TSP047 | Jude Robinson – Transcription

Posted by John Livesay in Uncategorized | 0 comments

John:

Welcome to The Successful Pitch podcast. Today’s guest is Jude Robinson. Jude is all about how to master your business story. She said good ideas never come with an agenda. She has an amazing story to share about how her back was up against the wall, and how she figured out a way to turn something that was going down into a huge success. She said, “You know, when you’re networking, don’t be a brain picker or a tire kicker.” I love that. She really talks about don’t let other people’s lack of integrity change who you are. You stay in integrity and who you are, regardless of how other people treat you. When it comes to rejection, she also has some great advice. She said, “Don’t give rejection the attention it seeks. If you have the focus and the passion, you realize that rejection’s just part of the game.” She shows us how to deal with it, how to keep going, and more. Enjoy the episode.

Are you a founder struggling with your investor pitch? Do you need warm introductions to the right investors to get your startup funded? Do you need a funding roadmap to get you there fast? All of this and more can be found in Crack the Funding Code. Judy Robinett, bestselling author of How to Be a Power Connector and on the board of Illuminate Ventures, and I invite you to our free Crack the Funding Code webinar. Simply go to judyrobinett, J-U-D-Y-R-O-B-I-N-E-T-T.com and click on the webinar tab to see how to tap into our network of investors around the world. There’s a link in the show notes as well. You’re only 1 click away from getting funded fast.

Hi and welcome to The Successful Pitch podcast. Today’s guest is Jude Robinson who is a business development, sales and marketing expert. She has such expertise in getting products to market and knowing what startups are going through when it comes to being overwhelmed. I’m going to let her tell us all about herself, her background, and her program, Master Your Business Story. Jude, welcome to the show.

Jude:

Thank you, John. I appreciate being a guest today. I hope that I can provide something valuable and bring possibly a little bit of relief for those who are endeavoring in their business. Keep going. Have some courage.

John:

We love that. What I always like to ask the guests is to take us back to, how did you become interested in this whole concept of getting products to market and helping people who invent things, and all that good stuff? As a young child, were you interested in new inventions, or how did your passion get in this way?

Jude:

I would say as a young child, I was interested in many things, probably shiny objects before they were shiny objects, which is certainly the mark of an entrepreneurial person.

John:

Yes.

Jude:

I was born and raised in Alaska, and had many opportunities to come up with ways to invent things, I guess.

John:

Yes, I…

Jude:

Use my imagination.

John:

I was just in Alaska earlier and went on a glacier helicopter ride and took a dogsled. It’s beautiful, but I imagine you have to really be creative to keep yourself entertained there during the winter months.

Jude:

I’m sure for someone who is new to Alaska in the winter months, they might need to try to be creative to entertain themselves, but because I was born and raised there, it was really a necessity. It’s what I always knew. Being creative, strategizing, figuring things out is truly in my nature. It could have been partly because I was taught that or it might have just been out of the way I was developed environmentally.

John:

Wow. I’m always so fascinated in someone’s story because investors love to know who they’re investing in. You know that great line that we invest in the jockey, not the horse, and we really want to know who the person is that we’re investing in. Someone like you who has such an expertise in encouraging other people and getting products to market, I was guessing there was a really interesting story. Just the fact that you grew up in Alaska as an environment automatically says so many things in my mind about somebody who’s resourceful and hardcore. It’s not like you grew up at the beach and …

Jude:

No.

John:

… had it easy.

Jude:

The thing about the people in Alaska, it is very remote. One of the true life lessons that I have gleaned and been able to distinguish as something that’s very different, when you rely on what somebody says as being what is true, you truly depend on that oftentimes for your very life.

John:

Wow.

Jude:

In the lower 48, that was a lesson that I had an opportunity to learn that many people don’t … They’re not honorable with their word.

John:

Ah, yes.

Jude:

That is an incredibly important piece of my life. I’ll tell you, even though there have been many opportunities to learn that people are not necessarily honorable, it has not made me less honorable.

John:

Aw, how great is that? You have to stay true to your own character, and not be at the whim of other people’s lack of characters influencing yours, right?

Jude:

Absolutely.

John:

I love that so much because a lot of founders will get a yes from investors, and then sometimes investors back out when it’s time to write the check. That founder’s counting on that money for their survival of their company, so what you said about …

Jude:

For their survival of their families.

John:

Yes. That’s so great. All right. That’s a fantastic background. Take us from leaving Alaska and venturing into the lower 48.

Jude:

All right. I went to college at the University of Utah. The reason I chose the University of Utah is because I was traveling through the area in the fall. The year before I went to college, I went with some friends on a trip. We’d driven to California and had a wonderful time. I saw the fall leaves. I’d never seen fall leaves.

John:

Beautiful.

Jude:

The colors, it was stunning. I honestly never thought I’d go further than Seattle. It was so beautiful. I couldn’t believe it. Then there was a lightning storm. Where I was born and raised, I’d never seen lightning. It was so spectacular and scary. The outdoor life in the Rocky Mountains is absolutely beautiful. I was hooked , so I went to the University of Utah. Out of college, I had gotten a job at the phone company, which was what you needed to do at that point. You went and got a job for one of the utilities. Then your retirement would grow and it was the smart and logical thing to do.

I got hired to do this new project launch that they had called mobile phone. There were just a few of us in the United States, I was on the West Coast, and I started working with … I didn’t know who to work with honestly. My father had built roads and bridges in Alaska. They were homesteaders. I was talking to them on the phone one night, and I said, “I don’t know who to talk to. They said I should go to talk to doctors, and I don’t know any doctors.” My dad said, “Who’s their association? Do they have any builders associations?”

I thought of one of the biggest builders that I knew of, and I thought, “Well, where are they getting their information from?” I was afraid to go talk to the association, but I knew the type of people that I had been around as I was growing up and they were really easy to talk to. They were nice people. I went to the association and they said, “Yeah, we’ll just put it in our newsletter that you have this phone. That would be great, because if you’re out on a job, it would be really nice to know, to be able to connect with somebody and say, ‘Hey, we need this.'”

