Radical Marketer » Venture Capital http://radicalmarketer.com If you are not a radical, you are not a marketer Wed, 01 Sep 2010 17:17:35 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.0.1 3 major reasons, why I don’t want to see VCs Venture Capital in my business http://radicalmarketer.com/3-major-reasons-why-i-dont-want-to-see-vcs-venture-capital-in-my-business/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=3-major-reasons-why-i-dont-want-to-see-vcs-venture-capital-in-my-business http://radicalmarketer.com/3-major-reasons-why-i-dont-want-to-see-vcs-venture-capital-in-my-business/#comments Mon, 14 Apr 2008 02:08:05 +0000 RadicalMarketer http://mehmetsubasi.com/?p=88 1) VC value focus is short term (at least for me)
Venture Capital firms focus to create a value in my firm for the next 3 to 4 years. Even four years is a short time horizon for me. I am trying to increase my shareholder value at least for the next 10 year horizon. So we have a different value focus.

2) VCs are not taking risks in consideration
There are always risks associated with mergers, acquisitions and investments. We are changing the chemistry of a business. However, a VC firm will generally only invest in the company and will not let you sell stock and take some profits out in the first step. Even though I am more interested in putting the money in the company, I am wise enough to see that I am taking risks with this move and should also capitalize the risks. Otherwise this wouldn’t be a “fair deal”.

3) A Strategic partner is more valuable than a VC
If you can find one, a strategic partner is always better than a VC. Imagine that you can guarantee a 50% revenue growth just through a strategic partner. Of course, it is not always easy to find the right strategic partner, and strategic partners are mostly a risk as potential competitors as well.

At the end of the day, it is again all about “economies of trust”. It is usually not who should invest in you, but who you can trust to make your business grow.

]]> http://radicalmarketer.com/3-major-reasons-why-i-dont-want-to-see-vcs-venture-capital-in-my-business/feed/ 0 Within the last 12 mnths we have seen three major internet deals in Turkey http://radicalmarketer.com/within-the-last-12-mnths-we-have-seen-3-major-internet-deals-in-turkey/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=within-the-last-12-mnths-we-have-seen-3-major-internet-deals-in-turkey http://radicalmarketer.com/within-the-last-12-mnths-we-have-seen-3-major-internet-deals-in-turkey/#comments Wed, 26 Mar 2008 18:51:11 +0000 RadicalMarketer http://mehmetsubasi.com/?p=84 May 2007: eBay acquired a minority stake in GittiGidiyor.

Dec 2007: Turkish social network Yonja has raised $12.5M in Series A funding from Greywolf Capital Partners and Tiger Global Management, reports PEWire. (Turkish media talks about a $15 million deal with Mynet)

Jan 2008: Xing, the Germany-based European business social network which resembles LinkedIn, had bought Turkish business social network Cember, for about $6.43 million (?4.36 million). (Reuters) – German online business networking company Xing (OBCGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research) has bought Turkey’s cember.net to strengthen its leadership in the Turkish-speaking market, it said in a statement late on Tuesday.
Fast-growing Xing, a competitor to U.S.-based LinkedIn, said it would pay 4.4 million euros ($6.4 million) in stages for cember.net.

These deals are encouraging for the internet industry in Turkey, and will help companies to raise early stage funding more easily. However, investors should be very careful if they don’t have the proper knowledge on both Turkey and the internet. So let me know before you invest in an internet company in Turkey.

]]> http://radicalmarketer.com/within-the-last-12-mnths-we-have-seen-3-major-internet-deals-in-turkey/feed/ 0