Harry Stebbings
VC at Atomico, Host of The Twenty Minute VC Podcast
Discussion
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
Have you ever heard of a podcaster turned VC? Well, you have now. My name is Harry Stebbings and I am the Founder of The Twenty Minute VC, the world's largest independent venture capital podcast. It all started from my bedroom 23 months ago with no contacts and no more than $100. Today we have a thriving business with strong revenues and double digit month on month growth. As of today, I have also been appointed the youngest VC in the World! I like to chat about, you guessed it, all thing venture capital, startups, entrepreneurs and of course anything to do with mojitos!
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@miles_matthias very good question and very much a case of riding on people's coat tails at the beginning, so I was very strategic in terms of selecting guests that had large following who had significant distribution channels that we could distribute the content to, for example, our first interview was with the amazing @guykawasaki who has over 2m followers on Twitter! We also used viral hacks such as click to tweets in the podcast description and really optimised for podcast search engine optimisation.
Ty Danco
@tydanco · Angel investor
@HarryStebbings: are you old enough to be considered a millennial, considering you can't drink in NYC yet?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@tydanco Haha Ty you are a funny man! So appreciate all you have done for me and am I a millenial, I guess so. No I cannot drink in the US yet (shocking!) I am also a very old man at heart, nothing I love more than a hot chocolate, a little Dido and a kindle! So I am a 70 year old deep down, mixed with a little cohort analysis and talk on variable pricing mechanisms and that is my dream night!
Colin Keeley
@colinkeeley · Podcast Host @ Tech In Chicago
What do you do to maintain relationships with your guests after interviews?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@colinkeeley Very good question, facebook is an excellent example as it allows me to gain a view into the personal world of my guests and stay connected to them when momentous occassions happen, such as babies and weddings and then I can react to those with congrats messages and presents, allowing the conversation to be sustained! Another great way is to build a twitter list of past guests and then use that to keep updated with the network. I also use the network for questions for future guests, this not only helps to get great content but allows me to stay in touch with past guests!
Colin Keeley
@colinkeeley · Podcast Host @ Tech In Chicago
How do you approach preparing for an interview? How long does it normally take?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@colinkeeley combination of twitter, facebook and then asking the network around them for personal and detailed topics that they can discuss at length! That also allows u to namedrop people in the show which further expands distribution channels as the people you asked will then also share the show! It takes about 3 hours per interview and we only release 4 out of 10 interviews we do! Tough process my friend!
Abhinaya Konduru
@itsabhinaya · Student & Content Creator
@harrystebbings Do you let your interviewees know that you might not release their interview beforehand?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@itsabhinaya no I do not to be honest, that can make them more nervous and is not really necessary, I go into every interview thinking it will be a great one and if it is not we can assess from there. i also have a beta group to test shows I am not sure about and see if there is PMF and market validation!
Abhinaya Konduru
@itsabhinaya · Student & Content Creator
@harrystebbings I see. How does the conversation with the interviewees go once you decided to not release? Do you let them know or wait from them to ask?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@itsabhinaya I let them know and it does not have to be a bad conversation. It is very much like turning down a founder, you try and be as constructive and helpful as possible and say, here is why it did not work for me. This is how we can improve and these are the milestones we need to be at to reach the required level. The same is for interview guests! They usually really appreciate it and find it very helpful feedback!
Abhinaya Konduru
@itsabhinaya · Student & Content Creator
@harrystebbings Appreciate the answers! For these type of conversations, do you prefer email or phone call?
Emily Hodgins
@ems_hodge · Community and Marketing, Product Hunt
Hi Harry so great to have you on Product Hunt LIVE! How does it feel to have the tables turned and to have you answering all the questions? ;) You're journey is so inspiring and a true example of determination and hustle. What are the main things that other young people can learn from your experiences to break into the world of tech? What two top tips of advice can you give them?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@ems_hodge haha it feels fun, I have asked many questions here so this should be interesting! As for breaking into the world of tech this is super simple, it is such a competitive world and there are so many people fighting for the position that you want, so just like startups, you need to differentiate yourself. Not only differentiate yourself but have recorded logs of how you have done this, this could be a blog, this could be a podcast, this could be a chain of events that you ran. You have to be able to point to something and say this was me and this was how I conveyed my passion! Now this is what I can bring to your firm having done this. Essentially, in VC, you either bring in LP capital or dealflow, that is VC broken to simplest form! For me, the show allowed me to build and harness a network in both! SO break down the components required for success and then illustrate a path to how you can obtain them and then show that path!
Pedro Almeida
@pmarquesalmeida
Harry Super fan of yours! Congrats! When are you doing a podcast/write a blog on how to enter in VC? As always, let me know whenever you are in Lisbon👍
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@pmarquesalmeida that is a great topic and yes I should do it! Adding to my Wunderlist now my friend!
Max Mersch
@merschmax_ · VC - OpenOcean
Congrats again mate! Regarding Atomico:
What were the key reasons that made this offer stand out?
What are your main tasks on a day to day basis?
What sectors & stages will you be focusing on?
Is your Slush panel uploaded anywhere? Couldn't make it but would love to watch it!
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@merschmax_ Great questions as always from you max! The reasons 1.) The team, @atomico I believe we have the best team in Europe to capture the very nascent market opportunity that is developing at this stage. The likes of @ljungman @sirajkhaliq @bengrol @twehmeier presented a vision that was not akin to a VC but a founder with a mission! It was infectious. They also approached the hiring process with so much thought and discipline. They were also very quick to respond and show that they wanted this to happen.
2.) Main tasks, the mission is still to build the show to be the behemoth that it can be. The byproduct of this is fantastic deal flow from some of the worlds best VCs. An unparalleled level of access to the best deals. Also a sustainable and incredible platform that portfolio founders can utiltise for growth and partnership opportunities. I do not know many VCs that can do that and that is why @jasonlk is such a genius with @saastr
3.) Haha, good question, I am a SaaS man so the chance to work with @teddiew is fantastic. I am very much focussing on Series A Enterprise SaaS in the UK and then Series B and C co-investment opportunities utilising my network in the US!
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@mikchef94 massive potential was very inspired by it following the interview with @dessaigne on @saastr and hugely excited for the future of @algolia
Nicolas Dessaigne
@dessaigne · Co-founder & CEO, Algolia
@harrystebbings @mikchef94 @saastr @algolia Thanks for nice words Harry! I had a great time on the show :)
Philip Kuklis
@philipkuklis · Co-Founder, Hubble
What are your favorite books about venture capital?
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Harry Stebbings
@harrystebbings · Podcast Host @ The Twenty Minute VC
@philipkuklis that is super easy! Mine is always @bfeld Venture Deals, Brad is one of the brightest and best thinkers in the industry and it has been a pleasure and an honour to get to know him throughout my journey! I also love @jasonlk and @motoceo latest book, that really is a must read for all in SaaS!