Tim Draper reinforces the importance of “delighting customers”
During a session held as part of last week’s “Startup of the Year” event, Tim Draper, a legendary Venture Capitalist, offered a new way to describe a fundamental principle that should be embraced by any entrepreneur. He attributed the words to two different individuals who, during separate conversations, shared the exact same point: “We want to delight our customers.”
Draper has invested in a variety of very successful companies. His favorite: Hotmail. The one that might have the greatest impact: SpaceX. Why each?
Draper said that Hotmail “set me on the right path. It allowed the world to open-up. It shrunk geographic borders. I think the world is much closer today.” Hotmail achieved 11 million users just 18 months after it was launched as the world’s first web-based email platform. In terms of SpaceX, Draper said that big visions like the one Elon Musk had – Draper referred to it as a “planet shot” – “inspired people to think of something that might be impossible.”
In addition to Hotmail and Tesla, also founded by Musk, Draper has invested in successful companies like Skype and Baidu and is a big fan of Bitcoin.