John:

Isn’t it amazing when you go back and you remember a time when all that wasn’t just assumed? I love that …

Jude:

Yes.

John:

… part of your story about you went to work for a big company, a phone company, but you really were an intrepreneur, right? You were starting something new within a big structure, but it’s still very similar to starting your own business. Then this whole thing of getting comfortable with networking and reaching out to people, I love all those kinds of insights. Can you expand on that a little bit, Jude, about any tips you have for people who might be a little uncomfortable going to a Startup Grind meeting or going to some kind of angel conference?

Jude:

Always look up the chain. Don’t look down. When you meet someone, find out how they learned what they know. See if they’ll be generous with their knowledge, and sometimes … Let me see how I can say this, because I definitely don’t want to ever discourage anyone from asking questions, but don’t be a brain picker and do not be a tire kicker.

John:

You know what, we’re going to tweet that out. Don’t be a brain …

Jude:

Picker.

John:

Picker.

Jude:

Or a tire kicker.

John:

That’s great. Love it.

Jude:

Figure out, if you don’t know the intelligent question to ask, say, “I don’t know the intelligent question to ask.” That’s it.

John:

That’s it.

Jude:

“I don’t know what to ask you, and I would love to know your story, but I don’t want to take your time because I know it’s valuable and so is mine.”

John:

Mm-hmm. Great.

Jude:

Always out yourself with exactly where you are. When you go to a conference, think of it like being at a school social for your children or just think of these people as human. If they don’t treat you kindly, you don’t want to be in business with them.

John:

There you go. Nice. That’s such great information. It’s all about our mindset when we walk into a room, and not being intimidated, that who you are is enough and what you have to offer is just as valuable as anybody else, and treating others with respect, and that’s what you get back. That’s my philosophy anyway.

Jude:

It’s a great philosophy. It’s easier said than done when you’re in a space of needing funding and needing money. When you are at a conference, you’re not necessarily receiving income for that. You’re doing it on your own dime. You’ve got bills that need to be paid and dinner that needs to be made and things that need to happen, and you’re there with your … Your outlook is bright, and you’re doing the very best that you can, but there’s a runway that you’re trying to get down. You got to do it quickly.

John:

That goes right into what your whole expertise is, is about mastering your business story. That’s like mastering your pitch, and certainly mastering your business story so that someone … Let’s say you meet someone who is nice and generous, and they say, “Oh, I’m happy to tell you my story and it’s this, this, and this. How can I help you?” Ideally you want to have something ready to say, right?

Jude:

Yes, and the way that I got into working with inventors … When I left the cellular business, I was in my early 30s. I left because of a bad relationship, personal relationship. When I am telling my story of my life, I’m human. I’ve made some really great mistakes, really great decisions. I’ve made a lot of really ridiculous decisions, because I’m 100% human.

The next move that I made in hindsight now was a really great move. The reason that this is important that I say in hindsight when I say this portion, I do not want anybody to have the interpretation that I had a clear plan and I just went after it. I took a major chance, and I began a startup with a contractor connection that I had made and someone that he knew. We started a manufacturing plant. I was sales and marketing. The person that I knew that I met in the contracting industry had lost everything. At the time, he was bankrupt. He’s currently a billionaire, multi-billionaire.

John:

Wow.

Jude:

The other gentleman, he did the operations. I knew nothing about manufacturing. The business partner who was my connection, he knew 1 person that needed this product, lids for his vitamins. The company happened to be Nu Skin that we were going to make lids for their … I had never heard of Nu Skin at the time.

John:

They’re huge. I know I’ve heard of them. Yeah.

Jude:

Yeah, so this was at the beginning.

John:

Right, you never know what the opportunity’s going to be.

Jude:

They weren’t.

John:

Right. Sure.

Jude:

We didn’t know that they were going to be anybody. We didn’t know that we were going to be anybody. I did this startup, and invested all of the money that I had at that time.

John:

Wow, you were committed. You were all in.

Jude:

I was very committed, but I believed it was going to work. I just thought, “Okay, it will work.” Belief is not enough, but I didn’t have children. I was just believing, which can take you … Just that naïve can take you a very long way. When the first order of the lids came off the press and I was like, “Wow, look at this thing go,” and I took it out to my person at Nu Skin, Mr. Tillotson, who is the main owner of Nu Skin, and I said, “Here are the lids.” He said, “Oh, we’ve been buying those for 2 months out of China. We don’t need them.” I suddenly had a $600,000 debt and no income.

John:

Wow.

Jude:

When that happens, our best ideas come when we are absolutely in the worst place. Good ideas and new innovation never occurs with fluorescent lights and an agenda. I was driving back to my manufacturing plant and I had my cellular phone. I said, “What’s plastic? What do we make? Oh my gosh,” and I was holding a Bic pen. I thought, “Well, this is plastic. What’s on this that can be made?” I got the Yellow Pages and started calling everybody I could think of. I just opened it, and I just started calling, and within 3 years, had built a $10 million business.

John:

Wow. I love that so much, because you took what would be a record scraping, you think you’re on this path, you’re making these lids, and then they go, “Oh, we’ve outsourced that. We don’t need them.” We’re going to tweet that line out too. Good ideas never happen with an agenda. That’s…

Jude:

They don’t. They happen when your back is against the wall, and it’s so bad that you simply must …

John:

Figure out a way.

Jude:

… find a way to be creative.

John:

Yup, and that’s the ultimate pivot that’s so important and happens almost in every startup. Investors know this, and that’s why the team is so important so that belief and that strength of I’m not giving up that you have is what you’re able to model for people who engage you to help them with their branding and their strategies. It’s fantastic that you have that real life experience and then have such a huge success. All right.

Jude:

$10 million, again, that is the size of the company. I took the next 3 years and figured out how to be profitable. It doesn’t happen instantly, but what did happen is because I was in such a flat-out holy crap kind of a place, and it was much more than that I assure you but out of respect for the audience, I had an opportunity to practice my story constantly. “Hello, my name is Jude Robinson. I have a huge press. I think you have something plastic. Can we talk? I don’t know if you need what I have. I don’t know if we can do what you have, but I would like to meet you.” I did.

