Bill Colone is the CEO of Single Pass, is a local Orange County company solving the unique problem physicians face when conducting biopsies. In today’s ‘How Did You Do It?’ We sat down with Bill to learn how he was able to leverage his network to get multiple physicians and strategic companies interested before going to market.
Interviewer (TCA): Stefani Rios
Interviewee (BC): Bill Colone
TCA: What is Singlepass?
BC: Single Pass is an electro-cautery device that effectively seals the biopsy channel by cauterizing the tissue to prevent bleeding. There are millions of biopsy procedures (kidney,liver, lung and breast) performed every year. These patients occasionally have problems with bleeding due to pushing a large hollow needle into the tissue area. Single pass is the only method that lets physicians control the outcome of the procedure when performing a biopsy.
TCA: How Does It Work?
BC: It’s really simple to use and very effective. So physicians do exactly what they normally do when performing a biopsy. They put in a guide needle to the tissue area, remove a tissue sample, and before they pull the guide needle out, they put Single Pass inside theguide needle and push the power button and withdraw it slowly. Under an ultrasound physicians see a beautiful cauterized this is confirming that we have no bleeding and that it is cauterized.
TCA: How were you able to create your customer and potential partner pipeline?
BC: The team and board members have been in this industry for quite some time. As a result we really leverage our network because we know a lot of vascular surgeons and interventional radiologists. We also have 11 physician investors. Some of these investors are also in investment clubs so they just happen to be on call when I’m presenting and usually they end up being part of the due diligence team or end up personally investing. This allows us to maximize our brand awareness as our network begins to spread the word to all the people they know. When you have an amazing solution with clinical data to back it up, the product tends to speak for itself so there is not much marketing needed, especially in an industry that is primarily word of mouth referrals.
TCA: Beyond the product and clinical data it seems that having such a strong network was the secret to your success. How were you able to create and maintain such a robust network?
BC: The network is the most important thing in the universe. My first job out of college week one, my boss said, build relationships. Develop your network. I worked really hard, I went to every meeting and every event. I went to morning events, evening events. Some people would go to their rooms after meetings but I never did. I leverage Linkedin. I post investor updates, press releases, engage with posts or messaging my connections. You have to put in the work to build quality connections. This makes success more tangible whenever you decide to create a product or solution.
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