Is it appropriate to drop-in at a startup incubator?
As an entrepreneur, when visiting a city with an active startup community, is it appropriate to drop in unannounced at one or more of the local incubators?
(Assuming you don't know anyone in the local scene, and your goal is to meet some of the local people, and exchange ideas about how to do things)
4 Answers
Dropping in unannounced is something that people will do, but it isn't the greatest idea ever.
For most (technology focused) incubators, just sending a tweet to them with a comment like "Hey, i'll be in town on Tuesday, mind if I drop by?" should suffice. Otherwise, a email or a phone call will work.
-
Having some sort of "in" or introduction is really helpful. You might also use something like LinkedIn to see if you know someone who knows someone. – Clay Nichols 12 years ago
-
@ClayNichols helpful? You betcha. However, I wouldn't say it's required. – Jrg 12 years ago
If you are in Arizona, there's a free collaborative workspace where you can drop-in in several locations hosted by Gangplank.
I feel drop-in unannounced is not good. The incubator may not appreciate for a variety of reasons including his schedule, privacy he wants to keep and a lot of other issues. One should fix a prior appointment on phone. These drop in creates a lot of issues with the host. I have been victim of such onslaught.
Sounds good to send a single template email before dropping in and only drop in after a reply
-
Template email? No. Make it a personal email. Show that you at least *appear* to care. – Jrg 12 years ago
