Thread by @amlewis4

1/ In 1975, Gary Dahl started selling rocks for $4. Six months later, he made $15 million dollars.

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2/ Gary Dahl was employed as an advertising executive in California. He was at a bar with his friends listening to them complain about their pets. He had an idea.

3/ He joked to them that they should have a rock as a pet. He decided to turn that joke into an actual product — "The Pet Rock"

4/ The Pet Rock were smooth stones from Rosarito Beach in Mexico. Each rock came with an instruction manual, straw and breathing hole. The rocks were sold for $4.

5/ He wrote in the marketing that a rock "would not need to be fed, walked, bathed, or groomed, and it would not die, become sick, or be disobedient" The rock was a perfect pet.

6/ Each rock cost one cent while the straws were nearly free. In his first run of the product, he was able to print the instruction manual for free through his job. His biggest expense was die cutting and manufacturing of the boxes.

7/ The instruction manual was titled, "The Care and Training of Your Pet Rock". It included instructions such as properly raising and caring for your pet. It also included how to teach the rock new skills like "sit", "stay" and "roll-over".

8/ He started producing the rocks in April of 1975 and by Christmas of that year, he sold over 1 million rocks. Even though the fad lasted only a year, he sold 1.5 million rocks and raked in $15M in profit.

9/ Sometimes it's not about selling a product, but selling an idea. Gary said, "People are so damn bored, tired of all their problems. This takes them on a fantasy trip — you might say we’ve packaged a sense of humor."

10/ If Gary can sell rocks to people, you can find something to sell too. It might just take a bit of ingenuity and clever marketing.

What is your pet rock?

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