coursepad's journey to the bay

OUR JOURNEY

TO THE BAYSome insights from first-timer

to the Valley

OVERVIEW

• Why the Bay Area?!

• How our trip went!

• Singapore and the US!

• Our next steps

• Startups!

• Capital!

• Geeks!

• Global Hub!

• Culture

OUR TRIP

• Market Access Programs!

• Incubators & Real Estate!

• Networking with VCs, startups!

• Visits to technology companies

The original SV slide @ Nest GSV

US MARKET ACCESS

• Accelerators!

• Consultants!

• Re-validate product!

• 6+ months

Startup rocket @ Rocketspace

• City!

• Suburbs!

• Must have car

LEARNING FROM VCS

• Invest locally!

• Build relationships!

• Find great partners!

• Don’t cold email

Ken Gullicksen, VC -> COO, Evernote

LEARNING FROM STARTUPS

• All about social proof + scarcity + urgency!

• Create buzz + PR!

• Don’t be shy - ask for help!

• Believe - never ask a crack dealer if crack is good

Guy Kawasaki, author + mentor

LEARNING FROM VISITS

• Space + Culture!

• Employee satisfaction #1!

• Productivity is key!

• Openness!

• Task vs Time focusGuy Kawasaki, author + mentor

• Cheaper operational cost!

• Strong government support!

• Multiple markets!

• Portal to Asia

• Hyper-competitive!

• More complete financing!

• Larger homogeneous market

Use LinkedIn to your advantage!