Jake Bronstein On Buckyballs And What It Takes To Succeed

For an uncomplicated magnetic toy, BuckyBalls have caught a lot of press attention for being one of “the gifts” of this season – even the Wired store is selling it in NYC. We thought we’d talk to Jake Bronstein, the man behind the idea, to see how he made a simple idea a big success.

Buckyballs seem to be the ‘surprise’ hit of the season. Can you describe what they are?

“Buckyballs: The Amazing Magnetic Toy You Can’t Put Down’ is a set of 216, powerful, rare earth magnets that can do just about anything!” That’s the sell line. It’s hard to explain beyond that without seeing them in action, but basically you can make shapes that snap together and around each other in fun ways, or just kneed them in your hand while you do other things.

What makes them so popular.

The videos mesmerize people, but I think the secret is this: Buckyballs are like Bubble Wrap. Really, think about it. Hand anyone bubble wrap and they instantly see the creative potential, they want to make something, and the fun (the love popping it), but at the same time, it has a use. Buckyballs are the same. It’s infinite in it’s possibilities, but also instantly fun with no wrong answer. And you can stick stuff to the fridge. How fun is that?

I think calling it a surprise hit is a mistake. I get a feeling that you worked very very hard at getting this to where it is – for example you came in (uninvited) many months ago to leave buckyballs on the desks of PSFK writers and I assume that you did this at many other blogs and publications. Can you describe the efforts you went to make this a success?

Was I really uninvited or just awkward? Either way, you’re right, a lot of leg work went into making this thing go. But isn’t that always the case? You’ve got to figure most overnight successes take at least 2 years. The Internet was the key though, if we couldn’t get people talking about them (and buying) online, we wouldn’t have the money to make it into a proper retail product. There were a lot of people who went into getting us over that first hump – SwissMiss, Josh Spear, Julia Roy, URLesque, BoingBoing, Presurfer, Geekology, CollegeHumor – but it took a lot of doing to get them to see it. And see it in the right way. Bottom line though: We invested almost no money in it upfront, and because they were just meant to be the first touch point beyond my blog for Zoomdoggle “the world’s first brand built on a platform of fun” we figured there was no failing. Just getting people to blog about Buckyballs – and connect them to the Zoomdoggle name – would be a success regardless of whether or not anyone ever bought them. (NOTE: Craig, my partner, the one who runs the business end of things, would probably argue this pretty hard.)

For someone else out there who thinks they have an idea or product that could be big, what would your advice be?

Just do it. Jump in with two feet. Dial your idea back until it’s so small that it’s really just the essence of what you want to do, and is small enough that you can get started right now without anyone’s permission. If it’s a good idea, you’ll find enough success to push you forward, or will find yourself surrounded by the right types willing to lend a hand. If there’s something wrong, at least you’ll figure out without having to waste a year trying to raise money and convince people to help you first. Hell, maybe you’ll realize it’s not even a project you want to pursue. But the only way to know is to start.

Buckyballs

Thanks Jake!