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Business+Startup 3/27/2013

Business+Startup 3/27/2013

Featuring talks from Eric Friedman, Chris Fralic, Scott Pollack, Wiley Cerilli, Lauryn Ballesteros, Kenny Herman and Anand Chopra-McGowan.

businessplusstartup.com

First Round Capital

March 27, 2013
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  1. eric Friedman Director of Sales and Revenue Operations @EricFriedman Foursquare

    Chris Fralic Partner @chrisfralic First Round Capital
  2. The Art of the Email Introduction 10 Rules for Emailing

    Busy People @chrisfralic chris@firstround.com
  3. Email Is broken It doesn’t scale But we still live

    on it And we have to make the best of it
  4. My Emails SENT per year 0 5000 10000 15000 20000

    2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 ~17,000 ~20% contain “intro”
  5. Before “What to do,” start with The Higher Order Goals:

    To HELP everyone involved To make it EASY To BUILD relationships and reputation along the way
  6. 1) The ASK Get permission Ask how the person helping

    you would like to facilitate the introduction - MAKE IT EASY FOR THEM Some people ask the target for permission first (aka Double Opt In) - but that’s a two step process I prefer...
  7. 2) The SCFE: Self Contained Forwardable Email Send a BRAND

    NEW email that is SELF CONTAINED with a CUSTOM/ RELEVANT SUBJECT and OPENING PARAGRAPH and a specific CALL TO ACTION that can be easily FORWARDED
  8. 3) Make it PERSONAL, do some work and research A

    little bit of research and extra effort go a long way Personalize it, make it sound like it came from a human being - it’s coming from YOUR VOICE. What’s in it for THEM, why should THEY care If you’re asking for 3 intro’s, send 3 separate emails
  9. 4) Getting them to read and act on your email

    Less is more Bold The Ask Underline and Strikeout Hyperlink Multiple fonts = bad Signature is VERY important
  10. 5) Target individually “If you send it to everyone, you

    sent it to no-one” Everyone will assume the other person has it You’re adding work for them to figure it out. Best to send TO one person, and CC others if they need to know.
  11. 6) The Response Wait a day or two for the

    target to respond first When they do, lean in and show you care Respond quickly with suggested times/places to connect
  12. 7) BCC and ACK Might be the three most powerful

    letters in email. On the first reply, the receiver can BCC the originator “thanks for the intro - moving to BCC to save your inbox” Beware BCC’s of the FYI category - Forward instead ACK as in the original modem response: acknowledge “On it” “Got it”
  13. 8) CLOSE THE LOOP A short, even Twitter size 140

    character follow up to the original introduction with what resulted or where things stand can make a world of difference it’s feedback to all parties involved
  14. 9) Follow Up, Don’t Pester The best approach is to

    follow up once (usually) or at most twice (sometimes) in a reasonable period of time. “bumping this up to the top of your email.” “The deadline is on Monday and I wanted to be sure you saw this...” “Make sure this wasn’t stuck in your Spam folder...”
  15. 10) The Presumptive Negative “I assume this isn’t a fit....”

    “It seems that First Round is going to pass on my company...” I find it forces and answer at least 50% of the time, and more often than not it’s positive
  16. Thanks! May you have many fruitful introductions and an uncluttered

    inbox... chris@firstround.com @chrisfralic Look for the Forbes article today
  17. Humans like to feel... • In control • Smart •

    Right • Thoughtful • Important • Cool/Modern • Experienced
  18. “You know, I realize this is a big decision to

    work with [a new tech start-up/new technology/speaker/consultant]. It’s going to require an investment of your time and resources and you’re probably considering other [vendors/ companies/etc]. Why don’t you take your time to discuss it over? I really want you to select the right partner.”
  19. “You know, I’m really glad you said that, because if

    you hadn’t, I would be a little hesitant to work with you.”
  20. To be used... • Sparingly • With someone who has

    a big ego and is really confident • Other types don’t react well to this
  21. David + Goliath: A Love Story How Startups Can Partner

    with Big Companies Scott Pollack @slpollack http://www.startofthedeal.com
  22. Celebrity Marriages = Vanity Partnerships Vanity Partnerships: • Doing deals