John:

Nice. Direct, authentic.

Jude:

I just did that constantly.

John:

Yup, and I’m sure you might even have a tip or 2 about how to handle rejection, because you, I’m sure, got a lot.

Jude:

I’ll tell you something about rejection. Get used to it, and please don’t give it the attention that it’s trying to gain from you. If you’re not being rejected or you’re pretending like you’re not, then you don’t even know who you really are.

John:

Love it. Don’t give rejection the attention it seeks.

Jude:

No, and …

John:

Because you have to stay focused on what you want, and not get focused on all the nos you’ve gotten, right?

Jude:

Exactly. Just keep your eye, keep that vision, out there, and keep going. Just keep going, because there is no stopping ever. There’s just no stopping. When you think you cannot work any harder, get ready.

John:

Yes. That’s great. That goes back, I think, to why are you doing it in the first place, right? Whether your mission is to make a difference in the world, make the world a better place, make a life for your family, whatever it is, there has to be a why that keeps you going, don’t you think?

Jude:

Yes, but my why at the point that I’d started the manufacturing plant was not a cleansed and corporate or perfect plan. There are so many theories that you can easily become buried. One thing I absolutely love is working hard. It is just in my nature, and I really understand not everybody is like that. I happen to really love working.

John:

I have a hunch that part of that might be from Alaska, because you need to work hard to survive there and thrive. It’s not a place that probably rewards lackadaisical behavior.

Jude:

There’s really no resting, but there’s a result from your hard work.

John:

Yes, and that feels great. That’s your why. Yeah, I totally get it. This is really interesting. Take us up to what you’re doing now with Master Your Business Story, and how do people work with you. Do you have a case study you could share with us?

Jude:

I do. Let me think. The reason that I’m really focusing on this story and what has occurred, when I had my manufacturing plant, what I really needed was for my presses to run. I wanted my presses to run because I wanted to keep my employees. I didn’t want to lay anybody off. I felt that that was something that I was aligned with my clients, my customers, about. If I could help them grow their business, then they would need to order more parts… said, “I want my presses to run. What are you doing in your sales, because I would like to run more of your parts?” I was able to develop something intuitively in understanding how to provide the value but also knowing that I was creating a value, that it was a pass-through. It wasn’t me. It’s pass-through.

John:

Mm-hmm… I like what you’re saying here, Jude. It’s really the big picture. It’s not, “Buy my plastic because I need sales.” It was literally zooming out and seeing the big picture of, “If I make you successful, then you’ll need more of my products, and I’ll be successful,” but you’re seeing it through the lens of the customer. Investors tell me all the time that the people they like to fund are the ones that have empathy for their customers. You are certainly showing us a great example of that.

Jude:

I also really wanted my employees to be employed and to have a life that was satisfying. The where I was is I was really just part of that chain. When I say look up the chain, I’ve been very committed to how I hold my particular link, so that a process can occur and I don’t let either side of the chain down.

John:

Oh, I love that, because a lot of startups, part of their goal and their job is to get the best talent to join their team. If you get someone who has got multiple offers to join your team and believe in your vision, you can’t let them down, just like you can’t let your customers down. That’s such a great image of the chain, and where are you in the chain, and where’s your link, and don’t let that chain drop. I love it. So great.

Jude:

Don’t try to be bigger than a chain. That is all you are.

John:

Yes. Right.

Jude:

Do it. You’re not better. I went to a parent-teacher or an event for my daughter. She’s 15. The teacher was telling the parents … She’s in an AP world history class. The teacher was trying to explain to the parents how amazing all the children are simply for being in that class, that they’re so special. I thought, “These kids aren’t special because they’re taking an AP class. They’re not. They’re going to fail. They’re going to be okay. This is called character.” Build it.

John:

Yes, just because you go to Harvard or Stanford or wherever you go to school, doesn’t guarantee success, right? Yeah.

Jude:

It doesn’t guarantee a human, and we have far too many people who really believe that they’re so very special. They’re just not. My children aren’t special to anybody but me.

John:

That’s great. Then they’re going to be prepared to go out in the world and handle rejection and not take it personally, right?

Jude:

Right.

John:

Exactly.

Jude:

When it comes to a story, the part that feels the most honest, when somebody really understands the story of what they’re doing, it’s because they practiced, because their back is against the wall. When it comes to their pitch, their pitch deck, the portion that you provide, they are going to be funded because it’s more than data. It’s more than possibility. They’ve actually been working with their product. Their patent aside, their first run, their second run, whatever they’ve got as far as their amazing back pocket thing that they think really is going to protect them, is not what’s going to feed their families dinner until they get funded. When they have a story, they’ve been able to go talk to enough people that need to have relief before they receive the widget. Show them how they can receive relief.

One of the products that an inventor came to me, she had an idea for wrapping up Christmas light bulbs. She thought, “It’s going to be so cool. I was trying to wrap up my Christmas light bulbs and things were everywhere. The next year was a mess,” and blah blah blah. When she wanted to create her mold so that she could have this run, she’d spent so much money and so many years getting this patent and doing all of this stuff that was not delivering an easier experience for anybody with Christmas lights. She needed money. She wanted funding so that she could have somebody who would fund this idea, and it’s truly not that interesting. She didn’t have a story. Her story is about organizing. Her market, she can just say, “Who has issues with lights?” Friends, neighbors, whomever she’s talking to, if she can start giving away that, let me help you with your organization, look what I found, this is what I’m trying. Before she goes and makes the thing, she can just give a little tip. She has an opportunity to talk to 100 people.

John:

Mm-hmm… Fantastic. That’s such a great example of make sure that the market needs it. As it relates to helping somebody with 1 specific holiday, obviously investors are going to go, “Well, there’s a limited need for that,” but once you broaden it out to, “I help people get organized,” that’s a yearlong need and that crosses many topics. That’s great. Thank you, Jude, for that. Jude, before I let you go, I just want to ask you, is there a book that you recommend founders to read, either to get inspiration in their personal life about not giving up or something that you think is really great business-wise?

