Author: Nicole Glaros

Come find me at SXSW

Nicole Glaros1 Comment
I’m doing lots of fun stuff at SXSW.  Come say hi! 

Friday 3/9 – I’m a judge for the Startup Bus competition, at RackSpace in San Antonio.

 

Friday 3/9 @ 4pm – TechStars Happy Hour and Q&A session – if you have questions about TechStars, come hang out.  I’ll answer them.

 

Friday 3/9 @ 8pm – TechStars Party, but it’s sold out. Sorry!

 

Sunday at 930 – I’m a judge for Hatch

 

And check out more TechStars events… there are lots!

Getting the most out of TechStars For a Day

Nicole Glaros4 Comments
  • TechStars for a Day is today in Boulder.  There are 38 applicants attending and a bunch of mentors and alumni.  Its one of my favorite days of the year, the energy in the room is so thick you can hurt yourself if you bump into it too hard.

I have 3 goals for the day.

1.  Help you assess whether TechStars and the Boulder program are right for you.
2.  Help us assess whether you’re right for the TechStars program.
3.  Teach you something – give you information that can help you with your business.

With the sheer number of people in attendance, here are some tried and true things you can do to get the most out of the day – even if you aren’t attending!

 

  • Watch the events remotely!  We’re live streaming it this year (first time ever in Boulder.).  Watch it at www.TechStars.com/live/
  • Wear your company t-shirt so we can easily identify you.
  • Come armed with questions for mentors – it helps break the ice and should net you some valuable advice.
  • Have your elevator pitch prepared.  An elevator pitch is only TWO sentences (no extraneous punctuation) and tells me what you do and why I should care.
  • Don’t spend too long with any one person.  Get to know as many mentors and alumni as you can.
  • Be open to feedback and advice – don’t bristle if someone tells you your baby is ugly and don’t take it personally.  Listen in earnest, take the feedback as a data point, try to notice trends in the feedback, then think about adjusting as necessary.
  • Have fun!  We have a ton of fun on this day, so should you.  When you’re having fun, it’s contagious, and no one wants to be around a nervous wreck.
Best of luck to all the teams attending today, I can’t wait to meet you.

