fishing line company that specializes in high-quality fishing accessories. Their flagship products consist of colorful, braided fishing lines that are both thinner and smoother than traditional products, treating users to a better overall experience. 

Ryan’s Journey

Ryan’s entrepreneurial journey began in college. "In college I started dropshipping as my first kind of E- Commerce business model," he recalls. After experimenting with various niches, he found success in the fishing industry, leveraging his personal interest in the hobby. "I tried a bunch of other stuff, but then circled back to fishing because it was just a hobby that I really knew about," Ryan explains.

This experience led to the creation of Beyond Braid, a fishing line brand that has seen significant growth. "Five years later, we've now done over eight figures in lifetime sales. And we are one of the top brands on Amazon for fishing line," Ryan proudly states. The company has expanded its reach, selling in Walmart stores and becoming "the number one brand on TikTok shop for fishing products." 

What excites Ryan about E-Commerce

Ryan attributes much of Beyond Braid's success to his approach to video marketing. He emphasizes consistency and authenticity over production quality: "I think it's the one skill I've developed is selling products through video and making endless amounts of product video and not really carrying on the quality side."He believes in the power of personal connection with customers through these videos. "When they just see me show up, it's like, they're not really buying beyond braid, like they're buying from me," he explains.

His advice for success is straightforward: "Literally show up every day on social media and make videos with your product service or whatever you're selling.”

Ryan contrasts this approach with more expensive strategies, noting, "Some of our most imperfect videos have sold the most product and made the most money... at the same time I've spent $10,000 on professionally made ads that completely flopped." 

Business Growth and Revenue Strategies

Beyond Braid’s approach to customer service has evolved significantly as the company has grown. 

"In the beginning... I didn't know much about customer service... I would always think like they're wrong,"Ryan explains. However, his perspective has shifted dramatically over five years of business experience.

Beyond Braid now emphasizes the importance of customer satisfaction over short-term costs. "Even if the customer happens to be wrong... you just have to kind of suck it up as the brand and try to do your best to smile and make it right for them," he explains. 

This strategy is directly tied to revenue growth through positive reviews and word-of-mouth marketing. Ryan notes, "Bad reviews, whether it's on Amazon, your website, it's right there for everyone to see, and it's just not worth it." He understands that customer experiences extend beyond online reviews: "It's not just the reviews you see online... It's also people word of mouth speaking with their friends." 

This holistic view of customer relations underpins Beyond Braid's growth strategy, recognizing that each interaction can impact broader market perception and, ultimately, sales.

Succeeding Online

Ryan attributes Beyond Braid's growth to effective digital marketing. "Where the business really took off was learning Facebook and Instagram ads. That's code name for learning how to acquire customers profitably online," he explains.

 Ryan emphasizes a holistic approach to marketing spend across platforms, focusing on overall profitability rather than individual channel performance.

He encourages embracing paid advertising despite risks, noting, "There's so many people that are scared to try paid advertising and fear of losing money, but at the same time, you have to look at, okay, what are you missing out on by people not having eyeballs on your brand." This strategy has allowed Beyond Braid to compete with established brands by capitalizing on emerging social media channels they overlooked.

Innovation and Adaptability

Ryan outlines Beyond Braid's growth strategy, focusing on product expansion and team development. "We need to create more products more frequently and we need to hire a team to do so," he explains. Ryan has recently made strategic hires, including a product development manager, to accelerate new product launches.

Emphasizing the direct correlation between product range and revenue in e-commerce, Ryan states, "The more products you have, the more units you're going to sell, the more revenue you're going to make." He believes their marketing approach is solid, with room for refinement. The current focus is on frequent product launches coupled with immediate video content creation and distribution. "Let's launch new products and then make videos for those products and get the videos in front of people," Ryan summarizes, highlighting their agile approach to product marketing.

Ryan’s Advice to Founders

Ryan emphasizes the importance of risk-taking and experimentation in business, drawing inspiration from Shopify's CEO. "The barrier to entry in business is so low and the risk of failure is so low," Ryan paraphrases, highlighting the accessibility of starting a business in today's digital landscape.

Ryan advocates for trying multiple business models and products, stating, "If all 10 of them fail, you only lost your time." He contrasts this approach with the common fear of failure: "So many people are afraid to try different business models, different products. They like to feel comfortable with what they're doing." Ryan believes in perseverance and embracing discomfort, noting, "That's where you kind of find those golden nuggets in your life and in your business."

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