Conferences, summits, meetups and masterminds.
All things that involve you zipping up a Samsonite, kissing your family goodbye, and investing a few thousand bucks for the chance to connect with your fellow entrepreneur (while perhaps picking up a key insight or two).
And maybe you absolutely thrive at these events.
Or perhaps like so many others you shrink up and do your best to become invisible.
But regardless of where you fall on that spectrum, one thing is absolutely certain.
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Building an audience BEFORE you launch is something that I’ve done for every one of my companies and is a question that I get asked about all of the time.
There’s this misconception that people think that if you can launch a product – then you’re automatically going to have success.
“If you build it, they will come” is NOT true.
Are you familiar with Basecamp (a product from 37signals)?
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Isn’t it annoying that as soon as you finish something, people always want to know “Whats next?
You could’ve just finished climbing a mountain, running your first marathon, or selling your company… and the only thing they want to know is… what’s next?!!
After Clarity got acquired (Dec ’14, but only announced in Feb ’15) I was bombarded with this question everyday.
For me, it was a conscious decision to take some time off.
A whole year.
After hustling back to back for 15 years building 5 companies (2 failures, 3 wins) and having recently become a father of 2 amazing little boys I thought what better time.
About 10 years ago I started organizing Founder Dinners after reading a book called, Never Eat Alone written by an amazing individual, Keith Ferrazzi.
This book set my life on a different path.
Since then, I’ve organized over 300 meals, bringing together close to 1000 entrepreneurs and CEO’s, both at home and everywhere that I’ve traveled.
The power of bringing people together to break bread and have great conversation…
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There are an estimated 49,256 people that move to San Francisco each year. I made that move in September 2008.
To say that it was an easy transition would be a freakin’ lie.
After 3 weeks I hit a wall and almost returned home.
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3 years ago I had the great fortune to be connected with Jeff Rosenthal, one of the co-founders of Summit Series. It changed my life.
It’s events like Summit that reminds me how polarizing passionate individuals are and how they truly posses the power change the world.
Last year during Summit at Sea, Peter Diamandis gave an inspiring talk that ended up getting used in the video below. His words continue to inspire me to think bigger, work on problems that matter, and surround myself with people who share similar beliefs. Hope you enjoy:
From Peter:
“We are living extraordinary times.”
“Where you’re empowered to do whatever you want.”
“We will, you can, change the world and make it a vision of what you want it to be.”
He closed with
“The question is … what are you going to do?”
“Where are you impassioned?”
“What game are you playing?”
“Play it big!”
All the Summiteers are now part of my extended family. Love you guys.
Where will you be July 13th? I’ll be co-hosting the International Startup Festival in Montreal with some of the brightest and smartest minds in the startup world. The startup festival is a two-day conference on the business of startups. It brings together industry veterans and fresh faces, thought leaders and technology giants from around the world, for a series of lean, fast-paced events. It includes startup launches, inspiring keynotes, and deep-dives into hot sectors like mobility, social networking, and gaming.
Phil Telio (Exec. Dir of Startup Festival) and I had a chance to catch up today and talk about why startups need to attend this and what’s to expect (fyi Fireworks!!!).
This event is one of many that are occurring across Canada, and is a big step towards innovation and supporting startups across the country. If you can find me .. beers are on me. Can’t wait to see you all in July!
Yesterday I spent the afternoon at fbFund REV demo day watching 20+ startups pitch to a room of over 100 investors and seasoned entrepreneurs.
What’s interesting is the pattern I started to see emerging. Some of the best startups not only had the strongest pitch, but also had an amazing person selling!
Here’s 5 characteristics I noticed and why I think they’re the most important when pitching your startup.
Have a presence: Believe (internalize) that you’re going to succeed and show the audience how freakin’ excited you are about your solution. Be high energy! (ex: Brad Wolfe opened with a song full out).
Tip: Do 20 pushups before you get up to pitch.
Command the room: Talk loudly, don’t ask if people can hear you. Just get up there and go for it – be focused and stay on topic <- no one-one-one banter with an audience member. (ex: Leah Busque [RunMyErrand] rocked it out standing tall at 5,1′)
Tip: Project your voice as if your talking to people behind the last row in the room.
Solid Eye contact: Scan the room and talk to the audience, not your slides. Be sure to connect, smile / head nob / confirm with attendees (ex: Leila Chirayath Janah [Samasource] did an amazing job scanning, talking and smiling!)
Tip: Take 3 seconds to acknowledge people sitting in the far left and right corners of the room.
Tell a story: Stories are engaging, features aren’t. Explain the problem you’re solving and why you’re solving it (include the “back story”). Also, the user flow is important, however don’t fall into the trap during the demo of explain each field name and button click = super annoying. (ex: Brian Phillips [Thread] did an amazing job connecting his real life story to his startup)
Choose your words carefully: Don’t say things like; potentially, soon, try, we believe, etc (a.ka. debby-downer-words). Sometimes certainty and conviction is the only thing a startup has and your job is to make others feel this. Words are very important.
Do you have any other tips? Please leave a comment – would mean the world.
Overview Video with Mr. 500 Hats (Dave McClure)
Dave McClure – fbFund REV from fbFund REV on Vimeo.
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fbFund REV: “Oh! The Places You’ll Go!”
I just got back from the TechCrunch party at www.lewebparis.com. It sucked. Last night was definitely better (MySpace sponsored). The music was great, the people we’re lively, and everything seemed too click.
That being said, here’s what I’ve learned over the past 2 days by attending LeWeb 08.
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