Tips on getting into Techstars

Nicole Glaros7 Comments
Last night, I spent 3 glorious hours at the Techstars Boulder Happy Hour talking with entrepreneurs about their business ideas.  Most of them were applying to Techstars and just wanted to get on my radar.  Some of them were still trying to figure out if Techstars was right for them.
I spent a lot of time answering the same question; “What’s the secret to getting in?”
As I singularly read each and every application that comes in for the Boulder program, I can honestly say there is no ‘secret’.  But there are definitely some tips that can increase your chances.  I’ll highlight them here for you.
1.  Apply early so I can get to know you!  Don’t wait until you’re prototype is done, or you reach your first major milestone, or whatever the reason you’re waiting to apply.  Mark Suster has a great post on lines, not dots… its this reason that I encourage you to apply early.  Once you apply, I can begin to track your progress, I can see how quickly you can execute, I can get to know you through your application updates or email communications.  I get a much better sense of who you are and what you’re capable of achieving, rather than a simple snapshot at the end of the application cycle.  Furthermore, I guestimate that about 25% of the applications come in the last day.  Sheer math calculations will tell you that I can’t spend as long on those applications compared to the ones that apply early.  So the likelihood of error on my part increases.  Lastly, getting your app in early will make you eligible for a Techstars for a Day invitation.  It’s an awesome one-day mini camp where you’ll meet Techstars mentors, get feedback on your biz, listen to sessions to help you improve your odds for success.  At the end of the day, even if you don’t get into Techstars, this one-day mini-camp will definitely help you and your startup.
2.  Demonstrate rapid execution.  Techstars mantra (and subsequent book) is “Do More, Faster”.  With the program that is only 13 weeks in nature, you have to prove that you can move at lightning speeds.  Apply early, then update your application with major milestones as you hit them, demonstrating your ability to execute like mad.
3.  Short & succinct videos.  You have the opportunity to submit a Business Video and a Team Video with your application.  These don’t need to be highly produced videos (in fact, I’d argue that I’d be left wondering why you spent so much time producing the video and less time coding/getting users/executing…).  Sitting in front of your cell phone video camera works great.  But keep them short.  Like 1 minute or less short (each).  I basically stop watching the video after 1 minute, and if it’s a really long video, I might not watch any of it.  It’s simply a time factor (multiply hundreds, or this year, probably a thousand applications x 2 videos… won’t happen).  For the business video, I love to see a demo.  If you don’t have a prototype yet, then maybe walk me through workflow via drawings.  If none of that is possible, then you can talk about it.  For the team video, show me YOU!  I want to get to know you, who you are, what you’re capable of.  I want to like you, I want to be impressed by you.  I want to see your personalities.  Little tip, for me, humor works wonders…
4.  Nail your 140 character description.  I can’t tell you how many times I read descriptions of the business that say something vague.  Something like “we’re using the web to change people’s physical lives” or “we’re changing the world through social media” or “our mobile application represents a paradigm shift for gaming…”  None of that tells me what you do.  Use the 140 character to tell me exactly what you do.  Not who you are, not what your mission is, but what your product does.  Keep it to 140 characters (writing paragraphs just demonstrates an inability to follow directions).  A well written 140 character description shows me you’ve put time and effort into making your product easy for people to understand and makes me excited to read your application thoroughly.
5.  Get references!  It’s amazing how much a reference can help you.   It demonstrates to me that you know how to get people engaged with your product/idea/biz/you.  One of the single biggest success factors for teams that go through the program is being able to deeply engage mentors, demonstrating you can do that before the program even starts means you’re that much more ahead.  Find local mentors or advisors that can provide a reference on your behalf (this will help you even if you don’t get in, you’ll have a mentor for your company!.)
6.  Don’t skimp on the team section.  Talk about where you went to school.  Talk about any things you’ve built in the past.  Talk about successes you’ve had in the past or leadership roles you’ve had or awards you’ve won.  Provide LinkedIn profiles and GitHub profiles.  We shout from the highest mountain that Techstars invests in teams.  Show me how awesome your team is.
7.  Be concise.  I have to read a massive amount of applications.  Help me help you by writing concise, succinct sections.  Bullet points work great.  Highlight what matters.  I don’t need massive background information on how you came up with the idea, or detailed thoughts around pricing.  Be efficient with your words, it demonstrates a knowledge of your  product/biz/market/self/team/everything and respects my time.
8,  Demonstrate your personality.  At the end of the day, we’re investing in people, and I want to know who’s on the other end of that application.  Don’t be afraid to be a little irreverent, humorous, or entertaining.  Plus it will help me remember your application in a sea of applications…
*New!* 9.  Create a userid/pwrd for me.  This is a small personal thing – but I end up subscribing to 600+ different sites over the course of the application cycle.  And usually when I create an account in your system, it ends up blank (b/c I don’t have friends there yet, or content there yet, or whatever).  Create for me a userid/pwrd test account and have it pre-populated with stuff, so I can see and understand your vision clearly and quickly.
Early application deadline is a mere 2 days away at midnight, 2/26, MST – and will make you eligible for an invitation Techstars for a Day.  If you miss that deadline, get it in as soon as you can!  Final deadline is 3/16.
Looking forward to getting to know you and your startup better!

Welcome Jackson

Nicole Glaros1 Comment
Photo
A much overdue post…
I’m thrilled to introduce you to Jackson, our new son.  He’s 8 weeks old already, but as you can imagine, working + new born + 22 month old daughter creates serious time constraints.

I keep getting asked how labor went.  So here you go (I promise to keep it rated G!).

I went into labor about 630am unsure if I was actually in labor.  I woke Mark up, took a shower, then decided, YUP, I’m in labor!

Mark rushed around the house trying to pack a bag for our daughter Aleka.  We were going to drop her off at daycare, unsure how/when we would get her.  I felt fine during this time, after all it was 22 hours of labor with Aleka, so I wasn’t in a big rush.  But knowing that I REALLY wanted an epidural before the pain was too intense, I tried to hurry us along.

 

We dropped Aleka off and made our way to the hospital.  We arrived around 8am, and I ‘ordered’ my epidural, knowing it would take the anesthesiologist some time to arrive.  Once I got settled into the hospital room, the labor pains started coming pretty fast and furious.  In between contractions I pretty much begged for an epidural, but they had to run some blood tests on me prior so it wasn’t an option yet.  Then all of a sudden, it was time to push, and at 8:49am, Jackson was born.  No time for the epidural, and it happened so fast I can honestly say that while the pain wasn’t LESS than before, it was shorter.  Only 49 minutes from hospital checkin to delivery.  Good thing we didn’t poke around the house or Mark would have delivered the baby in the car!