Jude:

The best book for anybody who’s going into business is a book about emotions. Get a synonyms finder. I refer to my synonyms finder all the time. Do something that takes you away from feeling like you’re doing it wrong. Instead, learn how to communicate how you truly could serve someone else.

John:

Nice.

Jude:

Just stay focused on, how can I make someone else’s life better, not how I can do it more right than somebody else says. Our economy shows us that all of the theories are not all that helpful. Entrepreneurs are failing at 90% at this point.

John:

A lot of it has to do with self-focus instead of serving focus, is what you’re saying.

Jude:

Yes. It’s fear. It’s very fear-based. There’s enormous stress, and we definitely need our entrepreneurs to be more successful.

John:

Yes. Yes. You mentioned something earlier about dealing with fear and coming up with an idea. I think you used the word contagious. Can you tell us a little bit about that?

Jude:

Yes. When I speak with someone who’s frustrated or they’re trying to get their message out, and they talk to me and they say, “I just need to figure out how to get this marketed or manufactured,” or, “I just need to do this,” I like to tease out their idea, because when I can tease out, when I can really hear what they’re saying, and then respond back to them in 2 or 3 little nuggets that they say, “Oh my gosh, that is what I’m doing,” they catch their own virus, so to speak. They reinfect themselves with their mission. They change the way they see things.

When I’m working with someone, it’s not my saying, “You have to do these points, and you have to follow these things.” My job is to tease out what they’re really doing, and allow them to truly see it, and then run. My entire goal is to create more successful entrepreneurship and allow them to feed their families and to really check out their market, so that they can be funded more quickly. I want them to create the jobs that they’re meant to create.

John:

I love it. You and I are certainly on the same page and the same passion and the same mission to help entrepreneurs become more successful and make the world a better place for that. I can’t thank you enough. Jude, how can people follow you on social media and get in touch with you?

Jude:

You can go to my LinkedIn page, Jude Robinson. I’m relaunching my entire online platform at this point, so I would say just hit me on LinkedIn.

John:

Hit you on LinkedIn it is. Thanks again, Jude. You’ve been a great guest with wonderful tips and inspiration. We’re going to always remember all about a good idea never happens with an agenda. Thanks again.

Jude:

Thanks John.

John:

Thanks for listening for listening to The Successful Pitch podcast. If you like the show, please go to iTunes and write a review, and encourage your friends to write reviews too. It really helps get the word out. People say that the longest distance is between someone’s mouth and their wallet. People can tell you they’re going to invest, but when it comes time to write the check, they don’t do it. How do you get people to say yes and then follow through? Visualize yourself on the left side of a river bank, and you have to cross the river. On the other side of the river is where the funding happens.

First, you make up your idea. Then you make it real. Then you make it reoccur. Once you start dipping your toe into the water to get to funding, that’s where I can help. I get you across that river faster than you would on your own with a lot less frustration than you will get when you hear a bunch of nos and you don’t know why. If you want some help getting funded faster with less frustration, go to my free funding webinar, sellingsecretsforfunding.com/webinar. Sign up and get in-depth information on how you can get funded fast. Thanks.

TSP046 | Katherine Hill Ritchie – Transcription

Posted by John Livesay in Uncategorized | 0 comments

John:

Hi, welcome to The Successful Pitch podcast. Today’s guest is Katherine Hill Ritchie. She’s the CEO of Pex Global. She’s also part of an organization called 100 Women in Hedge Funds. She works and specializes in family offices, which provides a different source of investors for start-ups. It’s different than Angels, it’s different than VCs. One thing is family offices, the rich billionaire families will often times be willing to sign an NDA where Angels and venture capitalists are not. They’re also, families are more flexible in the kinds of companies they invest, as well as they don’t have any limits, for the most part, as to how much money they’ll do. I think you’ll really get a lot out of listening to Katherine describe all the benefits of getting investors from family offices.

Are you a founder, struggling with your investor pitch? Do you need warm introductions to the right investors to get your start-up funded? Do you need a funding road map to get you there fast? All of this and more can be found in Crack The Funding Code. Judy Robinett, best selling author, of How to be a Power Connector, and on the board of illuminate ventures and I, invite you to our free Crack The Funding Code webinar. Simply go to Judy Robinett, J-U-D-Y-R-O-B-I-N-E-T-T.com, and click on the webinar tab to see how to tap into our network of investors around the world. There’s a link in the show notes as well. You’re only one click away from getting funded fast.

John:

Hi, and welcome to The Successful Pitch podcast. Today’s guest is Katherine Hill Ritchie. Katherine is the CEO of Pex Global, P-E-X Global. She has over 20 years of business operational experience and 13 years of investment experience with family offices, private equity hedge funds, due diligence, and all kinds of great stuff that the listeners of The Successful Pitch will love to know. Katherine, welcome to the show.

Katherine:

Thank you! I’m glad to be here.

John:

You know, one of the things that’s in your bio among many is that you were listed in 100 Women in Hedge Funds. So, we definitely want to talk about that. But, if you wouldn’t mind, would you take us back to how did you get interested in hedge funds and all that, family offices, in the first place? How that took you to Switzerland?

Katherine:

Absolutely. So, when I graduated from University of Maryland, my undergraduate degree, I wasn’t quite sure what I wanted to do. I knew graduate school was in my horizon, but not sure exactly how. I was interested in health and fitness actually, and real estate. So, I started my own businesses. I was totally naïve, and when you’re young, you know, “business plan, what’s that?”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Statement, what are you talking about?” I just started out totally confident in myself. Luckily, I succeeded and I actually made some money, and I started investing also in the stock market. I thought, “whoa! Not only can I work hard and make money at businesses, but money can make money for itself.” Meaning, while I’m at work all day working, my money can be investing. Luckily, at that point, this was the late 90s, and so I invested in a lot of tech stocks and I thought I was a genius.

John:

Yeah.

Katherine:

Because, I did well, and I thought, “boy, you know what? There’s something to this! Why don’t I go get an MBA?” So, I sold some of my positions at a very great time as well, at the top.

John:

Nice.

