Ask the VC

One of the better VC blogs in my opinion, Ask the VC uses a Q&A format and the VC duo of Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson answer with specifics. As Borat says, "very nice". About Ask the VC: Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson

Brad and Jason have been working together since 2000 when Jason joined Mobius Venture Capital, a venture capital firm that Brad co-founded. They started writing together on Brad's Feld Thoughts blog sometime in 2005 with their Term Sheet Series. After several other series about issues facing venture capital backed companies, Jason and Brad decided to start AsktheVC. Why This Blog? We’ve started this blog to discuss relevant issues in the venture capital and entrepreneurial ecosystem. As you may know, we’ve spent a lot of time over the past three years writing about venture capital and entrepreneurship on Feld Thoughts. We’ve had great feedback regarding our regular posts on matters that effect people in our industry, as well as our blog series on topics such as term sheets, letters of intent, and 409A. We've also had a lot of fun and learned a lot from the questions that people have asked us. We've decided to put more focused effort into regularly addressing these questions. Brad will still blog about venture capital and entrepreneurship, and we'll occasionally cross-post between blogs, but we'll begin to use AsktheVC to address the steady stream of questions we are now getting on a daily basis from entrepreneurs around the world. You can expect the same thoughtful and honest opinions that we’ve always had. We will also tackle bigger issues in a larger format than a single post. Our goal is that this blog becomes a broadly used informational source on venture capital and entrepreneurship. To achieve this, we welcome (and encourage) questions from anyone reading this and hope that "meaty" questions lead to better and more relevant content for our readers.

Certainly a nice thought and something of a step-up from the typical generalist or self-specific VC blogs.

From VC 101 Wiki: 75 blog posts to read before talking to a VC. Last night I spent three hours reading every word of ever post. Some were better than others but that's to be expected. Of special note: Devin Thorpe (Mid-Market Maven) wrote three or more of the posts as I remember. Devin seems to be extremely well respected. I had to approach him a the last Funding Universe event with my tail between my legs since I stood him up for a breakfast . He was completely gracious though. So Devin, if you happen to stumble in here... sorry again.

First, I love the boys over at Connect Magazine so don't take this the wrong way. The Connect Network Blog needs some serious work. I blog for Small Business Branding which is exactly the same idea; get a bunch of guys to provide the content and build traffic. Good idea. But Small Business Branding has a much better setup than Connect. (I emailed Colin about this already.) Take a look at them both and you'll immediately see what I mean. Author pages, images, yada... Still, I'm going to start posting there too. I can't be worse than Colins test posts. My guess is that Connect is going to make some improvements. And why is no one posting any images on Connect? Type only goes so far.

For the first time in history annual online spending topped $100 billion. Online shopping during the holidays rose 26 percent over sales during the same period in 2005. And the Monday after Thanksgiving this year was nothing unusual, as it was surpassed on 11 other days before the end of the year by greater sales.

If you still feel that those who shop online are high-tech, geeky people in the minority, think again. The Internet has become what all the geeks in 1999 wanted it to be and what gullible venture capitalists thought it already was.

On January 18th yours truly will be giving a 20-minute presentation entitled “10 Search Engine Optimization Tips Anyone Can Implement” at the Corporate Alliance Hub in Provo, Utah. Einstein’s Bagels will be served at 9:00 a.m., and the presentation will begin at 9:15. A question and answer session will follow the presentation.

There is no need to RSVP, just show up if you’re interested.

If you would like to volunteer your website to be used for an analysis case study during the presentation, please contact Jeff Moss at jmoss@mwi.com or 801.495.4110.

Last August I made it my goal to blog everyday. It’s been a lot of fun but frankly I think I need to dramatically cut back on the amount of posting I do for several reasons. First, I’m crazy busy and need to dedicate more time to work. Second, I’m picking up blogging work at Podango. Third, I’m starting to podcast and I already have syndication lined up - that’s going to take a lot of time. Forth, I usually blog at night and I would prefer to be spending that time reading, swimming at the gym, sleeping, hanging out with my wife or watching Battlestar Galactica. Fifth, I’m tired of people whining about what I write. Sixth, Its not healthy to spend so much time on a computer. Seventh…well that’s enough good reasons.   

In case you are scratching your head right now, I’ve assembled some answers to your potential questions.

Did you say your not blogging anymore?

NO. I only said I was cutting back for the above reasons. However, if you can do it, I’d encourage you to blog daily.

What will you be blogging about in future posts?

Mainly entrepreneurship for reasons I’ll discuss in future posts. 

What’s the URL for the Podango Blog?

http://podango.com/blog/. I’ll probably be blogging every day or every other day here.    

After Seth’s reply, do you still think bloggers should have comments on their blogs?

Yes, and let me take this opportunity to tell you that I am reinstating approving comments before they post.

Where and when can I find your upcoming podcast?

Here on my blog, at Podango, Rocky Mountain Voices, iTunes and hopefully Podtech.net (I’m working on a couple of other places as well). You should see the first podcast in the next two to three weeks. The first podcasts are going into production next week.

What’s your podcast going to be about?

Same stuff I talk about here but someone else will do most of the talking.

