Local Entrepreneur Takes a Swim in the “Shark Tank”
From “TikTok” to ABC’s “Shark Tank,” Fresno entrepreneur Scotty Trujillo is using social media to build his brand, and it’s all based on the simple task of copy and paste.
Fresno State and Sigma Chi alumnus Scott Trujillo developed a passion for business at the early age of 13.
“I started selling things online. It happened to be laptop computers that were broken, and I was fixing them and selling them on eBay,” said Trujillo. “I just wanted to get a nice Mac laptop for school because I saw everyone else had one, and I knew I needed one of those things.”
Trujillo’s big idea came in 2016 as he sat at his laptop doing the monotonous task of copying and pasting data onto a standard spreadsheet – but the Copy Keyboard didn’t come to creation until 2021.
“I came up with this idea when I was working as an e-commerce manager for a Fresno electronic recyclers business,” said Trujillo. “I was copying and pasting all of these sales into a big old profit loss spreadsheet, and I realized if there was just a copy-and-paste keyboard I could do this twice as fast.”
After several viral videos, 130,000 followers on TikTok, and an appearance on a local news broadcast, Scott knew that prime time was the next step, and that step was a year in the making.
“We’re on the news for a TikTok that I made. Then once I was able to see I could start on the Internet, move my way to the news, I said to myself maybe these Shark Tank dreams, maybe they’re not so crazy after all,” said Trujillo.
It took Trujillo about a year from start to finish to appear on the TV show “Shark Tank.” He submitted an application he found on Google and within a week heard back from the show but didn’t appear before the sharks until 12 months later. Trujillo pitched his product the Copy Keyboard in season 14 of the show asking for $40,000 and 25% of his company.
Have you ever wondered what it’s like being on “Shark Tank?” Trujillo knew the moment he stood in front of the camera and looked each shark in the eye.
“When you look at them and they ask you questions, they’re serious business people that are, number one, there to make money, and number two, yeah maybe a little bit to make good TV,” said Trujillo.
Not getting an offer from the sharks didn’t stop Trujillo. He continues to market and sell the Copy Keyboard and has added two new upgraded designs to his product line.
“I’ll continue to market and sell it; however, I don’t think it’s the end all be all for my career,” said Trujillo. “I’m going to keep going, and now that I’ve been on the “Shark Tank,” I see the possibilities of what could be.”
Scott stays in touch with other shark tankers and is using his experience on the show to encourage other young entrepreneurs.