TSP023 | Lex Deak – Deal Flow At Your Fingertips Tinder Style
Posted by John Livesay in podcast | 0 comments
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Episode Summary
Lex Deak is the Founder and Managing Partner for QVentures, the Founder and CEO for Tendr Deals (renamed to OFF3R), and he is also the Ambassador for The Supper Club. QVentures has funded 14 companies and Lex talks on one key company that stands out from the rest. Lex also talks on the importance of listening more than you speak at a entrepreneur networking event and why it’s important to read books you disagree with. It all comes down to diversifying yourself and keeping yourself knowledgeable on upcoming trends.
Key Takeaways
- 01:35 – What’s Lex’s philosophy on ‘the entrepreneurial spirit’?
- 05:00 – What is The Supper Club?
- 07:30 – As a young entrepreneur, you should listen 5x as much as you talk.
- 08:15 – How did QVentures get started?
- 11:45 – Lex talks about Stratajet.
- 14:35 – An angel investor has to be impressed with the product as well as the founder/team.
- 17:20 – Lex talks about Tendr Deals
- 23:50 – What problems is Tendr Deals solving? John does a recap.
- 27:30 – What are some of Lex’s favorite books?
- 29:10 – Lex disagrees with a lot of what he reads, but diversity is the key.
- 29:55 – You can follow Lex on Twitter @LexDeak
Tweetables
[Tweet “The definition of an entrepreneur is an artist in business who creates something.”]
[Tweet “Listen 5x more than you talk when you are in a room with people smarter than you.”]
[Tweet “TENDR gets rid of investors’ inbox fatigue.”]
[Tweet “When you’re reading something, the whole perspective is diversity.”]
Links Mentioned
The Super Club
STRATAJET
OFF3R
The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life by Alice Schroeder
The Chimp Paradox by Steve Peters
Big Data For Dummies by Judith Hurwitz, Alan Nugent, Fern Halper, and Marcia Kaufman
Zero to One by Peter Thiel
Lex Deak Twitter
QVentures Twitter
Tendr Deals Twitter
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TSP005 | Andrew Ackerman – How Meerkat Got Funded
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Episode Summary
Andrew Ackerman is the Managing Director for DreamIt Ventures. He was the COO of Bunk1.com and shares some insight on how he pitched people within 30 seconds or less. Andrew also talks about how Meerkat got started and what it takes to get the attention of a potential investor.
Key Takeaways
- 02:40 – Andrew talks about Bunk1.com
- 09:20 – Don’t pitch everything, just pitch enough so your customer asks you more.
- 17:15 – The one skill that’s critical for an entrepreneur is empathy. Put yourself in the investor’s shoes.
- 18:35 – Andrew breaks down the different viral levels a company can fall under.
- 24:05 – Andrew talks about Meerkat.
- 27:10 – Help an investor understand what makes your company special right off the bat.
- 31:10 – Reach out to Andrew via email with a warm introduction and a clear subject line.
Tweetables
[Tweet “Don’t pitch everything, just enough to get them to lean forward.”]
[Tweet “It’s important for people to realize that just ’cause you’re in love with something doesn’t mean it’s the right thing to pursue.”]
[Tweet “Meerkat is an overnight sensation two years in the making.”]
Links Mentioned
Mastering the VC Game by Jeff Bussgang [book]
Andrew Ackerman runs DreamIt’s startup accelerator program in New York. Serial entrepreneur, former investment manager at a family office, and recovering management consultant. Follow at @AndrewAckerman and @DreamItVentures.
DreamIt is one of the top accelerators in the world, having helped launch 178 companies since 2008 including SeatGeek, Meerkat, LevelUp, Adaptly, Parsely, Elevate, Cloudmine, Biomeme, et. al., who have collectively gone on to raise $270M and who are worth over $810M.
DreamIt is currently accepting applications for the DreamIt Health Philly program starting in July. Application deadline May 1:
http://dreamit.com/apply/
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TSP004 | Andrew Medal – From Prison To Angel Investor
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Episode Summary
Andrew Medal has a remarkable story on how he went from a prison inmate to becoming a serial entrepreneur. He talks to John about how he became an Entrepreneur magazine contributor, his charity work with Last Mile, and shares some insightful tips on how entrepreneurs can get investor interest without any experience or a working prototype.
Key Takeaways
- 02:15 – Andrew talks about how he got his job working for an angel investment firm.
- 05:20 – What’s considered a great pitch versus a bad one?
- 09:10 – Andrew talks about the charity project he’s involved with called Last Mile.
- 16:35 – Mistakes are an important part of an entrepreneur’s journey. Don’t give up on taking chances and risks.
- 21:30 – How can entrepreneurs raise money without a working prototype?
- 28:30 – Andrew recommends people read The Lean Startup by Eric Ries
Tweetables
[Tweet “Paint a picture to #investors. Become the #Picasso of Pitches.”]
[Tweet “There’s a lot of first time entrepreneurs that don’t have experience, so explain to your investors why you’re the right team.”]
[Tweet “Just because you’ve made a mistake, doesn’t mean you should stop dreaming.”]
[Tweet “No matter what we’re doing as entrepreneurs, if we’re learning in the process, we’re growing and we should never stop learning/growing.”]
Links Mentioned
http://buzzsumo.com/
http://www.invisionapp.com/
The Art of War by Sun Tzu
The Lean Startup by Eric Ries
AndrewMedal.com
@AndrewMedal
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