Bite Me

About six weeks into my efforts to build the the cleantech business, THUNDER FACTORY sputtered. Its business cycle hit a predictable trough. By my calculations, any upside, both financially and professionally, was far in the distance for those that stayed.

So, on March 16, I sent the agents out and starting turning over rocks. I had a couple of strategies: 1) join an agency that had/was building a cleantech practice; 2) go to the corporate side for either an established player with green designs or one of the startups that had secured a Series B or C round and were ready to ramp up marketing or 3) do my own marketing/communications consulting thing.

Group 1: these are folks I've listed previously, including A&R Edelman, Bite, Blanc & Otus, Antenna and Text 100. I had an in with Bite through Kristina Skierka, previously at McGuire & Co., which handles most of the Flex Your Power programs (uber resource efficiency program in California). I also found out about 463 Communications, which does tech policy and has some interesting partners. I also looked at Ecos Consulting and Resource Solutions Group (which broke off from a previous employer, D&R International), both of which are hybrid agencies/energy efficiency consultants.

Group 2: I checked out SolarCity, ecoAmerica (a non-profit where my old boss is the Executive Director), Business for Social Responsibility, Fat Spaniel, Organic Bouquet, and a handful of anonymous Craigslist postings. Surprisingly, all the previous networking didn't turn up many cleantech companies that were actively hiring.

Group 3: Building a book of business looked like it would need to be ad hoc clients, not just cleantech. Nevertheless, I started piecing together project options for a variety of sources.

Shortly into this sifting and sorting options, Bite Communications came back with a solid offer. The culture (flat, comfortable), reputation (friends of friends work there), clients (big brands and startups too), overall package (inc. 5 weeks vacation), and, very importantly, burgeoning cleantech and green products practice hooked me. I start on April 30, 2007.