Preparing for a Venture Conference

Over the next 2 days I will be heading to Chattanooga for the Tennessee Valley Venture Forum. This will be my 3rd year in a row attending this event and I have been to quite a few in between each. I am beginning to see a pattern in all venture conferences.

Author: J. Christian Phillips

American Venture Magazine

http://www.avce.com/feature_article_more.php?article_id=115

Most venture conferences, Tennessee included, is set up so that investors from throughout the country and entrepreneurs from the area can interact. Ideally the companies would like to walk away from the event with a nice big check. Let me just tell you that investors don’t bring their checkbooks to these events.

Venture investors come to these events to look for a particular type of company, and to see what the region has to offer them. Usually mixed in there are interesting panel discussions on the state of the venture market, or the effects of Sarbanes-Oxley. But many of the investors will tell you they came to see deals.

As an entrepreneur, if you not only give a good presentation, but also hit the particular industry the investor chooses to focus on; you will most likely get a chance to speak face to face.

This is the key to the venture conference. Talking one on one in a casual setting about your experience, and showing off the actual product you are pushing is the way investors begin to feel comfortable.

At the Tennessee event, and with many other similar events, company presenters have the opportunity to set up a booth that will show off their company. It is also a good place to really wow the investors.

This is the shot you have been hoping for, and you had better take advantage of it. You finally have the attention of a potential investor so you had better be ready to shine.

Of course, for me it all kind of runs together after a while. After 10 or so events in a year with 15-30 presenters, companies begin to really blur into each other. The occasions that I really remember a company are not always because of their technology, but more on how they present themselves.

The actual presentation is only a quarter of what you need to focus on. You need to get across why the investor should care enough to come to your booth. That is where the magic happens.

Also, another favorite of mine is the cocktail reception. Sure, there is free booze, but this is also the place where everyone lets there guard down a bit. For entrepreneurs this is the time to get into a conversation with as many investors as possible. The next day you can refer back to conversations, or rib them a bit about their favorite football team’s loss.

Build that comfort, wow them with your booth, and make sure to stay in contact. You may not leave with a check, but you will leave with relationship that will take you to the next step.

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