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Uh oh -- The downvoting has started. Feel free to do that but please explain where I'm missing the mark. Thanks. ----- I'm really not sure why entrepreneurs

Uh oh -- The downvoting has started. Feel free to do that but please explain where I'm missing the mark. Thanks. ----- I'm really not sure why entrepreneurs who I'd suspect believe in free markets need to be coddled and "protected" from pay-to-pitch programs which at the end of the day are just another business - some good and some bad. Just because you're a struggling entrepreneur doesn't mean other people shouldn't charge you or you're entitled to anything. At the end of the day, it is the entrepreneurs' choice. If you don't have the money or if the program doesn't seem legit, don't pay. And find another way to reach investors. If spending $50 or $100 gets you a credible chance at $500k of seed funding and helps accelerate your path to getting that money or getting feedback, that seems fair. Some pay to pitch programs may add value. And some may not. If an entrepreneur learns that the hard way, so be it. Nobody ever said being an entrepreneur would be easy.

duhoang 15y ago
It's not about being coddled, it's about exploiting entrepreneurs who are either desperate, or new to the game. We don't want to encourage that type of behavior in our community. "entrepreneur learns that the hard way, so be it." That attitude is like saying children should learn to look both way before crossing the street the hard way...by getting hit by a bus!
- whenisayUH 15y ago
  How is anyone being exploited? You have a choice to pitch or not. It's not blackmail. It may be foolish to pitch at these events, but as far as I know, nobody is being forced into pitching or being told "you can't research this event and our track record before signing up."
  - duhoang 15y ago
    It's like a scam...no one is forcing you to be a victim of a scam, you just don't know better. reply
    - whenisayUH 15y ago
      "You don't know better." If an entrepreneur is that helpless, paying-to-pitch is the least of their problems.
      - evgen 15y ago
        So it's better that you get your hand in their pocket before someone smarter comes along the relieve them of that burdensome wad of seed capital?
  - rmc 15y ago
    It's entirely possible to exploit people without holding a gun to their head (literally or figuratively).
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lsc 15y ago
It's about aligning incentives. I mean, I'm not going to hire a sales person, give her the power to negotiate price, and then give her the same commission for a full-price sale as a dramatically discounted sale, am I? Of course not. As much as possible, I'm going to tie her commissions to the profits she generates, and if she's selling my stuff at cost, well, I'm not making any profit. Same sort of thing here. If I'm going to "hire" an investor, do I want to pay him up front, before he gives me any of the value I want from him? Of course not. He makes his money when I make mine, after the company is profitable and distributing dividends, or after it gets sold. Of course, this only applies to the significant, multi-kilobuck fees. the $50-$100 fees are social signaling and nothing more. Personally, I think it signals something bad on the part of the investors (E.G. I am too cheap to cover the cost of the venue and sandwiches, even though I'm spending significant time on every one of you) but I could see how some people would instead think of it as signaling something good on the part of investors (e.g. I am willing to throw in a token amount of my own cash)

duhoang 15y ago

It's not about being coddled, it's about exploiting entrepreneurs who are either desperate, or new to the game. We don't want to encourage that type of behavior in our community. "entrepreneur learns that the hard way, so be it." That attitude is like saying children should learn to look both way before crossing the street the hard way...by getting hit by a bus!

whenisayUH 15y ago
How is anyone being exploited? You have a choice to pitch or not. It's not blackmail. It may be foolish to pitch at these events, but as far as I know, nobody is being forced into pitching or being told "you can't research this event and our track record before signing up."
- duhoang 15y ago
  It's like a scam...no one is forcing you to be a victim of a scam, you just don't know better. reply
  - whenisayUH 15y ago
    "You don't know better." If an entrepreneur is that helpless, paying-to-pitch is the least of their problems.
    - evgen 15y ago
      So it's better that you get your hand in their pocket before someone smarter comes along the relieve them of that burdensome wad of seed capital?
- rmc 15y ago
  It's entirely possible to exploit people without holding a gun to their head (literally or figuratively).
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lsc 15y ago

It's about aligning incentives. I mean, I'm not going to hire a sales person, give her the power to negotiate price, and then give her the same commission for a full-price sale as a dramatically discounted sale, am I? Of course not. As much as possible, I'm going to tie her commissions to the profits she generates, and if she's selling my stuff at cost, well, I'm not making any profit. Same sort of thing here. If I'm going to "hire" an investor, do I want to pay him up front, before he gives me any of the value I want from him? Of course not. He makes his money when I make mine, after the company is profitable and distributing dividends, or after it gets sold. Of course, this only applies to the significant, multi-kilobuck fees. the $50-$100 fees are social signaling and nothing more. Personally, I think it signals something bad on the part of the investors (E.G. I am too cheap to cover the cost of the venue and sandwiches, even though I'm spending significant time on every one of you) but I could see how some people would instead think of it as signaling something good on the part of investors (e.g. I am willing to throw in a token amount of my own cash)