DEMO Time at LP&P

It was DEMO '08 audition time in our Boston office last week.  Executive producer Chris Shipley was kind enough to spend the day in our offices meeting with our clients to determine if their offerings are strong enough to merit inclusion in the February DEMO conference.  Chris has done this for us -- our version of "A Chorus Line" -- every year for many years, usually in Boston, but once in our Austin office.  It has been great for our clients, whom we prescreen and advise regarding how best to present themselves for DEMO consideration.  A high percentage of them have made the cut over the years and we feel optimistic that this year will be no exception.  Even the companies who were not quite ready for DEMO have gotten a lot out of the meetings with Chris.  Since she spends the bulk of her time traveling the globe meeting with all of the innovative companies in the industry, she brings a wealth of great insights and perspectives which never fail to help them in their planning and development. 

Chris also met with our Boston team for an interactive Q&A session.  We have gotten a number of questions about the TechCrunch 40 conference, which is challenging DEMO, so it was helpful to hear directly from Chris about DEMO and the market in general.  Chris was characteristically straightforward about Michael Arrington's new entry into the conference industry.  Essentially she seems to be happy not to be shadow-boxing any more.  Now it's about execution.  The DEMO conference group always has made it look easy, but it certainly isn't.  Chris is watching to see how well the new group can rise to the challenge. 

And then there is the leadership issue.  Arrington and Shipley could not be more different.  The former has been amazing leveraging and leading the Web 2.0 and social media movements, but has done it with a strong self-promotional bent and a distinct Silicon Valley focus.  Chris Shipley is probably one of the most self-effacing conference leaders in the industry's history.  It's not about her, everything she does and says seems to suggest; it's about the value the conference provides to DEMO participants.  Does she need to be more visible in the blogosphere?  I think so.  But is her focus in the wrong place regarding her ultimate customers -- the DEMO attendees?  I don't think so.

Our Boston-based team collected some great quotes from Chris Shipley during her visit here:

• On the current risk of a new bubble:  "I think it's froth; it's not a bubble."
• On the difference between Silicon Valley tech companies and East Coast tech companies:  ". . . the further from Silicon Valley [you get], the more practical the apps become."
• On the money front:  "it's a challenging time to be a vc."

Thanks again to Chris for giving us her time last week.  We look forward to seeing her -- and some of our clients -- at DEMO in February.