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Traction: How Startups Start | NextView Ventures

In this story-driven show from seed-stage VC NextView, tech startup founders, executives, journalists, and investors share how they gained initial traction against the odds. Every startup hears that they should do things that don't scale -- scrappy, atypical, whatever-it-takes things. Traction asks a simple question: What ARE those things? With a unique sound that avoids the boring, typical talking head format, Traction features some of the most interesting early-stage stories, tactics, and theories from some of the best entrepreneurs today. For all episodes plus exclusive resources for early-stage startups, subscribe at nextviewvc.com/blog.
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Traction: How Startups Start | NextView Ventures
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Now displaying: August, 2015
Aug 20, 2015

Scott Belsky -- co-founder/CEO of Behance.

Brand. Mission. Emotion. These are things that, perhaps surprisingly to some, are still not widely preached, taught, accepted, or built around by investors and tech entrepreneurs alike. But in this episode, Scott Belsky talks about their critical importance and exactly how he built the popular creative portfolio platform, Behance. And, really, this is a story about how he sparked a bigger, medium-agnostic movement across the globe among creatives ... all on the backs of those things that some in tech too easily brush aside.

Scott's thought leadership is popular and widely followed, and you'll want to hear some of the things he did to bootstrap Behance and gain initial traction, not least of which was creating and selling a paper notebook as his very first product. From his description of the resulting digital movement, it doesn't seem possible that a notebook is where they could have started. Credit goes to the power of a passionate mission combined with an entrepreneur hellbent on gaining traction.

LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Scott's Company: Behance.net

Scott's Twitter: @ScottBelsky

DESIGNER CONTRIBUTORS (IN ORDER OF APPEARANCE)

Dan DiGangi (@dandigangi, http://dandigangi.com/)

Tyler Littwin (@tblittwin, https://dribbble.com/TBLittwin)

Kyle Mitchell (@jaggedlines, http://jaggedlines.com)

Renessa Ciampa (http://ciampacreative.com/)

Bobby Kane (@bobbyjkane, http://www.bobbyjkane.com/)

Ariel Simon (@arielsimonsays, http://arielsimon.com/)

>>> Let me know what you think of the show -- tweet me (Jay Acunzo) @Jay_zo 

 

Aug 3, 2015

DraftKings' Jason Robins -- In this episode, NextView partner Rob Go talks to the CEO of the newest unicorn -- Jason Robins of DraftKings. Jason is generous with his storytelling and tactical tips for fundraising when VCs aren't receptive, partnering with larger players in your industry (as DraftKings was able to do with brands like Disney/ESPN, the MLB, the NHL, etc.), and building a company that's capable of being truly analytical -- not just driven by data but obsessed with it.

So ... how does a unicorn gain traction anyway?

STARTUP LESSONS YOU'LL LEARN:

- A clever question to ask VCs to ensure you get a firm answer.

- Tactics for fundraising when being met with some resistance.

- How young startups can partner with massive brands.

- Why and how you should build a data-obsessed team.

- Marketing and user acquisition advice for those in hot, competitive markets.

STORIES YOU'LL HEAR:

- The early struggles Jason experienced while raising fundraising (and the way they overcame this pushback).

- The surprising companies that breed highly analytical minds and user acquisition geniuses.

- The hiring process at DraftKings and other data-obsessed companies.

LINKS MENTIONED:

- Jason's company: DraftKings.com

- Jason's Twitter: @JasonDRobins

Let me know what you think of the show -- tweet me (Jay Acunzo) @Jay_zo

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