"Come to Kendall."

Over the past couple of months, this has been our siren call to Vestigo investors both existing and prospective, and advisory board members and friends. If you answered the call, you can count yourself part of an engaged group that now has at least a basic education on the technology trends changing our industry, such as big data and social media selling, as well as insight on the progress of Vestigo and our portfolio companies. Lots of smiles and perhaps a tasty cocktail (thanks to American Liquor Company of Boston) was enjoyed by many.

Here’s a quick recap:

Mira Wilczek taught us about the explosion of data available to analyze consumer trends and the impact of the internet on perceptions of need. Combined with inexpensive computing power, data is making algo running very easy. It’s also making targeting to build a business faster and cheaper.

We learned about relationships in the data that provide insights previously left to humans to find on their own. These analyses not only take the guesswork out of determining  demand for a business, they also take the emotion out of experimentation — giving us better, more accurate insight, quicker and less expensively. This can give us an understanding of consumer preferences, the consumers themselves don’t know they have.  

In addition, we learned about the power of social media to improve selling effectiveness. This has become Ian's favorite topic while exploring the wonders of Twitter and LinkedIn. Michael Orr was able to show how sales teams and companies can drive significant improvements in results by building a brand on social media.  Grapevine6 is an app that can get you started. Check it out in the App Store.

Dave and Mark started the evening with a review of their over 18-year partnership. From Vestmark to CourseAdvisor to Jobcase, they achieved many successes together before launching Vestigo Ventures. After 18 months, our work is bearing fruit.  

Ian and Mike are making great progress running this fund, with Mark dedicating his post-LPL Financial time to the effort. Three great portfolio companies, great LP's in Fund 1 and many prospects in the pipeline are the result.

Finally, Ian and Mike provided a review of the  business plans coming to Vestigo, as well as insights on what we’re seeing regularly in our four key areas of focus — Markets, Operations, Worksite and Wealth Management.

Mike discussed the excellent progress of the portfolio companies — LifeYield, Netcapital and Vestmark. Good to see revenue growth and the addition of many new clients. Kudos are also in order for earning the “best places to work” award — a nod to their great work environments.

Be sure to attend next year. Reach out to Ian or Mike if you’d like copies of materials from the evening.