LincSphere is a personal CRM and networking application designed to move professionals away from static prospect lists toward active relationship management. The 38-slide deck, of which 10 key slides are analyzed here, positions the product as a bridge between social networks like LinkedIn and enterprise CRMs like Salesforce. The company emphasizes features that existing platforms lack, such as double-opt-in introduction workflows, referral tracking, and business card scanning. With 260+ users as of July 2017 and interest from networking organizations, the deck focuses heavily on product util…
Key takeaways
- The company positions itself with the tagline 'Helping You Build Relationships, Not Prospect Lists' on slide 1.
- Slide 9 identifies eight key activities for networking, including recording activities, finding ways to help, and sending referrals.
- The product includes a 'Network Strength' dashboard that categorizes contacts by connection level, such as 'Trusted Contact' or 'Acquaintance' (slide 13).
- LincSphere offers granular follow-up reminders ranging from weekly to yearly, or specific dates (slide 17).
- A dedicated referral feature allows users to track what a referral is looking for and what was told to the recipient (slide 26).
- The competitive matrix on slide 31 claims LincSphere is the only solution offering double-opt-in introductions and geographical network views compared to Contactually, Refer.com, and Nudge.
- As of July 1, 2017, the app had 260+ users with acquisition driven primarily by word of mouth (slide 34).
- The exit strategy explicitly targets LinkedIn/Microsoft and Salesforce as primary potential acquirers (slide 37).
LincSphere Pitch Deck Analysis
LincSphere enters the crowded CRM market with a specific focus on the individual professional rather than the enterprise. The deck emphasizes the 'personal' in personal CRM, focusing on the mechanics of networking that happen outside of a standard sales funnel. By targeting the 'relationship' rather than the 'prospect,' LincSphere attempts to carve out a niche for users who rely on referrals and introductions to drive business.
Slide 1: Title and Value Proposition
The cover slide introduces the company name and a clear, descriptive tagline: "Helping You Build Relationships, Not Prospect Lists." The logo features two stylized figures shaking hands over a horizon line, reinforcing the theme of human connection. This slide establishes the brand identity as a tool for networking rather than cold outreach.
Slide 5: The LinkedIn Context
Slide 5 displays a standard LinkedIn connection request interface. The text overlay states, "Maybe you send out some connection requests on LinkedIn as well." This slide serves to ground the problem in a familiar user behavior, suggesting that while LinkedIn is the starting point for connections, it may not be the optimal place for managing the resulting relationships.
Slide 9: The Networking Problem Space
This slide lists the "KEY ACTIVITIES" involved in building a strong network. These include:
Storing contact info · Learning more about them · Organizing them into groups · Remembering to stay in touch · Recording your activities · Finding ways to help them · Sending referrals · Making good introductions
The slide concludes that a technology solution is needed to accomplish all these actions efficiently, setting the stage for the LincSphere product reveal.
Slide 13: The Dashboard Interface
Slide 13 provides the first look at the mobile application. The "Network Strength" dashboard for a user named Ron Johnson shows a pie chart categorizing contacts by connection level: Friend, Trusted Contact, Acquaintance, and Never Met. Below the chart are six primary action icons: Scan Cards, My Contacts, Add a Contact, Make Intro, Send Referral, and Follow-Up List. The UI is clean and utility-focused.
Slide 17: Follow-Up Customization
This slide shows the "Edit Contact" screen with a "Follow-Up" modal open. Users can select frequencies including:
Weekly · 2X per month · Monthly · Every Other Month · Quarterly · 2x per year · Yearly · One specific date · No Follow-up
This level of granularity supports the company's claim that the tool is designed for long-term relationship maintenance rather than short-term sales cycles.
Slide 22: Interaction Logging
Slide 22 illustrates the "Create New Interaction" screen. It allows users to log specific details such as the date, time, "Who Helped Who?" , and the "Activity Type." A notes section is included for qualitative data. This feature addresses the 'Recording your activities' requirement mentioned on slide 9.
Slide 26: Referral Management
The "Send a Referral" screen shown on slide 26 is a core differentiator. It includes fields for:
Who the referral is being sent to · Who the referral is (the contact being referred) · What this referral is looking for · What I told them about you
This structured approach to referrals suggests a workflow that is more professional and trackable than a standard email introduction.
Slide 31: Competitive Advantage
LincSphere uses a standard feature comparison table to stack itself against Contactually, Refer.com, and Nudge. According to the chart, LincSphere is the only product that offers:
Double-opt-in introductions · Geographical view of your network · Business card scanning via camera
It also claims to be superior to Refer.com and Nudge in providing follow-up ideas and tracking metrics, while matching Contactually in visual analytics and follow-up reminders.