    > Building your business • Getting into market > Time spent in market • Press release > Partnership agreement The Result: Wasted resources. Burnt bridges. Lost focus. Startup Death. 2 The Result: Wasted resources. Burnt bridges. Lost focus. Startup Death.
  23. The Path to Successful Partnerships A successful partnership requires that

    all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Create a The Startup Perspective: 3 $0 Partner Big Co. $$$ Create a product Enhance our brand Cut costs Reach new customers Enter a new market
  24. How to Partner with a Big Co. Big Companies have

    plenty of options to create growth. Create a The Big Co. Perspective: 4 $$$ Partner You $$$ Create a product Enhance our brand Cut costs Reach new customers Enter a new market
  25. How to Partner with a Big Co. In order to

    partner, you must provide more value than every other option. Create a 5 Or waste a lot of time trying. $$$ Partner You $$$ Create a product Enhance our brand Cut costs Reach new customers Enter a new market
  26. How to Partner with a Big Co. “Partnership is only

    one potential avenue for achieving growth. In order to partner with your startup, you must provide more value 6 you must provide more value than every other option to pursue an opportunity.”
  27. The Path to Successful Partnerships A successful partnership requires that

    all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Communicating Value 2 7 How do you find your way through an organization to show them the potential for your partnership?
  28. The Path to Successful Partnerships A successful partnership requires that

    all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Having Value Communicating Value 1 2 8 What value can I create for my company and another company? How do you find your way through an organization to show them the potential for your partnership?
  29. The Path to Successful Partnerships A successful partnership requires that

    all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Having Value Communicating Value Delivering Value 1 2 3 9 What value can I create for my company and another company? How do you find your way through an organization to show them the potential for your partnership? Can you deliver on the promise of the value in order to keep a deal alive?
  30. The Path to Successful Partnerships A successful partnership requires that

    all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Having Value Communicating Value Delivering Value 1 2 3 10 What value can I create for my company and another company? How do you find your way through an organization to show them the potential for your partnership? Can you deliver on the promise of the value in order to keep a deal alive? What’s in it for [you/them]? Who cares? Is it still worth it?
  31. Phase 1: Having Value A successful partnership requires that all

    sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. Having Value What is the Value Received? 11 Having Value What value can I create for my company and another company? What’s In It For You? • Economic Value • Brand Value • Option Value • Product Value What’s In It For Them? • Economic Value • Brand Value • Option Value • Product Value What value does your company need? Is partnership the best way to create that value?
  32. Phase 2: Communicating the Value Communicating Who Cares? Perceived Value

    = A successful partnership requires that all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. 12 Communicating Value How do you find your way through an organization to show them the potential for your partnership? • What companies need the value you can create? • Where in the organization does your value resonate? • Who is motivated to advocate for you? • How can you establish those relationships now? Organizational Value Individual Value +
  33. Phase 3: Delivering Value Delivering Value Is It Still Worth

    It? A successful partnership requires that all sides feel their contributions are sufficiently rewarded by the value received. 13 Delivering Value Can you deliver on the promise of the value in order to keep a deal alive? • Are we getting what was expected? • Have our priorities changed? • Are we growing together or apart?
  34. Eric Friedman Director of Sales and Revenue Operations @EricFriedman Foursquare

    Wiley Cerilli Vice President & General Manager @WileyCerilli SinglePlatform Kenny Herman EVP, Business Development @KennyHerman SinglePlatform
  35. 2011 2012 Via Sam Rosen on Hashable. A former intern

    of Wiley’s at SeamlessWeb. Original Introduction 11/4/2010
  36. 2011 2012 8/2/2011 Eric came up with the requirements for

    “Menu Providers” the First Turn of the Partnership