Katherine:

I was able to pay for some of my graduate school that way.

John:

How wonderful.

Katherine:

I moved up to New York City, and I went to Fordham, and that’s where I really learned about portfolio management, entrepreneurship, and it scared the heck out of me, starting a business. I thought, “oh my gosh, look at all these things I didn’t even think about!”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

So, you know education is very important, but at the same time, it really cautioned me and I thought, “I better think about this before I start another business.” So, I ended up interning at a private wealth management firm and that’s where I learned about what a family office is. “What’s a hedge fund? Private equity funds, what is all that?” Because, I knew public market, stocks, bonds.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Things that a normal retail investor could invest in. So, when I understood more about alternative investments, then I got really excited and interested. “What’s a family office?” That was a new term for me, and so, what is a family office? So that’s usually a wealthy family that … there’s not a cut-and-dry cut-off of how much money they have to become a family office. But, usually when they’re large enough to hire their own internal people, investment professionals, to help them allocate capital, keep track of investments, look for new ones. So I thought, “oh, that’s pretty cool. I’m interested in that.” Hedge funds and private equity funds were interesting to a lot of families because in some families, are a little more passive investors and would like someone else to manage the money for them.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

While some others are more interested in direct deals, direct start-ups. So, that helps bring me to what I’m doing today as well. But, over the course of time, I was hired and now I’ve been fortunate to work for 3 billionaire families, and in that time, I was recruited to move to Switzerland. I lived in Geneva for 7 years. What’s great about that network is you kind of meet other families-

John:

Of course.

Katherine:

-and get invited to very interesting events. You’re able to network with other families. Now, sometimes these aren’t the family members. It could be other employees like me.

John:

Sure.

Katherine:

We’re considered gate keepers.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

So, we might be sent out into the world to go to conferences and source deals for these families. Over time, what I learned is that there are families interested in funds. There are families interested in maybe just industry, oil and gas, for example. Or, there’s families that are interested in start-ups. So, they’re a unique investor base because a lot of times, the capital can be flexible. If you go to a VC fund for example, or sometimes Angel, they’re quite strict in what they invest in. They have a limit in the amount of money, or the industry, or the type. It could be, “I only do software.”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Or, “I only do,” yeah. So, a family, each one is unique; but, they can be very flexible. So, it could be a great source of capital for people who are looking for funding for their companies.

John:

Wow, that’s so great. I love the comparison, because yes, many of the investors I’ve had on the show, whether they’re Angel investors or VCs, like very specific sometimes. They’re like, “we invest between 250 and 500, and we need to be at the beginning, and we only want sass companies.” Or, “we only want high tech.”

Then, VCs, will be like, “well, until you’ve gotten this much from seeds, we’re not interested until we get to series A or series B, and we start at 3 million,” or what have you. “We specialize in mobile,” or whatever it is, and “if you’re not in that specific niche, then don’t even bother coming to talk to us.”

Whereas a family is, as you said, much more flexible in both the industry and the amount. If they really love you, and love the idea, and think it has a lot of potential, I’m sure they don’t have those rules to follow, which is great.

Katherine:

Exactly. Now, I would say this. It’s about relationships.

John:

Of course.

Katherine:

You need to get to know them and you might end up spending time having a tea with them, a coffee with them, dinner with them. But then, they’re more likely to be flexible in their investment size, terms, and it could be a great person on your advisory board to introduce you to other families because the minute I say “family office,” people really perk up.

“Oh! I’m interested!” Family offices want to meet other family offices, and know what they’re doing. So, it can be a great … you know, you break in and you meet one.

You can say, “it would be great to be a part of your network.”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Also, there are conferences and events geared towards families. So, those can be very exclusive. But, if you’re able to get an invitation, or a lot of times, they look for sponsors, it would be great for someone to pitch at those events. Again, they can be pretty strict. You know, they vet who’s coming in.

John:

Of course.

Katherine:

But, if you get those kind of invitations, that can be very useful. Or, work with someone who has a background with family offices who can kind of really help with introductions and craft your pitch to a family. Families like to hear a story. You know, sometimes people pitching their company are so used to VCs or The Shark Tank-like, “what’s your valuation? How much are you looking for?”

When a family want to might say, “tell me the story. How did you get this idea?”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

So, I think you want to craft your message a little bit differently for that crowd, and also your presentation materials. They need to be really institutional quality, top shelf. Families will invest in start-ups and seed, but they want a presentation.

John:

Of course.

Katherine:

They want institutional quality looking materials.

John:

Right, because they live a life of luxury. They’re used to certain standards, and they want everything to match that standard.

Katherine:

Exactly. So, even if people do get funding off writing an idea on a napkin, but I wouldn’t recommend that. I would say, “be prepared, be professional, look sharp.” You know, don’t go in jeans and a hoodie.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But, you may have a real life-long friend if you get to know some of these families. Also, which is very good point, a lot of private equity, VC Angels, they’re banking on an exit from you. There are families who think, “oh! You don’t need to sell. You don’t need to go public. If you’re generating revenue and I’m getting a revenue share, that’s great! Keep it that way!”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

They don’t have shareholders to answer to. They may have other family members to answer to.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But, it’s not the same time horizon.

John:

Got it.

Katherine:

So, that can be very useful for entrepreneurs who are trying to raise capital is that you don’t necessarily have that same pressure.

John:

I love it. Also, you can still get money from Angels and VCs and say that part of your exit strategy is to get a billionaire or family office family to buy you out; because you’ve already got traction and proof of concept, and all that good stuff.

Katherine:

Yes, yes. I think it does help though if you have Angel or VC money when you’re going to a family because they do like if somebody else has been there first.

John:

Yeah, adventured a little bit.

Katherine:

They do like that as well.

John:

Yes, yes.

Katherine:

That always helps.

John:

Do you look at any graduates of accelerators? Like, Y Combinator, or there’s one in upstate New York called StartFast. Is that also a nice credential for families?

Katherine:

You know, it’s interesting you say that because I was just talking to a family and they specifically said that they really focus on anyone who’s been through an incubator, because they feel that then they’re prepared. Someone’s really guided them. So, there’s some people that actually just will focus on those kind of companies, those graduates.

