If your online circles touch on tech it is likely you have caught wind (and perhaps even a bit of hot air) of a pseudo controversial battle between two prominent conferences, DEMO and TechCrunch50. There has been much ballyhoo in battling blog posts between Robert Scoble and Chris Shipley, and others.
Last year I was fortunate to attend both DemoFall and TechCrunch40 and frankly, from my perspective they were both really great events, and in many respects very different events. As the new kid on the block, TechCrunch40 was full of spunk and excitement, and based in Downtown San Francisco it seemed to attract everyone. It was broadly attended by start-ups, bloggers, tech-execs and enthusiasts. The hallways were networking heaven, and seemed to transcend the scope of the presenting companies and attendees. Demo, in contrast, being based in San Diego, was more like being on an island. Seemingly smaller and more slickly produced, Demo had the feel of a more elite, country club event. More focus on the presenting companies and so-called mainstream press, and few, if any, folks who were not directly involved as a presenting company, media, or investment community attendee. At both events I saw great presentations and not so great presentations. At both events I was impressed at times, and not so impressed at others. Regardless of my own impressions, and my own personal and professional agendas at each, for the companies presenting each event was most certainly an important and exciting moment. It was a time for the companies to shine, and show off their innovation and share their inspiration.
Which leads me to my point. Through all the hype and hyperbole, I sincerely hope that the companies currently involved in both events remember that the real excitement of entrepreneurship is not just having a great idea, making a killer presentation, and becoming the darling of the press or the blogosphere. The real challenge and real excitement of being an entrepreneur is in EXECUTING. In the end, its not about Demo or TechCrunch50 or any other conference or press event, but rather, it is about building a company that really serves your marketplace and customers as you have defined them. It is about executing on a plan that delivers a great product or service that generates real revenue and creates opportunities and careers for your employees and value for your investors.
In the coming months and years ahead, the success of the companies on display this week will not be measured by which event they were a part of or how cool their presentation was. The true measure of success will be based on their execution.
Good luck to them all!
Photo Credit: Tjall - Fotolia.com
