Ep. 154: From Software Developer to Entrepreneur: How Beau Button Co-Built a Gaming Empire That Pays Players Real Cash

Interviews, strategy and advice for building your online business with your host Trudy Rankin.

Summary

Beau Button’s lifelong passion for computers and software naturally led him to the world of gaming. So when a childhood friend suggested they start their own game company, he said yes. That gaming company eventually became Atlas Reality, where gamers can earn cold, hard cash for playing a game that layers virtual real estate over real locations.

Building a business from scratch in the software-as-a-service industry definitely comes with its challenges. Gaming is its own unique space, and the customer base can be a very demanding community. We talked about how Beau and his teammates learned early on how important it is to put the customer experience first.

We also discussed:

What it was like transition to a virtual real estate platform and the concept of virtual real estate
Completely made up virtual environments versus real-world locations
Generating virtual rent from virtual land and the revenue model behind it
How they use the concept of a “treasury” in managing revenue and determining virtual rent levels
How gamers actually earn money
Some of the ideas Beau has for using the game to make it possible for players to gain further education and increase their financial literacy
Future plans for expanding revenue sources and ideas of what the game might look like in the future

If you’re interested in gaming and/or gaming-to-earn or even just what it’s like to build a SaaS (Software as a Service) business, have a listen. Beau has a lot to share.

_____________

Trudy Rankin is the host of the Online Business Launchpad Podcast, Director of West Island Digital and the founder of the Online Business Lift-Off program.

Affiliate Disclaimer: If you click on links on this page and then make a purchase, I may earn a commission (at no cost to you). I am a proud affiliate of these resources because I use them in my own life and business.

The transcript for this episode can be found here.

Resources

Websites: https://www.atlasreality.com/ and https://www.atlasearth.com/

Connect With Beau on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/beaubutton/

Today's Guests

Beau Button

Beau Button is the CTO and co-founder of Atlas Reality, a virtual game that combines real locations with virtual reality.a Beau Button has been actively involved with software development since he was 11 years old. He got his start learning about computers around age 9, digging into the hardware side of things first, and eventually picked up software development at age 11.

Having spent the majority of his career as a serial entrepreneur working in the government space Beau has now transitioned into the mobile gaming space through his company Atlas Reality, Inc.

Beau has become a technology & automation enthusiast, even in his personal life. He spends a majority of his time outside of work building through 3d printing, and is very passionate about hunger/food scarcity, education and veganism.