If there's anything you can predict about Venture Atlanta, it's these three things: tons of meetings, exposure for your business and very little sleep.
The 2019 Venture Atlanta conference wrapped up, bringing in a record-breaking total of 1,100 attendees, including more than 300 venture capitalists and tech investors from across the country.
In two days, we watched local startups, big VC firms and even a few celebrities try to connect for potential investment, business deals or just insightful advice. But aside from the great keynotes, panels and 36 companies pitching, what did I experience at Venture Atlanta? Here are five lessons I learned.
It's Like Speed-Dating
This was not my analogy. I had several founders mention to me that Venture Atlanta feels a lot like speed-dating.
You know what you want. You know what you're looking for. It's the same for the person you're meeting with; they've got their eyes set on something specific. You're just trying to figure out if the person in front of you is looking for the same thing---while keeping time, introductions and options in mind. Or at least, that's how most founders and VCs are operating at Venture Atlanta.
Some are willing to partner with anyone, which can come off as desperate or too-much-too-soon. It's a delicate balance of a relationship between founder and VC. John Foshee, CMO with MyPorter, a full-service moving and storage startup in Atlanta, said investors aren't just investing in your idea, they're investing in you. And if your personality rubs them wrong, or they don't believe you're leading the company in the right direction? Thank you, next.
"You can’t get this anywhere else," he said. "It would take months to potentially have the meetings you do here. It’s a real deal, it’s worth it for us ... the juice is worth the squeeze."
You're Not Just Looking for Funding, You're Looking for a Partner
As mentioned before, being desperate to either receive funding or give funding is a turn off for those looking for serious partners.
Steve Latham, CEO and founder of Banyan Hills Technologies, an Atlanta IoT startup that has the ability to connect its platform to any system that makes up a physical space, said it's all about finding the financial relationship that will help his business grow to the next stage. Latham said he was looking for a partner who was willing to say they respect the fact that he's bootstrapped his company and try to put themselves in his shoes.
"This conference isn’t about a number to raise. I want to find a good partner," he said.
VCs who just dive into pitching their financial products and their fund are a turn off, he said.
Believe it or not, Venture Atlanta isn't about funding---it's about connections.
"We could have said we sold baskets and they would still be interested," he said. "Some of the firms have clearly done their homework, (which tells me) this person knows who we are and I can trust them."
The best way to make the most of your time at Venture Atlanta is to have a partner in mind, what qualities they should have and what they can bring to the table. Otherwise, you'll end up settling.
Time Is Precious
Everyone booked back to back to back meetings to make the most of their time at VA (hence the term speed-dating, rather than regular dating).
Talking to founders in the afternoon, they told me I was probably their sixth or seventh meeting that day.
Founders and VCs have been stood up, their meetings have run late or they even struggled finding the person they were hoping to meet amongst the crowd. If you don't organize your time, it'll slip right by you and you'll miss the opportunities you're looking for.
It's a Long Week. Be Prepared.
Let's be frank, there was a lot going on the week of Venture Atlanta.
You had Techstars Atlanta's demo day on Monday, private investor lunches and meetings throughout the week facilitated by Venture Atlanta, Venture Atlanta on Wednesday and Thursday and Atlanta Startup Battle Thursday evening.
Many folks (myself included) bragged about getting five hours of sleep during the week. Whether you strive for the hustle or you're a work-life balance kind of person, you're going to have to kick it into high gear for VA.
As Jacqui Chew, formerly with ATDC, said to me, "You'll sleep when you're dead."
Exposure, Exposure, Exposure.
Believe it or not, Venture Atlanta isn't about funding---it's about connections. At least, that was my experience.
Everywhere I went, I ran into someone I hadn't seen in a few months and spoke with them about recent updates with their company. I met local startups I've never heard about and made a few introductions. I was able to put a face to a name (or the other way around) for those I've had email correspondence with but never met in person. I even ran into a Tampa Bay founder at the Mailchimp espresso booth who was recently announced as Tampa Bay Inno 50 on Fire winner!
You never know who you're going to run into. Even if you don't walk away with offers and a check in hand, you're gaining exposure. If a VC didn't notice you, a founder, a service provider or someone like me, from the media, did. I think this is the best offer Venture Atlanta gives to its guests. You have the opportunity to get in front of people that would have taken you months to set a meeting with. Make the most of it.
Recap of the Event
According to Venture Atlanta, the two-day event was its most successful yet since its inception in 2007, with a 20% increase of attendees from last year. Not to mention the conference, which connects entrepreneurs and founders with VCs and tech investors, saw an increase of entrepreneur applications to present on stage. To date, the conference has led to $3.9 billion in funding raised for startups and $14 billion in successful exits.
The conference included a fireside chat with Scott Chacon, former co-founder of Github and current co-founder and CEO of Chatterbug, and a fireside chat between Jyoti Bansai, co-founder and entrepreneur partner at Unusual Venture, and John Vrionis, founder and managing partner at Unusual Ventures.
Day two included a dual corporate development panels with Phil Kirck, Cisco senior director of investments, James Loftus, global head of corporate development at Square, Matt Schweickert, CSO at The Home Depot, Murphy Clark, executive VP of corporate strategy and M&A at Red Ventures, Chris Hecht, head of corporate development at Atlassian, and Marc Brown, corporate VP of corporate development and global head of M&A and stategic investments at Microsoft, Lisa Marchese, head of corporate development at American Express and Seksom Suriyapa, VP of corporate development and strategy at Twitter.
Following up, Aaron Levie, CEO, co-founder and chairman of Box, and Vanessa Larco, partner at NEA, held a discussion about their fundraising journey as they launched their business.
The conference closed with a sports panel featuring Champ Bailey, UGA and Denver Broncos player, Dikembe Mutombo, former NBA player, Levon Kirkland, coach for the Arizona Cardinals and Florida A&M, Sheryl Swoopes, WNBA star, and Nicki Collen, head coach of the Atlanta Dream, moderated by Joe Schmidt, Notre Dame Football Great.
But aside from the great keynotes, panels and 36 companies pitching, what did I experience at Venture Atlanta? Here are five lessons I learned.
