
Why top startups are getting radically personal - nate
http://www.fastcompany.com/3024116/bottom-line/why-top-startups-are-getting-radically-personal
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katiehurst
I think personal emails are a nice touch, but I wonder what happens if a
venture is acquired, sold or even passed on. I remember a friend who worked
for a popular publication in town going through a legal battle over her
Twitter account. At the time, companies did not have the naming conventions
they do now (@NPRxxxx or @CNNxxxx) that drew the line between personal and
professional accounts. When she left the publication, her Twitter account went
with her and the publication felt that, since those followers came from her
work at the publication, they were owned by them. Now, if your venture fails,
absolutely that personal email connection is incredibly invaluable. I just
wonder if in other instances it would end up biting you in the ass.

~~~
nate
Ah, that raises a good point.

When I left my first company Inkling
([http://inklingmarkets.com](http://inklingmarkets.com)) to run what became
Draft ([http://draftin.com](http://draftin.com)) full time, I realized I
didn't have my own "brand". People know me through Inkling. Especially when it
came to writing. All this writing that I was really proud of was on the
Inkling blog. And now I don't work there anymore. No one even knows that
writing exists.

Your friend obviously ran into a problem with this approach, but I predict
it's more frequent that we create assets like company blogs and Twitter
accounts that get thrown away as we move through life and our projects and we
don't build anything up for the long term.

You can definitely balance this. Today I make sure I spend a lot more time on
building up assets that directly reflect me: my blog Ninjas and Robots
([http://ninjasandrobots.com](http://ninjasandrobots.com)) and my Twitter
account. But I still have a Draft Twitter account I use to do some "corporate"
messaging.

~~~
jdbernard
Having spent most of my career thus far building cool things I can't really
talk about in detail this hits home.

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Argorak
While I generally say that I don't give a lot about people writing me business
letters as persons, I tend to remember them better. Joel -> Buffer is a
connection I have. It still kind of creeps me out, because I don't have a
personal attachment to Joel, but I instantly know who is writing there.

That isn't really news, though, but a valid and tried strategy. e.g. in
Germany, there is a company that famously has all spots spoken by the boss
himself since the 90s. They are horrible and defy all rules of a good radio
spot, but they stick and are very successful. The company is suddenly attached
to a persona that I can just recall immediately.

Let's troll the (southern)-germans: "Seitenbacher Müsli" (you've got it in
your head, do you?)

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fleitz
Because they started thinking about marketing rather than trying to sell stuff
because it has more X.

Most top startups aren't tech companies but branding/advertising companies.
Part of their branding is being a 'startup' or 'tech company'.

Holy fuck, draft lets you make documents in which you can undo changes?!?!?!?!
This changes everything! What a technological marvel.

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nsxwolf
I don't read these. I know I'm not really being contacted by Random Founder
from the Bay Area when I see one.

~~~
vitd
Same here. I'm probably in the minority, but when I see founders in their own
marketing, it creeps me out. I mean, it's one thing to have a picture of the
founder saying, "Joe Shmoe - founder and CEO". But when they're actually
speaking in ads or sign letters to me, it just seems so forced, and often
egotistical. Leaves a really bad taste in my mouth.

~~~
AnimalMuppet
Depends on how it's done. Is it the founder, but writing CorporateSpeak? Or is
he/she writing like a human being?

The Cluetrain Manifesto should still be required reading, especially for a
startup.

