Quote of the Week

Mar 28, 2008 in Quotes

2

"There's no such thing as information overload, there is only bad design."

Edward Tufte

Markets Are Conversations

Mar 27, 2008 in Marketing

1

I did not make this up.  It is the first thesis of the cluetrain manifesto.  Read it.  Understand it.  Deal with it.

And once you accept that, get on THE HUGHTRAIN.

So what's the big deal?  I mean choo choo already.  First, unlike positioning, these are rather new marketing concepts (though cluetrain is now nine years old).  Second, like positioning in the second half of the 20th century, these train theories are forming the basis of marketing thought at the beginning of the 21st century.

And a big BTW.  The statement that "markets are conversations" is quite different from "marketing is a conversation".  What's the difference?  Talking to people at a cocktail party about what kind of car they drive because you need a new only versus reading the BMW 1 ad on the inside cover of WIRED.  What matters most to you?  I submit the two way with people you know that drive BMWs.  It's the same with your customers and potential customers. 

Nobody wants to be sold.  So stop selling and start conversing.  Remember the two ears one mouth thing?  Use that.  To converse.  In English.  Not geek speak.

Conversations are going to happen regardless of if you are working the room with your Grey Goose Red Bull or sitting in the corner nursing your 1964 Bowmore.

You only have one choice.  Go with the clear.

P A R T I C I P A T E.

Startup Council Call

Mar 26, 2008 in Entrepreneurship, Startups

0

Long before I was working at ATDC I was involved in the Startup Council. 

The Startup Council was formed several years ago based on the belief that the next generation of emerging entrepreneurs were on the horizon and these folks could use a little free advice.  The Startup Council enables companies to gain valuable insights into corporate identity, legal issues, marketing strategy, public relations, raising venture capital, and social engagement without commitment or judgment. 

The council meets once a quarter at the offices of Trevelino/Keller.  Each company that participates presents for 10 minutes, conducts Q&A for 15 minutes, and is offered feedback and counsel for 20 minutes.

The next council session will take place on May 7 with slots available from 9am to 3pm.  If you are interesting in participating in the May event you will find the form to apply below.

Start-UpCouncilForm.pdf

You can return it to me or to dtrevelino at trevelinokeller dot com. 

Applications are due by April 1st (no joke).

Seduced

Mar 24, 2008 in Computing

5

I have been.  And I gave in.

I bought a MacBook Air.  Perhaps not the most rational decision in the world.  But Paul Stamatiou (his review) walking into a meeting with one pushed me over the edge.  I purchased a gently used 1.6 GHz model on eBay for less than $1,500.

I asked my readers if I should get a MacBook Pro or the Air when it was launched.  Surprisingly, most of the hackers who responded suggested getting the Macbook.  The plain MacBook sans the Pro.  And it is indeed has the best performance/price ratio.  That would be the most rational choice for many.

But an equal number of people suggested I go with the Air.  My friend Joe Reger opined; "I've seen you out and about with a smaller laptop and have to believe that the portability and form factor is important to you."  Joe knows me well.  What it came down to is I did not want to increase the weight and footprint of what I carry around all the time.  Given that I have a primary machine that I use for the heavy lifting of photo editing and mostly use a laptop for Internet communications, web apps, and Office, the Air has plenty of juice for me.

And on top of that my kids think it's cool.

Quote of the Week

Mar 21, 2008 in Quotes

0

"Fix your toaster."

Seth Godin

VC Confidence Plunges

Mar 20, 2008 in Venture Capital

0

This morning I caught a little story on NPR by John McChesney about venture captial.  Seems that Mark Cannice runs a quarterly confidence survey of SV VCs.  His most recent survey showed confidence plunging to a four year low.

What does that mean?  VCs hunkering down and making sure they have the dry powder to do follow on investments that may not exit quite as quick as they hoped.  Whether that happens or not remains to be seen, I am still seeing healthy investment.  But the piece is worth a listen.

Positioning

Mar 19, 2008 in Marketing

0

Continuing my series of short articles on startup marketing this week I want to talk about positioning (yet another P).  Positioning is a concept in marketing which was first popularized by Al Ries and Jack Trout in "Positioning - The Battle for Your Mind" back in 1981. The basic concept is that any brand/company/product is valued by the perception it carries in a person's mind.  It is something that big tech companies typically do a horrifically bad job of. But to give a few examples in my mind:

Amazon = world's largest online store
Apple = simple design
Blackberry = mobile email
Dell = made to order computers
Flickr = photo sharing
Microsoft = hard to use software
Oracle = databases

Positioning is a bit of an old school concept that still has great utility today in the construct of startup marketing.  Like some more colorful words, positioning it can be used as both a noun and verb. 

