Five Tips on Doing Business in Silicon Valley

Aislinn Malszecki, Online Content Associate, MaRS, Toronto, ON

Many startups with roots in Canada are eager to do business in Silicon Valley, but they often head down with the wrong assumptions.

In this video, Aron Solomon, the senior advisor in education technology at MaRS, shares five tips to help you get the most out of your trip to the valley’s dozen or so cities, including Mountain View and Palo Alto. The region’s tech timeline goes way back, and Aron says it’s not only important to understand the history, but also how things have changed; for example, the days of operating in “stealth mode” are over, and collaboration is the new way of doing business.

Aron’s five tips on doing business in Silicon Valley:

1. To succeed, first understand the area’s history.
2. Spend your time there legally and intelligently.
3. Be open to collaboration.
4. Steer clear of the myths about Silicon Valley.
5. Recognize that San Francisco is not Silicon Valley.

Doing Business in Silicon Valley: Five Hot Tips for Startups from MaRS Discovery District on Vimeo.