How Our Solution Was Named The #1 Global Digital Legacy Management Service
This is a follow up story for DGLegacy. If you're interested in reading how they got started, published about 3 years ago, check it out here.
Hello again! Remind us who you are and what business you started.
Hi, my name is Ana Mineva, and I am the co-founder of DGLegacy®. A global digital inheritance service, solving the multi-billion-dollar global problem of unclaimed and abandoned digital and financial assets.
Our flagship product is the digital inheritance service, which connects your beneficiaries with your assets, in case of a fatal event with you.
Unforeseen events such as motor vehicle crashes, poisoning, drowning, and falls can happen to everyone, and DGLegacy is the best helping hand for families in these difficult times. We cannot return the loved one, but at least we can make it very easy for the beneficiaries to locate, access, and ultimately claim the financial and digital assets of the deceased family member.
Financially mindful people fully understand that this is the difference between preserving their loved one's quality of life or dramatically reducing it, which made DGLegacy a favorite digital inheritance and asset protection tool for thousands of people, and their families.
Focus on who your customers are and what their needs are. Understand what problems they are trying to solve and how your products or services can help.
DGLegacy is a digital inheritance and asset protection app that helps any person to protect any asset globally, and make sure their loved ones are secure.
Tell us about what you’ve been up to. Has the business been growing?
Since our previous interview, we have had several occasions to celebrate.
On January 4th, 2022, DGLegacy® received its US trademark registration from the United States Patent and Trademark Office! The process to obtain the registration was long, but enables us to serve our customer’s needs even better, as well as protect our brand and enhance its recognition.
In February 2022, we joined forces with our strategic partner - Plan A, a Sofia-based software development company, on our way to becoming the leading digital inheritance service of the future.
In April 2022, DGLegacy® was named “The Number One Global Digital Legacy Management Service.”
The value that DGLegacy gives to its customers hasn't gone unnoticed.
DGLegacy's users have grown significantly. We have achieved a large increase in revenue, customers, and overall growth.
The MVP version of DGLegacy proved our hypothesis that people are willing to trust, use and pay for the digital inheritance service we were building.
It was time to think about a scalable and much more robust version of DGLegacy.
The next big milestone for us was the day when DGLegacy®’s new logo was revealed.
You are probably asking why? And the true answer is - that the new logo was the first official step down the state road our wish is to provide a more human-centric design and significantly improved user experience, for our customers.
To increase traffic and sales, we have implemented several strategies, such as expanding our social media presence, launching targeted Facebook ads, continuing to optimize our website for SEO, and experimenting with new marketing channels.
We have also launched our new user onboarding journeys that have been well-received by customers.
In addition, we have started using our brand new custom-built CRM system and newsletters to keep our customers up-to-date on our products and services.
We have also been featured in several press articles and industry publications, which has helped to raise our profile and increase our customer base. To keep our existing customers happy, we have been providing exemplary customer service.
Overall, we are very pleased with the progress we have made since our last talk, and we look forward to continuing to grow DGLegacy®.
What have been your biggest challenges in the last year?
One of the biggest challenges we faced in the last year was adapting to the new realities. After Covid, we had to adapt to the war and its consequences on business and world markets. We had to carefully evaluate our priorities and our product roadmap to make sure that we are prepared for emergencies arising from the rapidly changing environment.
On the other hand, as the world has changed, so has the world of search engines and the way people search, has also changed. We had to think about how to better position ourselves in terms of SEO strategy and keywords.
On a personal level, my co-founder and I were involved in a serious car accident that could have killed us. My partner and I are active users of DGLegacy, which gave me peace of mind in the short seconds before the terrible collision. I remember that my last thoughts were "Oh my god - why does this man want to kill us? And “Well, whatever happens to us now, at least we have our DGLegacy, so our family will easily find and locate our assets, which we have worked so hard for.”.
I have to admit that I was in shock at the very beginning and very stressed in the months after. But I have to admit too that, in the moments of weakness, when I feel my “That’s it, I can’t anymore”, this accident remains me that I am here to build DGLegacy, and help other people to have peace of mind, that I had, when it mattered the most.
