CopyAI, a company that helps generate options for marketing and blog copies in just a few minutes using AI, raised $13.9M in funding, gained 380,000 users, and made over $2.4M revenue in just 1 year. How did they do it?
Founders Paul Yacoubian and Chris Lu started the SaaS company that uses deep learning and AI tech to generate human-like texts. CopyAI relied heavily on Twitter when they launched - posting latest updates, funding, and achievements. The founders built in public and let their followers know how they were building & growing the company.
Collaborations
They also did collaborations through webinars with content creators such as Pat Flynn, the founder of Smart Passive Income, to gain a portion of their audience.
Community
The founders understood the power of community and grew their social media which allowed them to connect with their core users which are content creators, entrepreneurs, and small business owners.
First Month
During their first month, CopyAI gained 8,118 users and $3,370 in MRR but that was just the beginning.
Funding
In order to improve their software, they raised capital. In March of this year, they raised $2.9M in seed round funding which was led by Craft Ventures, and in October, they raised $11M in series A funding led by Wing Ventures.
In the same month, they announced that they have reached 380,000 users and $2.4M recurring revenue, with over 5,000 paying customers in more than 50 countries.
Building in Public
CopyAI is a perfect example of building in public. Their transparency has turned followers into users and users into fans. Using the method also helped them generate excitement, show authenticity, inspire others, and create a community.
Sources
- Writing helper Copy.ai raises $2.9M in a round led by Craft Ventures
- Building In Public | How Copy AI Grew To $157,000+ MRR In 10 Months
- Copy.ai announces Series A funding
- Writing helper Copy.ai closes on its second funding round this year
By Janet Lee
Janet Lee is an MBA candidate at the UCLA Anderson School of Management on a full-tuition fellowship. She is currently working for TenOneTen Ventures, Visible Hands VC and Tech Coast Angels. Before business school, she started two businesses, a tech-forward real estate brokerage and international trade & logistics company. Her MBA focus is venture capital, for which she was recently awarded the Deutschman Venture Fellowship.