I was in the hospital 2 days.  Two miserable days.  I was sick and coughing, and let me just say that coughing uses the same muscles as labor.  Every cough was like labor pains all over again.  And I was wearing  a face mask so as not to get baby Jackson or the nurses sick.  Then I got pink-eye.  In BOTH eyes.  So I’m still bleeding from delivery, my eyes are secreting, my noise is running, I’m coughing… and I’m waking up every 2 hours to take a cocktail of pain killers, antibiotics, stool softeners…  And worse thing is that Mark would show up well rested (he went home at night to take care of our daughter).  The nurses were wonderful, probably because I looked so pathetic.  It wasn’t the most fun experience.

Ever since then it’s been a whirlwind.  Jackson is a joy.  I seriously can’t believe he’s ours, that we just had a baby, that I have 2 kids…  time accelerates as you get older.  Or maybe it’s just the sleep deprivation.

 

Need a co-founder?

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The 2nd most frequently asked question I get at TechStars is:  I have a great idea but I really need a co-founder.  Know where I can find one?

Finding a co-founder is like finding a spouse, and your relationship with your co-founder will likely be as complex as the one with your significant other.

Enter Founder Dating, a little event we’re holding in Boulder on Feb 9th.  It’s a place where you can meet other individuals looking to start a company with a co-founder.

You need to register in advance, so RSVP here.  

See you there!

For you local ladies in tech

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My old (uh, meaning longtime, not age) friend Su Hawk has really transformed the local tech association called Colorado Technology Association.  It’s grown rapidly over the last few years and I’m impressed with what she’s done with it.

They have a group called Women In Technology, and its having throwing its’ first ever holiday and benefit party, Thursday, November 3rd, 2011 at 18th Street Atrium, 1621 18th Street, Denver, from 5:30 – 9:00 PM.

WIT is not only a fantastic opportunity to find new mentors and to network, but this holiday party is also a benefit for the Women’s Bean Project (WBP) – a nonprofit organization that helps break the cycle of poverty and unemployment for women in need by teaching job skills and self-sufficiency.  If you’ve never had a WBP soup mix, grab one the next time you’re at the grocery store (in the dried bean section).  They’re REALLY good, super healthy, make for an excellent quick meal, and are a sustainable way for the WBP to keep revenue up and continue supporting at-risk women.

There is a discount for attending the WIT holiday party, so if you’re considering going, reach out to me and I’ll get you details.

Analysis Paralysis

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I spent some time talking to my friend Rich Grote, a local entrepreneur, at TechCocktail in Boulder last night.  He mentioned that they’re struggling with pricing options, something that all entrepreneurs struggle with at some point in their lives.  He started throwing out a bunch of ideas and my head began to swim.  I thought WHOA… too many options!

I always struggle with options.  Give me 3-4 options, but definitely no more than 5 or 6, and I’m happy.  Any more than that and I get analysis paralysis and immediately move on to something else.  My brain has a visceral reaction against too many options, it shuts down.  Call it toddler + new baby + full time job + social life + extended family life brain cram and there just isn’t room in my head to be thinking critically about your product.

Having coffee today with Seth Levine reminded me he has some thoughts on this topic, so I went searching his blog and found this post on pricing tiers which warns of too many pricing tiers.  I did a little more research and learned that there is some science behind this.  Turns out that if you offer a a ton of options, you’ll get a lot of people’s attention, but very few will convert into customers.  If you offer fewer options, (4-6 actually), you’ll get less attention but tons more conversion into paying customers.  In fact, more than 10 TIMES the amount of customers than with too many options.  Melikes, less work for more money.

Interestingly, the magic number is somewhere between 4-6 options.  I vaguely remember something from my psych class in college that says when given a random string of numbers or letters, the brain can only remember about 5 -+ 2 items – somewhere between 3 to 7 items easily.  Which is why you can probably remember the new pin code of your ATM card easier than you can remember your new friend’s phone number (not that you would have to remember that anyway these days).  I wonder if that has anything to do with it.

So, I guess the old adage still holds, true.  Keep it simple, stupid so I can avoid analysis paralysis and actually buy something from you instead of moving on to your competition.