Positioning, the noun, is the market's perception of a company and its products.  It is what your competitors, customers, investors, prospects, and vendors perceive about the offering.  The key word here is perceive.

Positioning, the verb, is the act of selecting and emphasizing individual associations that can influence the overall perception.   It is creating, or at least influencing, the noun version of the word.  Positioning is a crucial step and a foundation of any startup marketing strategy.  If you don't do it, your competition will, and in a way that does not put you and your company in the best light.

With that said, I have found that entrepreneurs hate to try and position their companies.  Why you may ask.  Because it forces a niche approach.  A niche approach forces you to decide what you want to be when you grow up.  Entrepreneurs typically don't like to address this because it reduces options.  If you don't reduce options you become Yahoo!.

So, how does one go about the act of positioning.   I have found that a combination of the concepts presented by Geoffrey Moore in Crossing the Chasm (page 161) and Chris Coleman in The Green Banana Papers (page 36) work best. While it takes a lot of research, strategic thought and time (it will take at least 90 days to distill this), simply fill in the blanks or modify to suit your needs.

For         __________________
                (target customer)
             __________________
                (company/product name
is a        __________________
                (category in which you compete)
that        __________________.
                (functional need filled)
Unlike     __________________
                (your primary competitor)
we          __________________.
                (why you are different).

And once you get that down you consistently repeat it.  Consistently repeat it.

Here are a few examples from startups that I have been a part of in the past that I still can recite.

CipherTrust
CipherTrust provides email security solutions for enterprises do they can protect their messaging systems.  Unlike the competition, Ciphertrust offers comprehensive protection designed from the ground up for demanding messaging environments.

MindSpring
For individual consumers who are frustrated with their online experience, MindSpring is a national Internet access service that offers easy to use software, a reliable network that enables customers to connect, and accessible, friendly customer service.  Unlike America Online, we are not trying to be the biggest, we are trying to be the best.

One final important thought.  You can't turn a Chevette into a Corvette via positioning.  The act of positioning has to begin with where your are currently positioned in the market and has some bounds.

With that said, positioning is powerful.  Take the time and thought to do it. 

Entreprenuer Rodeos

Mar 17, 2008 in Entrepreneurship

3

The title is a tribute to being named a member of the "Atlanta Startup Posse" by Jeff Haynie.  If you are an entrepreneur there are a couple of round ups that you might be interested in.

Last week Sanjay Parekh announced Startup Riot.  It's a pitch event focused on getting entrepreneurs in front of potential employees, customers, and investors.  Sounds like a lot of fun so jump on your horse and sign up.

I also got a little pony express delivery from my dear friend Andrew Hyde encouraging me to encourage you to go West young man.  Apply to TechStars.  Since there are no cool summer programs in the Southeast you might as well go enjoy the mountains.  Tell David I sent you.

Giddy up!

Quote of the Week

Mar 14, 2008 in Quotes

0

"Airlines learned their human factors from hospitals."

Michael Nygard

Hat in Hand

Mar 13, 2008 in Personal

2

On Tuesday Stephen Fleming announced on twitter that the Director of ATDC job has been posted.  This led to a small twitter flurry from folks like Sam Bowen, Jeff Haynie, Michael Mealling, and a DM or two suggesting that I am a good candidate for the position.  While I appreciate the support from the entrepreneurial community and have the required skills and experience in the job description, I am not throwing my hat in the ring for consideration.  I feel that with the public show of support I need to let people know why. 

First of all, it's off strategy.  To be clear, as I have stated before, I love my job.  But I am not here to climb the ladder at Georgia Tech.  I am here to find other like thinking entrepreneurs and create/join a startup that I can make go.  Becoming the Director of ATDC is a long-term commitment that takes me away from my goal. 

Second, Haynie is right, I have great passion for technology startups.  I enjoy interacting with and helping entrepreneurs.    Becoming Director of ATDC would most likely reduce the amount of time I can spend on what I most enjoy about my work.

So, I am staying on the sidelines for this one.  I trust Wayne Hodges and the search committee he has assembled will do a bang up job finding the perfect candidate.  While that is taking place I intend to keep doing my part as a Venture Catalyst with the same energy and passion that you have seen over the past 16 months.