Slide 34: Traction and Interest
The traction slide provides specific dates and figures. The beta ran from April-July 2016 , and as of July 1, 2017 , the app had 260+ users. The slide notes that acquisition has been entirely word-of-mouth. It also lists four points of "Other Interest," including a networking organization in Philly with 300 members and LinkedIn coaches with a list of 6,000 potential users.
Slide 37: Exit Strategy
The deck concludes its narrative with an exit strategy. It identifies LinkedIn/Microsoft and Salesforce as likely acquirers. The argument for Microsoft is that LincSphere fills a gap in business networking and complements their recent productivity app acquisitions. For Salesforce, the deck suggests LincSphere could be a personal networking tool for individual salespeople, expanding Salesforce's reach beyond the corporate CRM level.
What LincSphere Does Well
The deck is highly effective at defining a specific workflow for networking. By breaking down the 'key activities' of networking on slide 9 and then showing the corresponding app features in subsequent slides, the founders demonstrate a deep understanding of their target user's pain points. The inclusion of a double-opt-in introduction feature is a sophisticated touch that resonates with high-level professional networkers who value privacy and etiquette.
The competitive matrix on slide 31 is also well-executed. Rather than just listing generic features, it focuses on specific functional gaps in the market, such as the geographical network view and the 'who helped who' interaction tracking. This makes the 'why now' and 'why us' arguments more compelling for an investor looking for a unique product angle.
What is Missing from the LincSphere Deck
While the product story is strong, the business story is incomplete in this 10-slide selection. The most glaring omissions are:
Team Slide: There is no information about the founders' backgrounds, technical expertise, or previous successes in the networking or CRM space. · Financials and Business Model: The deck mentions 'subscriptions' on slide 34 but does not detail the pricing tiers, projected revenue, or customer acquisition costs (CAC). · The Ask: There is no slide indicating how much capital the company is seeking to raise, the valuation, or how the funds will be allocated. · Market Size (TAM/SAM/SOM): While the deck identifies a problem, it does not quantify the total addressable market of professional networkers or the specific segment they are targeting. · Roadmap: Beyond the mention of Android and Web versions on slide 34, there is no clear timeline for future feature development or market expansion.
Founder Takeaways
Focus on Workflow: Founders building tools for specific professional behaviors should follow LincSphere's lead in mapping features directly to a list of 'key activities.' This proves the product was built with intent rather than just a collection of features.
Quantify Interest: Even if you don't have thousands of users, listing specific organizations or influencers who have expressed interest (as seen on slide 34) provides a form of social proof that is more valuable than generic growth projections.
Be Specific About Competition: Don't just say you are 'better' than the competition. Use a feature matrix to show exactly where the functional gaps lie. LincSphere's focus on 'double-opt-in' as a differentiator is a great example of finding a small but significant feature that competitors have overlooked.
Avoid Speculative Exits: While it is tempting to list Microsoft and Salesforce as acquirers, doing so without a clear path to that acquisition can sometimes appear naive. It is often better to focus on the growth of the business itself rather than who might buy it in five years.
Frequently asked questions
- What is the core problem LincSphere is trying to solve?
- LincSphere addresses the inefficiency of building a professional network using traditional tools. Slide 9 suggests that current methods fail to help users efficiently store contact info, learn about contacts, organize groups, stay in touch, record activities, help others, send referrals, and make introductions. It aims to transform 'prospect lists' into active, mutually beneficial relationships.
- How does LincSphere differentiate itself from LinkedIn?
- While LinkedIn is used for connection requests (slide 5), LincSphere positions itself as the tool for managing those connections after the request is accepted. Slide 31 highlights features LinkedIn lacks, such as double-opt-in introduction workflows, business card scanning, and specific referral tracking metrics that are not native to the standard LinkedIn interface.
- What traction did the company have at the time of the deck?
- According to slide 34, the iPhone app beta ran from April to July 2016. By July 1, 2017, the app was live on the App Store with 260+ users. The company also cited interest from a Philly networking organization with 300 members and two LinkedIn coaches with a reach of 6,000 potential users.
- What are the key features of the LincSphere mobile app?
- The app includes a dashboard for network strength, business card scanning, contact categorization, introduction and referral tools, and a follow-up list (slide 13). It also features a detailed 'Interactions' log (slide 22) where users can record who helped whom and the specific type of activity performed.
- Who are the intended acquirers for LincSphere?
- Slide 37 identifies Microsoft (via LinkedIn) and Salesforce as the primary targets. The rationale is that LincSphere fills a 'missing gap' in business networking for Microsoft and provides a personal network management tool that Salesforce could sell to individual salespeople alongside their enterprise CRM.
