

TechCrunch Disrupt at it's finest: Lumier's Windows enhancement platform - dstein
http://techcrunch.com/2011/05/24/lumier-adds-a-new-coat-of-paint-to-windows/

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olivercameron
This was incredibly awkward and painful to watch. It goes to show why you
should avoid buzzwords as much as you can when pitching, it just looks like
you're compensating for a lacking product. Startups can learn an absolute ton
from this, namely:

\- Only demo when you actually have something to demo (an animated start menu
does not count).

\- Drop the buzz words, and just describe why the hell it's going to improve
my life.

\- If you're going to put up a pre-launch website[1], don't just list your
investors like that is some sort of indicator you'll be amazing, at least put
some product information on there.

Cullen's performance here intrigued me, especially his self-noted notoriety in
the Windows community. A quick Google search unearthed this:
<http://www.bluescreenofdeath.org/?p=85>, where he discusses "Project
Copenhagen" in 2009. It's pretty much the product they claim to be building
today, but now with the backing of SV Angel and the Founders Fund. According
to their website[1], "It's gonna be big. Really big.". My personal feeling is
that there just isn't enough people who will go out of their way to skin their
Windows PC, even if it does improve the experience.

1\. <http://lumier.com>

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Luyt
I agree that the actual information content in this 'pitch' is abysmal.

As for the presenters' technique, I'd like to add:

\- Speak whole sentences, and keep continuity.

\- Don't interject 'Errrrr.... So! Ehm, ..." all the time.

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malkia
There is <http://www.stardock.com/products/windowblinds/> \- how different
this would be?

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ChuckFrank
Having both pitched, critiqued and been critiqued, seeing the range of
presentation and communication skills at Disrypt NYC is very 'illuminating'.
However, in addition to what has already been mentioned by olivercameron,
there are couple of things that should encourage us to pause in completely
dismissing lumier. Firstly, good presentations and good products are not
synonymous, nor is the opposite universally true. Secondly, not having a full
demo does not mean that the idea lacks value or relevance. I think the key
thing here is that Cullen had difficulty articulating his vision, or the
product's promise. Whether he proposes simply to skin windows (like a mac) and
extend it into the cloud (like the Chrome notebook), or he envisions something
else entirely, that was not made clear.

~~~
malkia
True. Google wave's presentation was one of the best I've heard. It's also an
awesome technology, but as a whole it did not succeed.

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jmjerlecki
This presentation looks like an early Mark Zuckerberg speech. Awkward and
painful.

