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| Edited By: R Krishna |Source: |Updated: Nov 19, 2013, 11:17 PM IST
When serial entrepreneur Kris Nair started Opdrage Venture Partners, a boutique management consulting and investment banking firm focused on seed and early stage ventures, less than a year ago, he was clear about one thing, “My focus was on the first-time entrepreneur.” By experience Nair knew that such entrepreneurs often hesitate to open up freely with venture capitalists (VC).
To tackle this problem, Nair decided to start a blog (krisnair.tumblr.com) where he posted his thoughts or pictures that he thought were interesting “to create an image of being approachable. I wanted to show my casual side and the blog has helped me connect with many entrepreneurs. Now, I get almost 20 calls per day, many of them through my blog.”
Nair who is also the business mentor at The National Entrepreneurship Network says that entrepreneurs who blog about topics that interest them professionally can reach out to audiences in India and abroad without spending large amount of money on the PR machineries which they can’t afford.
Many entrepreneurs are turning to blogs to voice their thoughts in their area of expertise. Unlike websites that are essentially unidirectional, blogs help entrepreneurs interact with people not only for business, but to connect with other like-minded people.
“Blogging, if done right, increases the trustworthiness of the blogger entrepreneur and in turn the trustworthiness of the company he or she represents,” says Rajesh Shetty, an entrepreneur, investor and author (blog.lifebeyondcode.com). Veteran blogger Dina Mehta (www.dinamehta.com), a market researcher and ethnographer, who started Mosoci
More importantly, says Mehta, the blog has allowed her to connect with many like-minded people. “The number of readers doesn’t matter as much as the quality of interaction with people who interested in ethnography. I have got in touch with other ethnographers and researchers. I found out about interesting communities. This free flow of information is liberating,” says Mehta.
Another advantage of a blog is that it helps you get quality feedback from people who are equally interested in the topic. Shripriya Mahesh who gave up her job as vice president of eBay to pursue her passion of making films, started a blog called Tatvam (tatvam.com). She posted her first short film on her blog and got “tons of feedback” that every filmmaker yearns for. “As I start working on making my next short film, some of the people I've met through blogging are the ones who are going to help me realise my vision,” says Shripriya.
Nair, in fact, encourages many of the entrepreneurs he mentors to take up blogging. He recalls an incident at his previous firm, Sactlier. “We were initially hesitant to blog about our work. But instead of getting into the details, we started by talking about our approach.