John:

Nice. Now you mention being a gate keeper.

Katherine:

Yeah.

John:

I guess that if I was listening to this and I didn’t have access to these exclusive events to meet the families themselves, what would be the best way to connect with people like you? And, how would I get to know someone that is a gate keeper to a family office? What are the best practices? Is it reading your blog, or reaching out to you on social media? What would you recommend?

Katherine:

That’s a great question. We all use social media today, and I’ll give you an example of LinkedIn. I use LinkedIn, and I use it both ways. I use it for sourcing, but I also use it for business because I need to reach out to other people all the time. I reach out to VCs, family offices, private equity people all the time in my business because I have deals that I want to work on with them. So, I am in the same position as well, and I think social media is very useful.

What I like about LinkedIn is that you can see somebody’s past. Why would you want to connect with them? But also, I think that I get hundreds of people trying to connect with me on LinkedIn. There’s no message, and they have … it appears they have absolutely nothing in common with me. So, I would say always write a note. I would say, “Hi, I’m Katherine. I would really be interested in talking to you about blah, blah, blah.”

John:

Yes, right.

Katherine:

Whatever, right? Or say, “oh, we have a friend in common.” Or, “oh, I saw you spoke at this conference,” or something.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

I have people who just randomly try to connect to me. I don’t connect back because what do they want?

John:

Exactly.

Katherine:

Or, I cold call. I still do this to the day, but I prep. I find out where they went to school. I find out what they do, if they … anything, any kind of connection. Now, some families don’t have websites and are not on LinkedIn, for example.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But, their employees might be. If you scan for family offices, that does pop up.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Sometimes, they even say, “we only invest in private equity funds.”

You say, “oh, okay. Great, now I know.”

Or, you can find out that they’re on the board of certain companies. So, you’ll know “oh, I see you’re on the board of this technology company. I’m actually raising money for a technology company. Would this be something you’re interested in?”

I think you need to be prepared that way, but it’s not always easy because VCs, private equity, they usually have websites that describe exactly what they do. It’s not that difficult to figure out, but sometimes families, you have no idea. So, it’s got to be a relationship.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Now, people come to me for introductions, so that’s part of what I do as a business. There are other people out there, but I would give a little caution. There are people who sell lists. You know, everybody knows this, there are lists for every industry. There are lists for family offices. Well, the first thing I do when someone pitches me that is I say, “okay, I want to see a sample,” and I look for myself. Because, I’ve worked for some of these families and they’ll have information that’s dated.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

It’s like from my contact information from 7 years ago. So, people buy those lists for thousands of dollars, and they’re worthless. Or, you may get someone, but you have no relationship with them.

John:

Yes.

Katherine:

It’s very difficult. You’ve got to have … know your stuff. So, cold calling, it’s worth doing. It’s tough, but if you can find some other way. If someone introduced you, that’s much better.

John:

Yeah, the are great. Right. So, I love that email etiquette you just said about make sure that you personalize it and do your homework before you reach out to somebody. Also, you had mentioned the importance to me earlier of follow-up. That’s one of my big, big things that I coach my clients on, too, is … and that’s a key to my success is follow-up. If I say I’m going to do something, I do it. It’s amazing to me people who don’t.

Katherine:

You’re totally right, and I have to tell you, I have done it myself where I’m so glad someone was persistent and called me, because we all get involved in our day-to-day and you get overwhelmed, and you forget to do something. So, it’s happened for, “I’m so glad you called again, because actually I am interested.” But, we all know fundraising is difficult … You have to have tough skin. You do have to be persistent, but also I also give people an out because if it’s a “no,” it’s better for you to know right away.

John:

Oh gosh, yes.

Katherine:

You know, give me some feedback, good or bad. I’d love to hear from you either way.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Because, I would rather … and actually, a lot of times when I start the relationship, I say, “listen, I’ve been in your shoes before.” I used to allocate billions of dollars, and my inbox filled up, and my voice mail filled up, but I wanted to be fair to people because that’s just the way I was raised.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

I don’t want to lead people on, so I’d say, “you know what? I think your idea’s great. It’s not for us, so I’m just telling you now. Don’t waste your time on me.”

John:

Right.

Katherine:

“Maybe I can introduce you to somebody else.” Also, I think that as people who allocate money, they could be more fair, and they could do a better job of letting you know.

John:

Yeah. It’s like Hollywood. They always sort of string you along. They don’t give you a definite “no” on your screenplay or whatever.

Katherine:

Yes! Now, sometimes the answer isn’t clear, I’ll say that. It’s an investment committee, the investment committee hasn’t decided. But, sometimes you know it’s just not a fit, and I think people could be more fair. Fine.

John:

Right, yeah.

Katherine:

But anyway, getting back to what we were saying. I think you really need … Also, this is another thing. Pet peeve: do not send an email that could be a novel.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

No one reads it! No one is reading it!

John:

Keep it short, yup.

Katherine:

5 bullet points.

John:

Yup.

Katherine:

Why? What is unique or special?

John:

Yes. Well, that dovetails into my next question for you, which is the presentation dos and don’ts. I mean, obviously don’t have a lot of stuff on your slides, don’t have too many slides. But, I’m sure you have a lot of other tips besides those.

Katherine:

Yes. Constantly just rip apart presentations. When I say institutional quality, you want it to look super sharp.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

Now, that doesn’t mean you need crazy graphics.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But, you want to have it bound, have it look nice, not use PowerPoint’s basic … you know, they have backgrounds that you can choose.

John:

Yeah.

Katherine:

It doesn’t have to be that you hire someone to do that unless you want to, which can help. But, I would say really make your message clear. Use bullet points. People don’t want long, long, long explanations.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

I would really emphasize short emails, to the point, and then they’ll look at your materials. I also really recommend, especially if you’ve got IP that you’re sensitive about, maybe there’s some things about your whole business model you don’t want to reveal. Then, I do a teaser, 1 or 2 pages. I just send that. If they’re interested, they will come back to you.

