3 ms·

So, Justin and or YC, maybe another guide and or a short post that would be helpful to entrepreneurs would be... "What to do when tech companies come knocking

So, Justin and or YC, maybe another guide and or a short post that would be helpful to entrepreneurs would be... "What to do when tech companies come knocking at your door?" For example we are a small start-up on the east coast. We have had oodles of tech companies reach out to us. One invited us out west to demo, saying would you let us buy it from you, please come out and demo your tech. Then when we get there they treat us like dirt, bait us for how we accomplished our tech and after we tell them they quickly show us the door. Following that demoralizing event others tech companies reached out asking how we accomplished X. Well after being squashed by one company, we don't take any other companies minor advances seriously. Thus, before spending the thousands of dollars to go out west (filed a provisional & some travel costs) we wish there was a resource to have helped us say ... Umm, no do not go out to the valley they have not offered you a term sheet. We did reach out to our network, it's not too small and those in our network said, "You should pursue it and or sorry I've never been in that situation before."

jmathai 12y ago
TL;DR - if a company is just fishing there's some quick ways to weed them out I think there are ways to vet these opportunities. Some signals for me have been. 1. Is the person reaching out to you a decision maker? 2. Are they willing to sign an mNDA prior to you flying out? 3. Will they invest sufficient time as an indicator of interest? -- #1 is fairly easy by looking people up on linked in. Depending on the situation you want someone in business development (for a partnership) or better yet corporate development (for deals or acquisitions). VPs or C-level folks are good. #2 is harder as it might put off an interested party. It's a bit of chicken and egg. But never hesitate to say in a meeting "I'd love to share more once we've signed an mNDA" -- if that's truly your position. #3 do some video conference calls with them and see who shows up on their side (see #1). The more time (number of people * time) they're investing can indicate their level of interest. If it's just one lone guy you're always dealing with and they're not VP or higher it might not be that great of an opportunity.
- tptacek 12y ago
  My experience is that bizdev people don't have a hard time getting a couple people with multi-word titles into a room for a meeting. Also: those bizdev people who Kan says go around the valley soliciting BS acquisition discussions are also in the room for real acquisitions, so this is a tricky signal to read.
- hard-road 12y ago
  These people were highest up the food chain and are all VPs of various technology departments. Hard to believe they treat the little guy innovator the way they treated us! Treated us like dogs!
  - jmathai 12y ago
    I've been on both sides of the dialog and unfortunately inside of a big company it's about extracting the maximum amount of value. You need to position your company as being the end of that extraction as opposed to a means. When I was the smaller company - the conversations went very differently when we had our incredibly talented BD/sales person on our side included in every step of the process. It seemed to set expectations that we were there to discuss partnership or sales than to simply brainstorm about our technology.
  - hard-road 12y ago
    Hey we knew there was a slim chance they'd buy us, but at least treat the little guy innovator with respect. Not prevent us from demoing our technology when we flew all the way out there to do so. Further, once we tell you how we accomplished something you've didnt figure out yet show us the door and say "The race is on."

jmathai 12y ago

TL;DR - if a company is just fishing there's some quick ways to weed them out I think there are ways to vet these opportunities. Some signals for me have been. 1. Is the person reaching out to you a decision maker? 2. Are they willing to sign an mNDA prior to you flying out? 3. Will they invest sufficient time as an indicator of interest? -- #1 is fairly easy by looking people up on linked in. Depending on the situation you want someone in business development (for a partnership) or better yet corporate development (for deals or acquisitions). VPs or C-level folks are good. #2 is harder as it might put off an interested party. It's a bit of chicken and egg. But never hesitate to say in a meeting "I'd love to share more once we've signed an mNDA" -- if that's truly your position. #3 do some video conference calls with them and see who shows up on their side (see #1). The more time (number of people * time) they're investing can indicate their level of interest. If it's just one lone guy you're always dealing with and they're not VP or higher it might not be that great of an opportunity.

tptacek 12y ago
My experience is that bizdev people don't have a hard time getting a couple people with multi-word titles into a room for a meeting. Also: those bizdev people who Kan says go around the valley soliciting BS acquisition discussions are also in the room for real acquisitions, so this is a tricky signal to read.
hard-road 12y ago
These people were highest up the food chain and are all VPs of various technology departments. Hard to believe they treat the little guy innovator the way they treated us! Treated us like dogs!
- jmathai 12y ago
  I've been on both sides of the dialog and unfortunately inside of a big company it's about extracting the maximum amount of value. You need to position your company as being the end of that extraction as opposed to a means. When I was the smaller company - the conversations went very differently when we had our incredibly talented BD/sales person on our side included in every step of the process. It seemed to set expectations that we were there to discuss partnership or sales than to simply brainstorm about our technology.
- hard-road 12y ago
  Hey we knew there was a slim chance they'd buy us, but at least treat the little guy innovator with respect. Not prevent us from demoing our technology when we flew all the way out there to do so. Further, once we tell you how we accomplished something you've didnt figure out yet show us the door and say "The race is on."