191. The Purpose of the First Meeting feat. Eric Marcoullier

Text your thoughts directly to Rich.

Just as the purpose of the deck is not to get a check, it's to get the first meeting, the purpose of the first meeting is...

About Eric Marcoullier
Eric coaches first- and second-time tech CEOs, keeping their companies alive long enough to get lucky, figure out their business, find product/market fit and replace his ass with someone who knows how to scale companies beyond $5M in ARR. His work primarily involves challenging business assumptions, providing frameworks for new situations and distilling complexity down to basic, actionable ideas. If you'd like to learn more about his coaching, visit www.marcoullier.com or www.linkedin.com/in/bpm140

About AVL Growth Partners
AVL Growth Partners, founded in 2009, is the leading fractional Finance and Accounting firm supporting organizations in pivoting from growth to scale. AVL brings an experienced team of CFOs, Controllers, and Accountants to your organization, delivering transparent, strategic actions for short and long-term success. Transform your financial approach affordably with AVL, supporting companies coast to coast - get to know AVL Growth Partners at avlgrowth.com. (Sponsored)

About SpringTime Ventures
SpringTime Ventures seeds high-growth startups in healthcare, fintech & insurtech, and logistics & supply chain. We look for founders with domain expertise, forging a path with a truly transformative technology. We only invest in software-based businesses in the USA. We bring a people-focused approach, work quickly, and reach conviction independently. Our initial check size is $600k. You can learn more about us and our approach.

Transcript

WEBVTT

00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:04.120
The purpose of the first meeting is to get the second meeting.

00:00:04.870 --> 00:00:16.443
I have so many clients and so many people that they come to me with for advice about fundraising and they place such a huge burden on themselves.

00:00:16.943 --> 00:00:29.699
They want that first conversation with a VC to, I don't know, somehow end with the VC whipping out their checkbook and saying,"so, sounds great! How much do you want?" We all know that that doesn't happen.

00:00:30.449 --> 00:00:38.564
Getting a check, whether it's a$25K check from an angel or whether it's a$5 million check from a VC, it doesn't happen with one call.

00:00:39.125 --> 00:00:40.545
It happens with multiple calls.

00:00:41.295 --> 00:00:47.814
You've already done, in many ways, the hardest possible thing: you've got a phone call with a VC.

00:00:48.314 --> 00:00:56.189
Your deck or your intro email, your warm intro managed to get through the filter and you're having a first call.

00:00:56.909 --> 00:01:05.512
Give yourself a little bit of space and recognize that you're not trying to convince the VC, in that moment, to give you money.

00:01:06.132 --> 00:01:15.522
You're literally trying to convince them that you're not an asshole, and that you're really smart about this market that you're going after.

00:01:16.132 --> 00:01:19.171
And ultimately, you want to paint a huge opportunity.

00:01:19.852 --> 00:01:24.012
Again, you've already done most of that work in that deck that you sent ahead.

00:01:24.462 --> 00:01:31.635
And so now all it is is reinforcing the opportunity, reinforcing that you're somebody that they'd like to potentially work with.

00:01:32.320 --> 00:01:47.847
So give yourself a little bit of space and don't worry about anything else other than showing up as yourself and a great opportunity, and if you can get over that very low hurdle of,"I like this guy, I like this gal.

00:01:48.128 --> 00:01:51.438
I want to learn more." Then you're likely to get another phone call.

00:01:51.617 --> 00:01:55.197
And that's where you really start digging into the ins and outs of the execution.

00:01:55.537 --> 00:01:58.528
And that's what leads to getting a check.

00:01:59.581 --> 00:02:01.262
Eric has such great advice.

00:02:01.762 --> 00:02:13.544
Though the one thing I would argue with, from yesterday's episode, is that a VC's job is not just to say no, a VC's job is to socialize and say, no.

00:02:14.044 --> 00:02:19.284
But otherwise, that reframing of a VC's job is very powerful and a great way to think about it.

00:02:20.085 --> 00:02:22.754
Thanks for spending another week with us at the VC Minute.

00:02:23.025 --> 00:02:24.824
Time is our most precious asset.

00:02:25.194 --> 00:02:36.331
I'm grateful that you'd spend some of it with me, and I'd be grateful if you took a few seconds and listened to why I think AVL is a great partner for both VC Minute and for your startup.

00:02:36.831 --> 00:02:40.711
AVL's team brings significant years of finance and accounting expertise.

00:02:41.012 --> 00:02:44.312
They ensure your path to success is crystal clear.

00:02:44.812 --> 00:02:45.801
Why go fractional?

00:02:46.122 --> 00:02:56.530
Picture this: a CFO with an average of 19 years of senior finance CFO experience, alongside controllers and accountants with 15 years under their belts.

00:02:56.830 --> 00:02:58.265
This isn't just bookkeeping.

00:02:58.566 --> 00:03:03.186
It's the expertise your company needs to navigate economic challenges.

00:03:03.686 --> 00:03:08.246
If you want to take your company to the next level and need the experience required to make it happen.

00:03:08.746 --> 00:03:11.536
Visit AVL growth.com right now.

191. The Purpose of the First Meeting feat. Eric Marcoullier

Throw the hottest pool party in town