I don't know about VC, but people says you can judge how successful a contractor is by its website; successful one usually has crappy/nonexistent website.
Worst VC Firms' Websites
41–50 of 55 posts
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#42Earlier quoted context omitted.
I will never understand this mentality. A website is a storefront, it creates trust. Do you want your portfolio company working out of a basement, a shack?
I agree with you. But from another angle, these companies are already world famous. In a way, a poor design on their web sites may become an indicator of trustworthiness in their small niche. Like sometimes very high quality products come in drab packaging, because (a) they don't have to show off, and (b) it distinguishes them from the reasonably good and they don't have to worry about being mistaken for the really b…
I'm on the outside, I don't know any of these firms. If this is how important they think experience is, I don't want to work with them.
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#43I did the new version of Kleiner Perkin's site ( http://www.kpcb.com ) and the first thing I did was to review the other VC sites out there. It is amazing how many VC websites look like they were coded up by an intern in a weekend.
I bet a lot of other VC funds copy this.
Hah. Thanks pg. They should of course feel free to reach out to me if they need a hand ;).
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#44I cringe whenever I see team photos of them where they've been put in aggressive postures or awkward poses. My favorite though is First Round's where they make everyone the same height: http://firstround.com/team/
It's pretty cool how hovering over the name highlights which person it is.
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#45You know who else has a horrible website? Berkshire Hathaway http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ . Lets think about this for a minute. Do VC firms want people to go to their website and email them about a cool investment? How do people actually interact with VC firms is that its usually a one on one with the company that they are trying to invest in. Therefore, they don't really need a expensive website to be successfu…
Maybe they don't need it.
However there's an other audience: limited partners. Most of those sites communicate a "we're stuck in the 90's, plus we're really boring" message. Maybe that's the right thing to do? Seems like horrible branding to me.
In any case, you'd think they'd at least update things so they're decent on mobile.
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#46Totally agree. However, I grew up with a family in the film business, and my parents always said you could tell who was in charge because they were usually wearing jeans. The pages/errand boys were the ones in suits.
I also wish their website would be a bit nicer, but they have probably realized it doesn't matter, they are on top and anyone whose worth one's salt already knows it.
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#47You know who else has a horrible website? Berkshire Hathaway http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ . Lets think about this for a minute. Do VC firms want people to go to their website and email them about a cool investment? How do people actually interact with VC firms is that its usually a one on one with the company that they are trying to invest in. Therefore, they don't really need a expensive website to be successfu…
What is horrible about BH's website? All the information I might be looking for is probably a single click away. There are no distracting stock images or Flash animations. They're using tables for layout, but it's probably still screen-reader-friendly.
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#48You know who else has a horrible website? Berkshire Hathaway http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ . Lets think about this for a minute. Do VC firms want people to go to their website and email them about a cool investment? How do people actually interact with VC firms is that its usually a one on one with the company that they are trying to invest in. Therefore, they don't really need a expensive website to be successfu…
[deleted]
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#49use search on Polaris Ventures website for: ' Error Type: Microsoft OLE DB Provider for SQL Server (0x80040E14) Unclosed quotation mark before the character string ' and IsPortfolio=1 order by CompanyName'. /Search.asp, line 72 -- feels like 2003 again :)
Time to start a company named "Mobile');DROP TABLE investments; --"
Re: Worst VC Firms' Websites
#50You know who else has a horrible website? Berkshire Hathaway http://www.berkshirehathaway.com/ . Lets think about this for a minute. Do VC firms want people to go to their website and email them about a cool investment? How do people actually interact with VC firms is that its usually a one on one with the company that they are trying to invest in. Therefore, they don't really need a expensive website to be successfu…
Maybe they don't need it. However there's an other audience: limited partners. Most of those sites communicate a "we're stuck in the 90's, plus we're really boring" message. Maybe that's the right thing to do? Seems like horrible branding to me. In any case, you'd think they'd at least update things so they're decent on mobile.
Hollywood sites tend to be similar. Very minimal the further up the chain you get. For example, powerhouse agency CAA's forward facing site is just addresses and switchboard numbers for their offices. http://www.caa.com/
These are sites for entities that don't really need to sell anything via their web presence.