Connector slayed on Dragons Den ?
Posted in videos by connector on April 3rd, 2009
My 1 minute of fame
I’ve just about recovered from being slayed by the Irish investors on Dragons’ Den. It was weird to watch them knock me back and it was an uncomfortable looking Conor & friends in action but great publicity … I was interrogated for about 45 mins but they showed only 1 minute of the footage on TV. It was filmed 3 months ago and I went on the show to make some new connections & make the most of a great media opportunity.
What I wanted from the Dragons
Connector costs very little to run and I do not really need or seek investment. Thankfully I have a 4 day a week job @ Eighty Twenty I like the work & & my employers support my personal projects. I also thought some of the dragons did not have the profile I was looking for as a mentor or investor in such a specialised business. The discussions & negotiations were two way but the viewer did not see this – the dragons wanted to know if this a good investment while I wanted to know if this a good investor ?
I went into the Dragons’ Den ‘offering’ 10% for €50,000 but I knew they would want 30-40% of Connector to get involved in a risky personal project. That was never going to be acceptable to me as the status quo is more attractive.
There is no point in a deal for the sake of a TV show as I have a job I am happy with an in no rush to leave. A bad deal could ruin all the good work and goodwill for Connector. I was also disappointed none of them got out of their seats to look at my connector overview chart – they were about 10+ metres from it and I doubt could really see it.
The first step for me taking on a partner is for them to show an understanding of the new digital & social media landscape where Connector operates in the real & digital worlds. However, without the use of video (I was told I could only use an A0 or A1 board) and/or attending my Connector events, they did not get it. I left Bobby ‘dazed and confused’ and Sean saying I had an ‘identity crisis’ ! (Given my background as the creator of CONMAN, that was accidentally insightful !)
My Profile
The last person to bow out was Sarah Newman who did not like it when she discovered at the end that I had a job. They never really probed my background and focused solely on the idea. I did not tell them I was Irish Internet Marketer of the Year in 2005. I did not tell them that I was one of Ireland’s most successful internet marketers with several awards over the last few years to prove it. Well, they never asked me and I was surprised they did not think my profile & past employers was important, particularly for a ‘connector’.
I went onto the show for national exposure to my events & blog and I achieved my objective with a 60 second ad for Connector on RTE1. Bobby said he thought it was a publicity stunt, maybe he was right 
Niall, Conor M, Brendan, Natalia, Tania & I filmed some Connector videos on the day as that is what Connector is all about … showcasing my work, my friends talents & creating stories for my blog.
Connecting with Sean Gallagher
By concidence, I met Sean Gallagher last night at an Ernst & Young ‘Entrepreneur of the Year’ charity dinner. He was very nice and had some positive comments about Connector which was great. He said that after I left the Dragons Den set, that he predicted that they had not seen the last of Conor Lynch & Connector. He was right … I’d bumped into him already while out connecting ! Connector has made great progress since then with new sponsors including Canon, Ben & Jerrys, Hosting 365 & Bulmers Light and the Connector events are going great.
Pity that everything said to me on the piece aired on Thursday was only the negative bits. Entrpreneurship is vital for Ireland today and people should be encouraged as much as possible. I am not alone in thinking the show has room for improvement next series with a less dismissive attitude from the dragons coming across on the show. Maybe they need better ideas or maybe it is simply down to the editing.
Thanks !
Thanks for all the support, comments & emails and those who joined me in Le Cirk to watch the show – we had lots of craic and I got to connect with some great new peeps including Anton Mannering & Marcus MacInnes who took the mobile videos below. There was also quite a buzz on Twitter & you can follow me on Twitter @connector_ie
If you want to find out more about my Dragons’ Den experience, please get in touch.
Apologies if you were disappointed I did not get the cash. For what it’s worth, I’m very happy with the outcome.
PS – Thanks to Enda Kelly & Sinead Barry for making myself & Nick so welcome at the ‘Soul of Haiti’ fundraiser.
Fred says:
Spot on Conor!
Following the overall comments, especially through Twitter during and after the show, plus your appreciations here, I also agree that the those 60 seconds of fame weren’t very porwerful and/or helpful.
My partner and I have witnessed all the way since last year the pace at which Connector.ie has been growing…and it’s absolutely fantastic. A clear demonstration of that are your latest videos. They look very professional and generate great interest and impact!
I have no doubt that Connector.ie will be a success in the near future.
Take a look at this when you have a chance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45mMioJ5szc
All the best
Fred
April 4th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
connector says:
Thanks Fred – appreciate the cool comment !
Nice video link too – see you soon @ connector no.9
conor
April 4th, 2009 at 8:12 pm
David Quaid says:
Hi Conor,
As I said on twitter I was really disappointed by the attitude and comments of the dragons. I don’t think they took the time to fully understand your business/ideas. I don’t think they wanted to look like they’d invest in something that doesn’t have a definite monetisation route. Most of all, if it’s not something that can be patented, boxed and sold in Dunnes, its even less interesting.
Looking at the bigger perspective and the Dragon’s previous investments, I grow more and more despondent about the show and the situation Ireland is. As Anton Mannering mentioned at Bizcamp (Limerick) – we need to fund innovative and exportable businesses that are funded and grown from within Ireland.
Your site has what all sites needs – visitors. When you have enough visitors, you have all the monetisation routes open to any site. The problem with websites is not how to make money from them, its how do you get people coming to websites. You know this and it’s a damning indictment of Senior members of the Irish Establishment that they don’t know this. Silicon Valley and innovative hotspot we are definitely not, not yet anyway.
Chin up – after seeing the Dragons fighting to invest in a wooden well-cover/roof for a clothes line you’re better off not tarred with that brush!
April 5th, 2009 at 7:30 pm
Alastair says:
I think a lot of the negativity comes from the editors, unfortunately that’s a big part of what sells the program to viewers
No matter what else, you can use “as seen on Dragons Den” in your marketing materials.
Again, well done Conor.
April 5th, 2009 at 10:27 pm
Ingrid Razimitaz says:
Hi Conor,
You were indeed slain, and clearly the production was deliberately edited that way in an attempt at ‘good viewing’.
The short slot you got and the way you were portrayed made your project look flakey, but having looked at your stuff I see you actually have something very viable.
No such thing as bad pr!
Best of luck to you,
Ingrid
April 7th, 2009 at 2:05 pm
patrick quinn says:
Hello,
I have just seen the Dragons Den on RTE for the first time. In my opinion, all I will say is that Sarah Newman epitomises the worst of women in business. There are women in business and there are ladies in business. Sarah Newman is niether.
I hope to meet her and share my opinion with her without reservation. One is far better off avoiding ****** such as Sarah New-man. I would rather go broke, starve, become homeless and have red hot ****** pushed into my ****** in prefference to going into business with that item. She is just an Essex girl who got lucky.
Regards,
Me.
April 12th, 2009 at 5:42 pm
Paul says:
Just a quick note to congratulate you and the gang on Dragon’s Den – it ain’t an easy thing to go on and then be at the mercy of editing. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger…
April 13th, 2009 at 8:10 am
Annonymous says:
Hello,i was part of the team that helped organise the Soul of Haiti charity event on the 2nd of April. It was not actually an Ernst and Young charity event, it was in fact for a college project and to raise money for SoH. Glad you enjoyed yourself!
April 23rd, 2009 at 5:22 pm