Zuckerberg's Threads, Cowherd’s California Living Framework, and The Vanity of Series A Metrics
Stretch Four Volume 61
Hello all,
I'm currently in San Francisco and unfortunately missed the kickoff weekend of the NBA Summer League — but my wife will say I did fine this weekend as I plowed through two days of summer hoops. The Summer League has gone from a fairly obscure event to one of the NBA’s biggest marketing events and it is a playground for NBA enthusiasts and business-minded entrepreneurs like myself. However, this year I couldn't make it due to the abnormally timed 4th of July holiday.
This week‘s newsletter will include:
Our quote of the week from Colin Cowherd, discussing a framework I chose to relate to while living in San Francisco.
Our chart of the week reinforces previous discussions on geography and the location of venture capital.
Two thought-provoking articles, one of which discusses Mark Zuckerberg's hard launch of Threads, which may have reached 100 million downloads by now, and the other debunking the myth of Series A metrics from Charles Hudson.
As always, we'll be wrapping up our final thoughts, upcoming events, and plugs.
Don't forget to like, subscribe, and comment to stay up-to-date on the latest in user research and product development. Enjoy!
My work
We are back to our regular schedule podcasts and Youtube this week. In the meantime check the links below which I added to find everything you need on Stretch Four.
Quote of the week
Colin Cowherd on the House of Strass Podcast this week:
There are unlikable NFL players like Antonio Brown, unlikable baseball players, and so on. You have to accept that there will always be some unlikeable people in the sports world, just like living in a big city. For example, Los Angeles has great Mediterranean weather, delicious food, and 31 music venues, but also has a homeless issue and terrible traffic. Once you get to a third or fourth issue, that's when it becomes a real problem. However, you have to accept these big city problems. Despite the issues, LA is an incredibly diverse city with great food, music, and sports, and people are overwhelmingly happy. You rarely hear car horns honking and people are generally content. The same goes for sports.”
I related this to the startup journey and living in San Francisco versus Los Angeles for sports media, and entertainment. The Bay Area offers many advantages for entrepreneurs, such as the tech ecosystem and access to capital, as well as a culture of innovation and risk-taking. However, there are also challenges, including high costs and primarily in San Francisco proper homelessness and drugs. The key is to focus on the aspects that you enjoy the most about living in the city and building your company there while being realistic about the tradeoffs you are making.
Chart of the week
It's becoming increasingly clear that venture capital is not accessible in many regions of the US. I recently spent some time in the Midwest, which I referenced on the podcast. It's not surprising to see that there is a lack of venture investment in this region. While it's been a common narrative among venture-backed technology builders that you can be anywhere to raise capital, it's simply not true. There are places that are dead zones for accessing venture funding.
Tweet of The Week and a Thread…
Articles
Mark Zuckerberg Hard-Launched Threads, and It Worked (link)
There’s No Such Thing as Series A Metrics (link)
Final Thoughts
Don't forget to check out our previous podcasts, available on Spotify and Apple, and our emerging YouTube channel. We'd love to hear your feedback!
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Plugs
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