Why I Won't Promise You an Intro
As an investor, I get asked for introductions all the time. From portfolio companies, from founders I meet day-to-day, and even from other investors. But no matter how much I may want to help someone, I never ever promise to make one.
Sounds like a bit of a jerk move, right? 🤡
To understand why, let’s start with a bit of history…
The Double Opt-In Introduction
In 2009, Fred Wilson proposed a simple yet powerful email etiquette practice which he called the “double opt-in introduction”:
The practice quickly gained adoption amongst VC circles. It wasn’t long before investors were insisting that all introductions be made through double opt-in.
Today, the use of double opt-in introductions in Silicon Valley is near-religious.
Its rapid adoption reflects the fact that the practice exists at the intersection of the two most prized resources amongst VCs: time and personal networks. Making an introduction without a double opt-in is now one of the biggest faux pas you can make amongst Silicon Valley investors.
This may seem silly (what’s the big deal? 🤷‍♂️), but the practice is now deeply ingrained in investor etiquette. The manner in which you communicate a request for introduction now carries a whole lot of weight and signalling.
Signalling Matters
How you communicate a request for introduction says a lot about you, whether you realize it or not.
If you forward someone an introduction request and ask them for a double opt-in, you’re signalling to the receiver that:
I understand you’re busy
I respect your time
As someone in my personal network, I’m protective of access to you
On the other hand, if you make a direct introduction to someone without first getting their permission, you’re potentially sending the opposite signal:
I don’t understand (or I don’t care) how busy you are
I don’t respect your time
I am not filtering access to you
(You may also be signalling “I’m an outsider,” in that you don’t understand the accepted etiquette.)
Why does this matter? Most people have far more emails in their inbox than hours in the day, so we naturally adjust our behavior over time to prioritize the people we want to respond to.
For example, if I receive an email with the subject line “FW: Request for Introduction to Chris @ Panache”, I’m far more likely to respond quickly if it were sent to me by someone who I know is respectful of my time and thoughtful about the types of introductions they send my way. On the other hand, if a person repeatedly makes direct intros to me without my opt-in or forwards me introductions that they know — or should know — aren’t a fit for me (e.g. sending me Series B companies as a Pre-Seed investor), then at best I’ll get around to reading their email later.
More likely, I won’t open the email at all.
Can I interest you in a late-stage growth round?
At first, this may seem silly, but it’s a reflection of the degree to which many investors prioritize and optimize their time. Most of us have long since come to terms with the fact that we’ll never “catch up” on our work (or our email), so we’re constantly looking for ways to improve our efficiency.
So No, I Won’t Promise You an Intro
At this point, it should be pretty obvious why I won’t ever promise someone an introduction. To maintain my personal relationships, I must give the other person the opportunity to opt-out. I need to demonstrate that I respect them and their time enough to allow them to politely decline the introduction (for whatever reason they may have — valid or otherwise).
Moreover, if I want to make the introduction happen, the best way for me to do so is to send a double opt-in email with an explanation of why the connection would be beneficial to the other person. In other words, lobby on your behalf.
How You Can Improve Your Chance of an Introduction
If you’re a founder looking to get an introduction, one of the best ways to increase your success rate is to signal that you understand the dynamics at play. That is, signal to the connector that you understand the importance of time and personal networks.
How do you do that?
By explicitly asking them to facilitate a double opt-in when requesting an introduction.
Arjun Dev Arora has a fantastic post on how to write a great email request for introduction, complete with examples of how to do this. At a high level, it’s actually quite simple:
Demonstrate that you’ve done your research (show that there’s a specific reason why you’re asking for this particular introduction)
Clarify why the introduction is of benefit to the recipient
Explicitly reference double opt-in in your request (e.g. “I would really appreciate if you could forward this email to Sarah for double opt-in”)
As founders, you have to be comfortable with uncertainty, and the etiquette around investor introductions is a great example of that. I won’t ever be able to provide you the certainty of a guaranteed introduction, but if you send me a well-written request that shows you understand why double opt-in matters, I’ll almost certainly pass it along with my thumbs up.