Do you seriously watch Battlestar Galactica?

Yes - I think its the smartest show on TV in years. I love sci-fi and political drama. BSG delivers both better than any TV show I’ve seen.  Besides The Office it’s all I ever really watch anymore. Plus, who doesn’t like hot robot girls?

What are you currently reading?

A weird churchy book called Hiding in Plain Sight. I’ve got China, Inc., The Naked Communist and a book on Mitt Romney up next. 

So check back once or twice a week and you might find something new - maybe a cool podcast or two.

Out.

I have a very good friend who works in biz dev at a well known Internet company in Utah. This person is someone I highly regard. He told me today that he is thinking of jumping his current ship for something new.

Is you company looking for a very highly qualified VP of biz dev? If so, I’d like to match you up with this person. Please send me an email at ctknud “at” gmail dotcom if you are interested.

My first day back from the holiday break is usually an exercise in organizing files, deleting old e-mails and thumbing through unread trade publications. However, yesterday was different. I’m not sure if it a sign the economy is strong, the fruits of my firm’s marketing efforts, or that prospective clients are especially ambitious in 2007. It’s probably a combination of all three.  
 

I received at least a half-dozen new business inquiries yesterday, the same number my company typically receives in a month. This is significant, not only because Jan. 2 is usually a slow day, but also because my business relies heavily on leads from word of mouth referrals and testimonials. We have found traditional advertising doesn’t always work on its own and that it must be complimented through other efforts.
 

So why is this significant and how is this applicable to your business? First, let me provide a brief introduction because this is my first entry. We, my colleague Aubrey Cichelli and I, will be contributing to this blog weekly, examining issues related to public relations and marketing and providing insight and ideas that we believe can make a difference for your organization. I am co-owner of The Intrepid Group, which is the second largest standalone public relations and marketing agency in Utah, and Aubrey is a senior communication executive. We have experience working with organizations ranging from Fortune 500 companies to start-ups and non profits (more information is available www.intrepidpr.com).
 
Because we are a boutique type agency and our marketing budget is limited, we strive to take advantage of every opportunity to brand our company. It’s also something we work to apply with each of our clients.
  
It may seem random and unlikely but our most important and impactful marketing piece each year is our holiday card. Instead of sending the traditional store bought version or going to the extent of having our company’s logo monogrammed, we go all out with a creative theme, picture and design.
 

This year we modeled the card after the NBC sitcom “The Office,” with the staff dressing up as characters from the popular show. This required lots of planning and a small investment in a good photographer and printer to create a finished product that appropriately represents our brand and creative approach to public relations and marketing (the card is posted at www.intrepidpr.com).
 

The card has received rave reviews from clients, new business prospects, local media, the editor of a prominent national business magazine, and was passed around the corporate suite by the president of a large publicly traded company. We received requests to post the card on our Website so that, in the case of one recipient, “I can send this to my friends so they will understand why I am laughing so hard.”  
 

The reason we go to this effort on something as seemingly mundane as a holiday card is because we recognize the importance of taking every available opportunity to brand ourselves and differentiate ourselves from its competitors. Many companies tout their creativity, and talk big about their capabilities, but fail to demonstrate these characteristics when it matters the most.
 

Stop and think about your company. What differentiates you? What characteristics do you and your organization embody? What do you want your key publics – shareholders, employees, clients, consumers, etc – to think and believe about your company? And then examine every piece of external communication, from e-mails to memos to advertisements to holiday cards, and evaluate whether or not it demonstrates those characteristics. Are you really taking advantage of every available opportunity to brand yourself?
 

If not, perhaps 2007 is the year to start.

Whenever there is an industry that is new and little understood by its target market there is ample opportunity for scoundrels to make money ripping people off. Since I manage a Utah SEO firm and pride myself on providing a service to our clients that delivers real value, I get frustrated when I see people who are getting taken advantage of. Sometimes they get sucked in by low prices that I know can’t possibly support a high-quality service, and other times they get sucked into paying more than they need to for high-quality SEO services, and yet they’re still not getting anything of value. I don’t mind losing a client to a competing firm if that firm is delivering a good service, but I hate to lose business when I know the client is being taken for a ride. So here are my tips for knowing whether an SEO company or professional you’re working with is ripping you off, or whether a firm that’s pitching you is going to rip you off. Some of this content is repurposed from a past post on my personal blog about how SEO professionals trick you.

How to Tell if Your Current SEO Firm is Ripping You Off

No analytics installed. One of the first things a competent SEO company or SEO professional should do is configure a website analytics package for your site. While you can pay for sophisticated analytics packages, most companies can do just fine with a free version of Google Analytics. This type of package gives you all sorts of information, including total visitors to your site, which pages those visitors went to, how long they stayed on each page, how those visitors found your website, what keywords they used in search engines to find your site, etc. If you’re paying somebody to do SEO for you and they don’t have some sort of analytics package installed I would question whether they have any clue what they’re doing with SEO. This is basic stuff.

