How small business CRBN Pickleball used a full-funnel strategy to increase Prime Day sales by 14x

At the height of the COVID-19 outbreak in 2020, Garrett Gosselin lost his job but found a new passion: pickleball. Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in the U.S. with 48.3 million players¹ and 223.5% growth in popularity over the last three years². The sport, which is a cross between table tennis, badminton, and tennis, was invented by three vacationers on Bainbridge Island, near Seattle, in 1965. After discovering the sport, Garrett dedicated himself to playing nearly every day. His relentless commitment quickly propelled him up the ranks, excelling in tournaments nationwide. Always seeking to improve every aspect of his game, Garrett realized he could create a paddle superior to what was available. He designed prototypes with an overseas manufacturer and fast-tracked his first shipment.

“It was love at first touch. With these paddles, we dominated the challenge courts. I quickly sent a few off for USA Pickleball Association approval for tournament use,” reminisced Garrett Gosselin, co-founder of CRBN Pickleball. “Initially, they were just for me and my doubles partner, but soon everyone at our local courts wanted a CRBN paddle too. They saw the control and power we could generate, and the paddles looked sleek and cool.”

Through all those requests, Garrett had his “a-ha” moment and realized he should start a business. He partnered with Kyle Goguen, a childhood friend, engineer, and established entrepreneur, and the rest is history. Garrett led the brand, Kyle led all things marketing and e-commerce, and they built a tight-knit team as they continued to grow.

As a brand created by pickleball players for pickleball players. Establishing and growing a relationship between their brand and consumers was a top priority. Rather than highlighting an individual product or service, they often focus on promoting the entirety of the brand, using their products and services as proof points that support the brand’s promise. They did this through building a Brand Store while leveraging Sponsored Brands and Sponsored Brand videos to stand out in their competitive market.

“Given the huge jump in the popularity of pickleball in the last few years, it’s a hyper-competitive industry. It’s super important to stand out not only by innovation, but also by brand building, especially for all the new customers who are interested in the game,” said Gosselin. “Amazon Ads enables us to showcase our brand and products, highlighting why customers should choose us over our competitors.”

As their popularity grew, the brand’s customer-first approach continued to fuel their innovation. Analysis of keyword results revealed an 80% increase in searches for pickleball-related protective eyewear and the brand decided to create a product to meet their customers’ needs, which led to the birth of the CRBN Pivot Glasses. Ahead of Prime Day 2024, CRBN decided to use this high-traffic time to promote the new product, while refining their ad strategy to maximize its impact.