John:

Right. Well, there’s that great technique called the open loop. It’s part of story telling, where you don’t complete the story and everyone … you just tell enough to get people’s curiosity peaked, and they want to know how it’s going to turn out, right? Or, what the next thing is. “Tell me more.” That’s a great suggestion there. I love that.

Katherine:

Absolutely, because a lot of times, they just read that, and it could be that actually they just read that and say, “oh, you know what? I’m going to send that to my boss because actually that’s enough information for me.” Or, “I’ll send this on to the right person who actually takes care of those investments within the family.” So, sometimes that’s just enough information and then, if you want them to sign an NDA. By the way, families, I mean, 1 in 13 years has said “no” to an NDA.

John:

Wow.

Katherine:

I know VCs won’t sign them, but they sign them because I think a lot of them understand. “Oh, okay. Well, I really want to know this information. Happy to sign an NDA.”

John:

Wow.

Katherine:

So, 1 in 13 years has said “no” to an NDA.

John:

That’s great. That’s a huge difference on top of the other differences you talked about, which is the flexibility of niches and amounts. This NDA issue, if you ask an Angel or a VC, that’s accredited, to sign an NDA, they automatically think “ugh, you don’t know what you’re doing.” So, that’s fantastic information. I love that. Do you typically work for one family at the moment, or do you have multiple families that you’re helping find the right investments?

Katherine:

Well, that’s a great question. So actually, it’s an interesting place I am now. I work directly for a family, but I at the business PEX that I run, works with families all over the world. So, we may have a deal that’s not actually for the family I work for. But luckily, so in the US, there’s regulations about fundraising, especially when you are not an employee of the company.

 

I’m a placement agent, and I’m actually licensed. Not only can I wear a hat being that I was an analyst for families and I can analyze and do due diligence on investments, but I’m also licensed, so I can raise money for security. So, I can raise money for companies, funds, co-investments. I can work on all those transactions. So, in that sense, I can work for any family. I work all of them.

John:

I love it.

Katherine:

I have a huge network that I’ve built up over the years of families that I know, and I just have kept track of what they invest in, how they invest in, the geography, where in the capital structure? So that information, when a deal comes to me, I can look in my database and say, “I know some great people that would be interested in this.” I target it, so I don’t do any mass mailing. I don’t do mass marketing. It’s very targeted.

John:

So do founders, whether they’re recent graduates from an incubator, or someone looking for series A, they’ve already gotten some seed and possibly a little VC money, hire you to get these kind of introductions to these families around the world? Is that how it works?

Katherine:

Yes. I’ve already done that. I’ve already raised some money for the early stage companies, also late stage companies. I’ve also worked on secondaries, which are people who are exiting a liquid shares or liquid funds shares. There’s a lot of activity around that as well. When maybe an employee of a private company would like some liquidity, they’d like some cash. So, I’ve worked on those deals, too. I’ve done primaries, secondaries, raised money for co-investments, and that co-investment basically where someone has already identified the project or company, put in some of their own cash, and then says “hey, hop along with me in this co-investment to help this company or project.” I’ve raised for all of those things.

John:

When families invest through either the family you’re working with directly or through your company, are they looking for similar kinds of equity? Eventually you probably do get down to the point where, if I’m going to give you a million dollars, I want X percent of your company in exchange. Or, do they want equity? They want stock? Is there any specific general guidelines that you can talk about?

Katherine:

I would say it really varies.

John:

Yeah.

Katherine:

Some are looking for equity investments. Some actually love debt.

John:

Oh, okay.

Katherine:

So, there’s some that that’s really what they focus on. So, each one is unique.

John:

Yup.

Katherine:

But, it could depend on the particular deal.

John:

What do you look for in the team? I always like to ask that question because I know over, and over again. I don’t care who it is, Angel, VC, family, private hedge fund, all about relationships as you said. Are there certain characteristics that you think that families look for besides professionalism, obviously, and the quality, appearance, and quality presentation skills. Is there … and telling a story, as you said. But, I’m looking for things like, is it passion? Is it integrity? Is it trustworthiness? Is there anything that you go, “you must be this,” or coachable, whatever it is?

Katherine:

Yeah, that’s a great question. I think they, unlike institutional investors, which I know I’m kind of all generalizing. You know, these people, it’s a little more personal.

John:

Yes.

Katherine:

So, really integrity is important. This is a family’s money. This is what their kids, grandkids … Their grandpa may have sold the company and this is his money, and so it’s a little bit a different field because they really want to get to know you, and it’s more personal. So, integrity and trust is really, really important, and just dedication. If there, it’s for the long run.

John:

Yes.

Katherine:

I think those things are … I mean, of course you need professional team, and quality, and also some kind of track record. I mean, yes, there are people with start-ups who have no experience whatsoever who extremely successful.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

We all know that. But, I think that’s something that they see. They like to see people … you know, a pattern.

John:

Great. Well, I promised at the beginning, speaking of open loop, we were talk about you being 100 Women in Hedge Funds. Would you talk to us a little bit about that before I let you go?

Katherine:

Sure. Absolutely. So, I ended up joining in New York when it was still pretty new group. What happened is, some ladies got together in the hedge fund industry, and they said, “do you even know a 100 women in the hedge fund industry?” Because, over 10 years ago, there were very few.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

It’s a male dominated industry, and what’s amazing is just how it’s grown today. So, it was started here in New York City, and I happened to move to Geneva, Switzerland. I was so thrilled because the month I land there, I didn’t know anybody in Geneva, but the job was at, so I moved there and I thought, “okay. I need to make some friends,” and they had started 1 in Geneva as well. So now it’s all over the world.

John:

I love it.

Katherine:

From San Francisco to Austin, to Boston, Miami, Milan, Zurich, Paris, Hong Kong, Caymen. So, it’s women, originally it was in the hedge fund industry and we used it for trying to tackle the old boys club. It’s for networking, it’s for job searching, it’s for education, and we also raise money for philanthropic local charities. So, when I was in Geneva, for example, every year there’s a theme, it could be education, it could be for women, it could be for children, it could be health, and we raise money. We target a charity. We do due diligence on it just like an investment.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

I was on the due diligence committee. We vet it just like an investment.

