Matt Payne is the founder of KetoCoach and FastCoach. He likes to call himself an entrepreneur, but really he spends most of his days wondering when people will figure out that he’s not. He’s also the kind of guy who says “you too” when the gate agent tells him to “have a great flight.”
Having lived in China and worked as a writer for The Wall Street Journal, Matt is fluent in Mandarin Chinese. After leaving journalism, Matt put his Mandarin skills to use in the medical device industry and eventually overseeing distribution channels for Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Australia. Matt founded KetoCoach in 2018. To date, KetoCoach and FastCoach have a combined 70,000 users, and FastCoach was featured as one of the top 150 apps in the App Store.
Matt lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and is the father of two kids who he say’s “are way more photogenic than I am.” He enjoys fishing, traveling, and starting projects that he doesn’t finish.
What is KetoCoach all about?
KetoCoach is about helping people manage their diet by providing quantifiable feedback for their progress. In general, KetoCoach is all about making a keto diet accessible and manageable. Our FastCoach app also works to make dieting easier by providing a platform with community support that makes it easier to stay on track and achieve your goals.
FastCoach users track four key quantitative and qualitative biomarkers including energy levels, glucose levels, ketone levels and fasting time. Depending on the challenge a user selects, they will track these biomarkers to learn more about their body’s response to their diet. Joining FastCoach challenges provides users with a supportive community to stay encouraged and accountable. And people love sharing progress with the community.
Tell us a little bit about your background and how you started your company?
I studied Chinese and economics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After graduating, I spent 8 years working in the medical device field in Africa, Asia, and Europe. While working with medical devices, I started the ketogenic diet and at the time there was not a lot of information on how to make sure you’re in ketosis. After a lot of searching, I found it frustrating that the only way to test if you were in ketosis or not was to buy a meter from a multibillion-dollar pharmaceutical company that cost over 2 dollars per test. I felt there had to be an easier way to test your ketones and to make sure you’re getting the most out of the keto diet without spending a bunch of money. Now, with the understanding of how to safely and effectively develop a medical device, I began the process of building what became KetoCoach in January 2017.
In 2017, I started a journey toward making medical devices more accessible. But what we discovered along the way would lead us to develop a first of its kind health platform built to improve people’s diet journey. In the process, we’ve built an incredible team of like-minded people working together to build an incredible product.
After we received our FDA 510 (K) clearance in 2018, our first meter quickly gained a reputation for its quality and reliability. But ultimately what drove our growth was the incredible people who joined our team. The combination of our product, our team, and our vision drove us to imagine a first of its kind community dieting platform: FastCoach.
What would you say are the top 3 skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur, and why?
Initiative, perseverance, and humility.
Initiative is important in becoming a successful entrepreneur because it is what pushes you to take that very first step. Anyone can have an idea for a product or a business or a service, and quite honestly most people do, but taking the first step is often the most difficult. Unfortunately, it’s difficult for many people to push past and take the initiative to get off of the ground. One of my favorite quotes is a Chinese proverb:
“A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”
Perseverance is pretty straightforward. As an entrepreneur, you’ll face many challenges and obstacles along the way. From rejection to failure, building a business is not necessarily an easy feat. You have to be willing to get back up after you fall down. You can’t let rejection or failure get in the way of accomplishing your vision. Remember why you are setting out on your mission and stay steady in achieving your goal.
Humility is needed because entrepreneurship is a constant learning process. Markets, algorithms, and so many other factors are always changing. To think you’ll have all the answers all the time is foolish and will quickly set you up for failure. Be willing to ask questions and admit when you need help. Then, learn and adapt.
What are your plans for the future, how do you plan to grow this company?
What we’ve learned to do in our business is a process of connecting with people about their health. That process has implications for many- including broader populations trying to manage disease or improve their health. Understanding individual’s health and what they need to be their best selves can be very difficult. The culmination of a lot of the work we’ve been doing recently will be revealed later this year and we’re very excited as we continue to grow as a company. This is all still in the works, so at this time, I cannot say any more right now.
How do you separate yourself from your competitors?
Besides focusing on having a better product, we always try to convey to our customers and followers that we are, in fact, ‘real people.’ I think too many companies try to ‘fake it until you make it.’ In 2021, this mentality is one that’s just a bit outdated. People want to hear your story, they want to hear your struggle, they want to see faces behind the brand. By putting people first, and making sure KetoCoach users know that we are real people, that really care about them, we are able to build a brand that our users can trust. They trust that we care about them, have their best interests in mind, and are working with them on their health journey. Our community drives us. Our energy sustains us.
How do you go about marketing your business, and what has been the most successful form of marketing for you?
We work with thought leaders and influencers primarily. Our influencers cater to our core audience on platforms like TikTok, YouTube, and Instagram. We’ve managed to build a team of over 300 influencers who know us and believe in our product. They know our product works and they want to share it with their followers that are looking for solutions to very similar problems. The most important component to our growth has been being ‘real people,’ and really understanding our team members and the people who support our product. They are our extended family and we care deeply about them.
What is the one thing you wish you knew before starting your business?
Don’t take yourself too seriously. You have to be able to adapt and learn and understand that while you’re growing a business you are also growing as a person and expanding your knowledge.
What three books or courses would you recommend to entrepreneurs?
- The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
- The Jesuit Guide to (Almost) Everything by James Martin SJ
- Hooked: How to Build Habit-Forming Products by Nir Eyal
If you only had $1000 dollars to start a new business, knowing everything you know now, how would you spend it?
Branding. You need to be able to sell your vision. Having consistent branding is critical to getting your business noticed. I would also spend what I could on sales to ensure we have lifted off the ground, even if it’s just a few inches. You have to take action so you can measure the response, adapt, improve- rinse, lather repeat.
What is your favorite quote?
The number one quote that comes to mind involves taking small steps and building simply.
“Complexity is the enemy of execution”
– Tony Robbins.
What’s your best piece of advice for aspiring and new entrepreneurs?
Really try to understand your customer and what they’re missing. By doing this, you are able to nail down the value you can add for them with your product. Understanding what your customer needs will make it easier to take the next logical step in building a product that they want and need. You have to balance analyzing your idea or product with action and execution.
How can we get in touch with you?
You can reach out to me via the FastCoach Instagram page! Drop a comment on one of our photos with any questions!
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