No monthly reports. I’m surprised how often we visit with potential clients who are already working with another firm and they tell us their current firm doesn’t give them any monthly reports. Nada. Nothing. Zip. There are four reasons why you wouldn’t get monthly reports from your SEO firm; they’re extremely lazy, they forgot, they don’t know what they’re doing, or they don’t want you to see what’s in those reports.

You don’t know what they’re doing. Not only do a lot of SEO clients not get formal reports on what their firm is doing for them, but they don’t have any clue what the firm is doing. It’s interesting to watch the awareness spread over a client’s face as they realize they’re paying somebody $2,000 per month and they don’t have any idea what they’re getting for it. Of course if they’re sending you reports and giving you updates but you never read them that’s another matter.

You can’t get a hold of them easily. No reports and you don’t know what they’re doing, so what do you do? You send an email but get no response. You call, but nobody answers nor returns your voicemail. You try for three months and finally you get a hold of your SEO firm, at which point you still struggle to get them to tell you what they’re doing or to get a report out of them. If the three above things have happened to you stop sending the firm money, ask for your money back, and if they refuse threaten them with a lawsuit.

Keywords that don’t matter. We recently met with a potential client whose SEO firm came up with 20,000 keywords for them. The firm said they were going to use all those as a starting point and narrow it down. Gee, sounds like a great way to stretch out a relationship. “Sorry, I know we’re six months into your SEO campaign and you’re not seeing an increase in sales, but we’re making some really good progress on figuring out what keywords are going to work for you. We’re down from 20,000 to only 5,000 now.” A good SEO firm/professional should be able to figure out 100 keywords that are going to be good for you in the first month and narrow it down to 5-10 keywords that are pure gold within 3-4 months. The exception is online retailers who sell thousands of products and therefore have thousands of keywords to focus on. That wasn’t the case in the above example.

A focus on rankings and traffic. But wait, aren’t rankings and traffic what SEO is all about? No, it’s only part of the equation. An SEO firm may be giving you reports, which is a good thing, but if all they’re showing you are great rankings and great traffic then part of the equation is missing, and that’s results.

You aren’t seeing any results. All else aside, all that matters is results. If you’re a law firm that means new clients. If you’re a university that means more students. If you’re a retailer that means more sales. Or you might define results as leads, brand awareness, and perhaps you really are satisfied with just rankings or traffic. Whatever, the case, you should define the results you want and if you’re not getting them, at least talk it over with the SEO firm you’re working with.

How to Tell if an SEO Company is Going to Rip You Off Before it Happens

First off you can quiz them on all of the above. Do they provide monthly reports? Will they install an analytics package if you don’t already have one? Then watch out for these items below.

The long term commitment. If a company wants you to sign a multi-month commitment ask them why and get an explanation that satisfies you. Personally, I don’t think there are many cases where a long-term commitment makes sense. If an SEO firm is worth what you’re paying, then you’ll keep paying them. If they aren’t, then you shouldn’t be locked into another 8 months with them or a buyout clause.

You don’t understand what they’re saying. SEO can be detailed and complex, but a good SEO firm should be able to explain it to you in terms that make sense. If they talk for 45 minutes and at the end you think “I have absolutely no idea what they just said” then they might just have trouble communicating effectively, but they may be trying to pull a fast one on you.

A bad feeling in your gut. Trust your instincts. If an SEO firm or professional gives you a bad feeling, that might be your brain subconsciously picking up on details your conscious mind is missing. The same deal they’re offering you today will be available tomorrow. Don’t respond to pressure. Take the time you need to make the right decision.

The scandal stems from an article in CNET that quoted an anonymous source that could have only come from an HP executive. HP chairwoman, Patricia Dunn, wanted to know who it was, and then implemented the now infamous data-mining spying campaign by hiring a team of security experts to spy on 10 directors, the media and other influencers. Obviously, PR did not have a seat at the table when Dunn made this decision (not sure if anyone did but Dunn). What PR executive would agree to spy on journalists?

Even now, HP’s PR response has been minimal. While they took the step to create a CE & CO (Chief Ethics and Compliance Officer), which I admit is an interesting move, it’s mostly a symbolic move, not a tactical one. HP PR needs to insert itself upstream in the decision making process.

Jon Harmon, in his “Force for Good” blog, criticized HP’s Engelina Jaspers, whose responsibilities include corporate PR, for her lack of action. In response, HP’s Bob Sherbin commented on the blog, clarifying Jaspers’ role as responsible for corporate marketing within the Americas region and outside of corporate reputation management. However, Sherbin still did not comment on Harmon’s ultimate question: where was HP’s PR executive during the blotched decision making process?

In addition to regaining trust in the eyes of the public, HP has quite a job to do internally. According to Cindy Olmstead, CEO of TrustWorks Group and a recognized expert on building corporate trust within Fortune 100 companies, HP must do the following to regain the trust of its employees:

1- Admit they did wrong, give accurate information regarding what happened.
2- Build communication by creating two-way conversations, including feedback sessions and brownbag lunches with executives (which HP already made famous).
3- Implement the changes, follow up and continue to listen.
4- Review and practice their company values!

HP has a tradition of business ethics, so I hope they can regain the trust of its publics and its employees. For this to happen, PR must play a critical role.