John:

I love it.

Katherine:

We support and we raise money for it, and we’ve had just so much fun. We’ve been lucky to have royal patrons like Prince William and Kate are actually royal patrons, so they come to our gala in London, which was absolutely fantastic.

John:

Oh my gosh.

Katherine:

We’ve had Bon Jovi play at our galas. I mean, it’s fun. It’s a great networking.

John:

I’m so glad I asked you, that’s some great stories! My goodness, Bon Jovi and royalty at a gala, that says everything you need to know. Wow, what a great story. Do you have any quick stories before we sign off about one of the best pitches you’ve ever heard? Since you said families really love stories even more than most investors. Is there an example of a story that you said, “boy, when we all heard that story, we said, ‘that’s for us.'”

Katherine:

Yes. So I was in Utah and I was invited to this … there was no registration, it was this uber-exclusive family office event in Utah. I’d never even been there, and I was so excited to go. There was no registration. I was told by trusted parties. “We’re going to have this event, here’s the agenda.” So we go there and we hear this scientist-engineer who just starts presenting us something about carbon nanotubes, which I never heard of my whole life.

John:

I don’t know what that is, either.

Katherine:

It’s going to be … it’s like the next plastics. It’s basically a new material.

John:

Oh! Great.

Katherine:

It was so compelling, because he said, “you know, I have a lot of family in the military. The bulletproof gear is okay, but it’s not great, and I wanted to help them. I wanted to protect my family. I created this new material. It literally … an elephant can stand on it, but it floats in water.”

John:

Holy cow.

Katherine:

And you know, everyone in the room-

John:

Yes.

Katherine:

-every family said, “where do I send my check?”

John:

Wow. Well, I love that story. Thank you so much for telling us because look at the elements of that. Is okay, and when you tell a story to potential investors, I’m always telling clients, make sure you say “what are people doing now, and how this is so much better. If you just pretend that no one’s doing anything, then there’s no frame of reference.”

So, ‘bulletproof gear is okay, but this is even better,’ and then you start this visualization of an elephant standing on it. Then, you tap into people’s patriotism that ‘I’m not only have a good return on my investment, but I’m actually possibly helping save lives of our fighting military?’ Oh my god, it’s just talk about pulling on the heart strings. That’s a fantastic story, Katherine. Thank you so much. Is there any book that you recommend people read, either about business or life?

Katherine:

Oh my gosh, that’s a great question. Well, you know I am a strong believer in the power of positive thinking.

John:

Me, too.

Katherine:

That’s been something that’s happened throughout my whole life. Now, whether you get that spiritually or whatever, the secret, or you’ve got … all of those books, I think, you have to take away what works for you.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But for me personally, I know that you have to stay positive, and believe in yourself, and tell yourself every day when you get out of bed, “today’s going to be a great day. I’m going to make a great day,” you know? You can’t wait for life to make things great for you. So I think that … and go in with a smile. Have a positive attitude, because people like that. People want to believe in you. People want to invest in you.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

They want you to be good.

John:

Yup.

Katherine:

So, fulfill that for them. When you carry a positive attitude, it just makes it … people want to be a part of that.

John:

Right. I love it. Any particular book that you think of that inspired you to stay positive or keep that attitude?

Katherine:

You know what, I was just going to my bookshelf right now.

John:

I love it!

Katherine:

To look, hold on one second.

John:

This just in.

Katherine:

Okay, couple things. One is actually a old book, Napoleon Hill, Think and Grow Rich.

John:

Classic, love it.

Katherine:

Yeah, just because positive … Then, interesting things like Blink.

John:

Yes, Malcolm Gladwell. Fantastic.

Katherine:

Yes, because a lot of it is, like I said, you walk in a room and you’re positive, and people go, “oh! I want to know what that’s about. What have you got?”

John:

“I want some of that.”

Katherine:

I think … make quick decisions.

John:

Yes. That’s a great book. We’ll put both of those books in the show notes, and the transcription notes. So you’re on LinkedIn, obviously. What is your Twitter in case somebody wants to follow you on Twitter?

Katherine:

I have to tell you a funny story about Twitter.

John:

Okay.

Katherine:

I’ll quickly tell you my story. So I’ve been … I was originally a licensed securities professional starting back in 2003. When I was marketing private placements, which is hedge funds private equity, it was beaten into us, because back then the rules, and before crowd funding, were so strict, you were not allowed to advertise. You were not allowed to promote anything.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

So what’s funny is, people in my industry now slowly are using Twitter, but believe it or not, I haven’t been able to use Twitter because our legal in compliance said “no, no, no.”

John:

Okay.

Katherine:

So, it’s interesting, because I think it’s an incredible tool.

John:

Right.

Katherine:

But, I think our industry will come around, but we do have to be very careful about regulations.

John:

Well for now you’re on LinkedIn and I’m thrilled because that’s how I found you, so that’s more than enough. Thank you so much for being on the show. It’s been a pleasure and an honor to have you.

Katherine:

Thank you, and I’m flattered that you went and invited me, and happy to share with anyone my thoughts, and here to help.

John:

Fantastic, thanks again.

Katherine:

Thank you.

John:

Thanks for listening to The Successful Pitch podcast. If you like the show, please go to iTunes and write a review, and encourage your friends to write reviews, too. It really helps get the word out. You know, people say that the longest distance is between someone’s mouth and their wallet. People can tell you they’re going to invest, but when it comes time to write the check, they don’t do it.

So, how do you get people to say yes and then follow through? Visualize yourself on the left side of a riverbank and you have to cross the river, and on the other side of the river is where the funding happens. So first you make up your idea, then you make it real, then you make it re-occur.

Once you start dipping your toe into the water to get to funding, that’s where I can help. I get you across that river faster than you would on your own, with a lot less frustration than you will get when you hear a bunch of no’s, and you don’t know why. So, if you want some help getting funded faster, with less frustration, go to my free funding webinar, SellingSecretsforFunding.com/webinar, sign up, and get in-depth information on how you can get funded fast. Thanks.