What have been your biggest lessons learned in the last year?
The last year has been a tremendous learning experience for all of us, and I think that it holds for any startup team. We stayed agile and flexible, by doing things differently, and exploiting the creativity of the team.
We made mistakes, such as not being able to capitalize on certain opportunities quickly enough, and missing out on some other chances. We had to deprioritize and delay the implementation of certain product features, such as the Digital Will, at the expense of others.
On the other hand, we made some great decisions, such as investing our time in working with top US business schools, which powered DGLegacy market research, our digital inheritance market analysis, our customer analysis, target demographics, product positioning, user engagement, and growth strategy, so be able to expand our reach and customer base.
We learned a lot about how to better adapt to the new reality, as well as how to be creative and make the most of our resources while creating a better service and user experience for our customers.
What’s in the plans for the upcoming year, and the next 5 years?
From a business point of view, this year we have planned to actively pursue a VC round to supercharge our growth. This will help us expand our product features, invest in marketing and continue to build our team of seasoned professionals.
From a product point of view, for the upcoming year, we have planned to focus on continuing to build out DGLegacy’s core product offering and expanding DGLegacy’s customer base. As part of the product development, I am very excited to share that, in early 2023, we have planned to launch our mobile app on the Apple store and Google Play.
Simultaneously with that, we have planned to launch DGLegacy’s family account features, as part of the DGLegacy Platinum plan, so that family members can easily collaborate, organize and track family assets.
Additional features, such as cyber protection for financial and digital assets are also actively considered, as part of our 5-year plan and long-term strategy to become the leading provider of digital legacy solutions for individuals, and families worldwide.
Our long-term vision is to transform how individuals, families, and organizations manage their digital legacies. We want to provide a comprehensive suite of tools and services that will allow people to easily manage and protect their digital and financial assets, and to ensure that their loved ones are protected after they're gone. We want to create a secure, efficient, and accessible way to securely protect digital and financial assets and ensure that they are passed on to the right people.
Peace of mind for DGLegacy’s users, their families, and loved ones.
What’s the best thing you read in the last year?
From a professional development perspective, the book that brought me the most value was Product-Led Onboarding by Ramli John and Wes Bush. This book is a valuable guide for any entrepreneur, who wants to learn "How to Turn New Users Into Lifelong Customers." An inspiring and insightful reading.
In terms of personal growth, a book that broadened my horizons was Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi and Tahl Raz. It's a business classic book on the power of relationships, with helpful advice for making connections in the digital world.
I recently discovered two unique books for improving general knowledge: "Prisoners of Geography", and "The Power of Geography", by Tim Marshall. The names of the books are self-explanatory as to what they refer to. I am reading them right now, but I can say that every line is worth reading.
Advice for other entrepreneurs who might be struggling to grow their business?
Focus on who your customers are and what their needs are. Understand what problems they are trying to solve and how your products or services can help.
Take the time to understand how your service or product makes your customers a better version of themselves. Reach out to them to get feedback, or just see how they’re doing.
Invest in marketing and advertising to reach new customers. Experiment with different channels and tactics to find the ones that are most effective for your business. Sometimes the problem of a business is not its product, but the type of customers you are bringing in.
Don’t be afraid to take risks, and make mistakes. Innovate and experiment to find new ways of doing things to help your business grow.
Utilize the resources available to you. Don’t be ashamed to use free and low-cost resources available to entrepreneurs. Allow yourself to take advantage of them and help you succeed.
Are you looking to hire for certain positions right now?
We’ll need to hire for multiple positions after we close our funding round, predominantly in marketing, product, and technology. At this moment we are raising our round and are not looking to hire for certain positions. I hope this will not disappoint potential candidates who share DGLegacy's mission and are willing to contribute their creativity and ideas to the further development of the product and would love to hear their feedback.
Where can we go to learn more?
If you have any questions or comments, drop a comment below!
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Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
Download the report and join our email newsletter packed with business ideas and money-making opportunities, backed by real-life case studies.
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