Today we’d like to introduce you to Raya Jogi.
Hi Raya, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today?
TBM Rentals was born during COVID, when we noticed that not everyone has a reliable hitting partner when they want to get on the court. And for those who don’t, the alternatives of buying your own ball machine or joining a club are often out of reach financially. We saw that problem and decided to do something about it. Our mission became to make tennis more accessible to everyday players who just love the sport. We were young, not even in middle school at the time, but we believed in the mission. Since then, we’ve been steadily growing, expanding to new locations, and finding better ways to serve our community.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
The road here has been anything but straightforward. When we first launched, as practically elementary students, we were overly optimistic. We believed that we could build a website and the customers would follow. Reality hit quickly. After going live, our site traffic was essentially zero. Even typing “TBM Rentals” into Google placed us somewhere on the eighth page of results. We had a lot to learn.
That’s when we learned more about SEO. We discovered that Google needs time and signals to recognize a new website, and there are ways to speed that process up. One of the most effective methods for us was consistently publishing relevant articles on our site, which built up our content and helped Google understand what we were about.
Expanding to California brought its own set of challenges. We essentially had to rebuild our SEO presence from scratch in a new market, which was hard work. We also hit a point where demand outpaced our supply. Our machines were booked out for extended periods and we were turning customers away, which was frustrating. Our solution was to source used machines locally and refurbish them, allowing us to grow our supply of machines at a fraction of the cost of buying new ones.
Each challenge, each new experience, each mistake, pushed us to learn, adapt and improve.
We’ve been impressed with TBM Rentals , but for folks who might not be as familiar, what can you share with them about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
We founded TBM Rentals as kids and we’re still students today. But that never stopped us from building something we’re genuinely proud of. We specialize in local tennis ball machine rentals, giving players of all levels a reliable, affordable way to practice without needing a hitting partner or a club membership.
We’re constantly working to grow and improve while maintaining the quality and personality that defines business. What sets us apart is the local, in-person experience we offer. Customers can meet us directly, communicate with us easily, pick up a machine on their own schedule, and not worry about the small stuff like timing windows or a few stray balls. It’s simple and stress-free by design.
One of the most unexpected and rewarding parts of this whole experience has been the people. Every rental brings someone new. Different stories, different skill levels, different reasons for picking up tennis. Getting to meet so many people through something we built ourselves is something we never really anticipated, and it’s honestly one of our favorite parts of running this business.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
Renting and giving us a review on Google always helps us out! And if you own a ball machine, we are always looking to expand our reach. Just shoot us an email if you would be interested in working together!
Pricing:
- The daily rate of our ball machines are only $20
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.tbmrentals.com/
- Instagram: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083974104053
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100083974104053
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tbm-rentals-47b935247/
- Other: Email: [email protected]
