Committing on the spot can happen, but it's the exception, and a small one. I'd be surprised if it accounted for 5% of investments out of DDay. So it's misleading to describe DDay as if that was how things worked.
It was not a tactical choice by Greplin not to raise a large round after DDay. No one would give them one. But your advice for me was not to tell people only to raise small amounts. I often do that. You said I should tell people to quit, which would be a mistake, because I don't know yet which ones I should be telling to quit.
How often have you told groups to quit, even one year later?
Dozens of times, I would guess, because dozens of startups we've funded have given up, and usually they consult me first.
Which is the first go: Money or motivation?
Usually money. A startup can change what it's working on, so as long as there's money left, they can simply restart if an idea seems hopeless.
When motivation goes first, it's usually because the founders had a falling out.
What is the typical circumstance where you tell the founders to quit?
When they're out of money and they say they want to.
Re:The Downside of "Demo Day"
by jordancooper on Monday April 18, 2011 @10:44PM
(#2461479)
hey, i just want to be clear. i wasn't writing that post to you. I've been to demo days from a bunch of accelerators, so i'm drawing on datasets beyond just YC and YC Dday...but in your case, i'm not suggesting that you tell people to quit, but i do think there should be a group who are told "you're not there yet, you shouldn't try to raise capital now" or something like that. Let them work through and get to a point where they are confident in their businesses before they raise, etc...
(FYI typo fix: replace 'diluting' with 'deluding the' in your article)
(also, is is "long haul" not "long hall")
Re:The Downside of "Demo Day"
by jordancooper on Monday April 18, 2011 @02:38PM
(#2460105)
thanks :)
re: 3-5 yr commitments: that's how long it takes to exit a company. As a founder, I view the acceptance of outside capital as a commitment to return their investment. emotionally, i think you are signing up for the long hall when you accept investment
re: Greplin, i agree, perfect example of someone who actually didn't try to raise a big seed round at demo day, but capitalized over time after demo day, once he was more sure of what he was doing...i think that's the model to follow, not just raise because it's demo day, right?