
Starting Findory: Acqusition talks - wheels
http://glinden.blogspot.com/2009/09/starting-findory-acqusition-talks.html
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aditya
This is great advice, but what I would want to know is this:

As a small startup, how do you get yourself noticed by the big fish?

If you're bootstrapped and have a decent amount of traction an early payout
might be a great idea, but you can't exactly cold call Google and ask them to
buy you out... Does this just happen automatically as a side-effect of
traction (and press coverage?) or are there strategic things a startup can do
to get to that point where BigCo flies them out and gives them fuckyou money?

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webwright
"Does this just happen automatically as a side-effect of traction (and press
coverage?)"

Yes. It's an old axiom: "Companies get bought-- they don't get sold". If you
are putting yourself on the auction block, it hurts your negotiating power--
it's best if they approach you.

Press helps here. OBVIOUS traction is good too (tech blogs love to write about
growth). And, finding ways to get in front of corp-dev guys at the at
Goog/etc. is good too. This is why investors are handy.

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mediaman
Toward the end of the article, Greg argues that big companies should use early
stage acquisitions as outsourced R&D.

In other markets this has proven fruitful. Specifically, in the pharmaceutical
industry, the major players such as Pfizer have increasingly turned to the
acquisition of startups to fill their drug pipeline, rather than their own
internal research groups. That eliminates much of the Phase 1 and 2 risk, but
also allows the market to assemble the best innovators rather than attempting
to internalize it.

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MaysonL
Cisco also comes to mind as example.

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diN0bot
Cisco also does a good job of handling acquisitions _well_.

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johnrob
Large companies probably worry about the risk of people changing. Three people
working in a startup might change once they are cashed out and part of a large
company. Since buying a small startup is basically a purchase of people, this
can make the deal less attractive.

