How She Built It: Tiffani Bell of Pencil You In
AUGUST 22, 2011
Tiffani Bell, 26, isn’t your typical Silicon Valley CEO.
She’s a Howard University-trained engineer from North Carolina, who after missing one too many appointments with her hair stylist was inspired to create Pencil You In, a business that streamlines the appointments process for grooming-based business providers.
Fresh off of a stint at
NewMeAccel, the first minority-owned start-up accelerator, Tiffani sat down with the Atlanta Post to discuss how she built her business, the lack of diversity in the technology industry and what it’s like being filmed for the fourth installment of CNN’s Black in America 4.
What is Pencil You In and who is it for?
TB: Pencil You In allows hairstylists, barbers, make-up artists, and nail techs to more efficiently and professionally manage their businesses by accepting appointments online.
What was the inspiration behind your business?
TB: The inspiration for Pencil You In goes back to 2008 during my last semester at Howard University.
I had a full schedule that included classes, presentations and interviews and needed to look presentable at all times. Showing up in a headscarf and track pants was no longer acceptable.
I’d been going to the same hairstylist for 2-3 years, but thanks to my schedule, I was no longer able to see him every two weeks. After an extensive game of phone tag, I’d end up getting appointments at extremely odd times. 7am once. And I figured that since I was a Computer Science major, I could probably write some software that could solve this problem for myself, and others.
What year did you launch Pencil You In?
I threw the first prototype together back in 2008, but didn’t get serious about the app until 2010. Prior to that, it was just another project in a long list of ideas I was tinkering with at the time.
Did you always want to be an entrepreneur?
TB: I’ve always been a person that’s gone against the grain and disagreed with the notion that I had to “get a real job” where somebody else determined what kind of salary I made and what I’d get to work on or think about everyday.
And not to sound greedy or anything, but I knew I wanted to be wealthy and as I got older, it became increasingly obvious that to be wealthy, I’d have to determine my own salary, through entrepreneurship.
Where did you work before launching PYI? When did you quit?
TB: I worked at a government agency as a web developer as I was launching Pencil You In. My replacement was hired the last week of May 2011 and I went on a leave of absence June 3, 2011. My supervisors were well aware of why I was leaving and suggested I take the leave of absence to maintain my benefits for the duration of NewMeAccel.
Full disclosure: One of my supervisors was my uncle who is a founder of the company where I worked.
What was that process of quitting your job like for you mentally?
TB: I’ve never walked away from anything this big before, so even the thought of taking a leave of absence from my job, without pay, was horrible at first. I had to mentally prepare myself to leave a stable, lucrative and easy job for a venture that might not be profitable right away. But I knew that if I dedicated all of my time and effort to Pencil You In, that it would eventually be successful.
How did you fund your business?
TB: So far, Pencil You In has been funded through paychecks from my former job.
What was the biggest obstacle that you’ve had to overcome before, during or after launching Pencil You In?
TB: Time. When I had a day job, I would work on Pencil You In at night, on the weekend and whatever other free time I could get. And now that Pencil You In is my primary focus, time management is even more important because I have to make time to meet with customers, prospective partners, marketing, etc.
How big is your team? Do you have any employees?
TB: Until recently, I’ve been working on Pencil You In by myself. But I’ve just hired an awesome developer who will handle more of the product engineering which will allow me to step away from the computer and focus on other areas of the business. I’ve also brought on an advisor who’s already provided a lot of insight on improving the business model and thoughts about future partnership opportunities.
What are your projected revenues for the year?
TB: I envision hitting the $1 million revenue mark as early as the second half of 2012.
What is the hardest challenge about being the technology industry?
TB: Keeping up! The technology industry is constantly evolving and changing and no two days are the same. You have to stay current on present-day trends and ones that are on the horizon. As a programmer, I keep up with the latest news in app and software development and programming languages, etc.
What advice would you give someone that was interested in staring a technology company?
TB: I would advise that they get into technology because they have a passion for solving complex problems or creating things versus the prospect of earning a lot of money.
You recently participated in a business accelerator for minority-owned start-ups. How was that experience?
TB: Participating in the NewME Accelerator has been absolutely awesome. It was an opportunity to meet like-minded individuals that look like me! I’ve heard arguments for why that shouldn’t matter, but in Silicon Valley it does.
I’ve also been exposed to an awesome group of investors, mentors, and advisors who want to see all of us succeed. They’ve spent a ton of time educating us on the basic skills needed to run a company and how to pitch and speak the language of investors.
On August 4th, we had a demo day at Kapor Capital, where we got the opportunity to pitch our businesses to a room full of investors and media. I was never interested in getting investors, but the NewME experience made me see the value in doing so. After my pitch, I received some interest from an angel investor, which I didn’t expect at all.
Another plus from being in the NewME program was that we had CNN following us around while they were filming for Black in America 4. Getting to interview with Soledad O’Brien and her crew was great.
How did you find out about the NewMeAccel opportunity?
TB: It all goes back to building relationships within your industry, because I found out about the NewME accelerator from its co-founders Angela Benton and Wayne Sutton, both of which I’d kept in touch with over the years.
They both knew that I was working on Pencil You In, so when they were developing the NewME program, they sent me some information to see if I was interested. If I hadn’t already been in their ecosystem, I might not have had an opportunity to join the program.
What do you think contributes to the lack of diversity in Silicon Valley?
TB: Lack of exposure. I didn’t grow up surrounded by computer programmers or anybody with a white collar job, so sometimes, it’s a wonder how I became a programmer. I imagine that it’s the same situation for a lot of other minorities.
Do you have mentors? Who are they and how did you find them?
TB: Prior to the incubator, I did not have any mentors. But now I can count on savvy folks like Angela Benton, Navarrow Wright, Stephen DeBerry, and others. Previously, I was heavily influenced by reading the biographies of successful people like Coco Chanel, Napoleon and John D. Rockefeller.
If you weren’t focused on Pencil You In, what else would you create?
TB: I’ve got a million ideas, but I’d really like to get into software for cars. There’s HUGE potential for software in vehicles beyond just GPS and points of interest. This is just one aspect of what I’m getting at, but user interfaces for even the most expensive cars are primitive and horrible and there’s lots of room for improvement.
What is your ultimate goal?
TB: I want to be able to say that I built meaningful things that had a positive impact on a lot of people.
I’d also like to get into teaching and philanthropy.
Technology has made many people extremely wealthy and it’d be awesome to be able to invest extremely large amounts of money into schools and see a return on investment in the form of a much-improved quality of life wherever those investments are made.
I’d really like to see and be a part of efforts to improve STEM education in the United States–especially in minority communities where kids are more likely to be tracked into coursework that isn’t really college-preparatory (AP and honors classes, etc.).
I think the quality of my education very early life (preschool, even) had a huge effect on my possible career choices and what I’m doing now. So in the end, maybe I’ll become an elementary school teacher so that I can make sure that kids are getting off to a good start.
Sakita Holley is the Founder and CEO of House of Success, a lifestyle brand relations firm in New York. Follow her on Twitter, @MissSuccess.
http://atlantapost.com/2011/08/22/how-she-built-it-tiffani-bell-of-pencil-you-in/
Good stuff.
Motivation!
