The first meeting with your advisor is a short but important welcome that sets the tone for the relationship and all the interactions moving forward. Treat it as a fifteen minute meet-and-greet, the same way you might if you met the first night of a conference and knew you'd see each other again shortly.
It's a chance to inspire, so you might want to share a bit about the vision you have or why the problem you're solving is so important to you. Here's our favorite icebreaker to get the conversation started:
I just wanted to say welcome! I know you're busy and your time is limited, which is why we're thrilled to welcome you as a light-touch advisor. I know why we're excited and I wanted to know what was interesting enough about us that made it worth spending a bit of time together.
A few DOs and DON'Ts to help you make the most of this first meeting:
DO | DON'T |
Focus on establishing the relationship and rapport and building a long-term relationship with the advisor. | Don't delegate. You can't outsource a relationship. If you can't make this first meeting, it's better to send a note and reschedule rather than send someone in your place. |
Ask them about their experience broadly - not only where they're currently at but tjeor other experiences in the space that make their insight valuable. | Don't demo. Don't feel rushed to share too much about the product - there's a separate demo session that's already being scheduled. |
Keep it short and high-level. This is the welcome and the first of many steps and collaborations to come. | Don't sell (even if it's in your DNA) - there will be plenty of opportunities for advisors to indicate they're interested in trial in the future. |
| Don't spend this critical time on program details. That's our job, and if the meeting notetaker sees they have questions, we'll follow up. |