Truth With Tiger: Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC’s Blog Posts?

i’ve been mulling this question over the last cpl days…  and i believe one part of the answer could be that women already feel completely left out / pushed out of the conversation.  check this out > “women make up less than 10 percent of venture-backed start-ups. As of last year, only 14 women had been funded by Y Combinator out of a total of 208.”   Read more: http://www.inc.com/articles/201109/how-to-combat-the-all-male-startup.html#ixzz1ZXeHnqmd“  although, the facts actually fire me up to succeed, i still don’t feel compelled to engage in a conversation with many of these VC’s i follow.  i am seeing a lot of female entrepreneurs, myself included, seeking out female VC’s and orgs that are set up to support and encourage women led start-ups.  are we setting up a ghetto for ourselves?  maybe…but, i’ve been to enough start-up conferences/gatherings to see and feel the exclusion. 

thanks for the post, Tara.  rah!

[...] last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” [it's short, you should read it] . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this [...]

[...] last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” [it's short, you should read it] . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this [...]

Hi Tara!  So, I’m one of the heavy AVC.com commenters.  A couple years ago, I’d been reading AVC.com for a while, but never commenting and there were very few women at all.  Then I went to a NYC event where Fred Wilson spoke and I mentioned this lack of women, but more than that, I thought there were whole disciplines which were light on the board (e.g. marketing).  He said he wished there were more but they’ve tended not to show up.  So I took that as a cue.

Not long after I left a comment, totally nervous….and Fred responded.  Then another day I left a comment that was a response to someone else, it was kind of a joke.  And some guy swooped in and counter commented, “Somebody give the lady a Like — she’s funny!” And then people started up-voting my comments and that’s how my confidence built.  2800 comments later, I’d say I’ve done a shitload of observing about how women comment in that realm.  (It’s worth noting, I almost never comment at TechCrunch, I just don’t find it a friendly, enjoyable or constructive place to spend time).

Men and women interact differently on the boards, as a general rule.  Men will leave comments to the author on the post itself, linearly, and if they react to someone else’s comment, it’s in a debate-type way.  

Women will leave what I call “primary” comments, but you’ll notice the female regulars also do a ton of reacting and affirming of other peoples comments, starting actual conversations, asking questions, asking for clarifications.  (It’s worth noting there are quite a few male “regulars” on AVC who do this too).  I truly think that this deeper and authentic interaction with each others’ comments makes the board better and boards with more women are just much more interesting.  Also, women regulars are extremely constructive and collaborative and we up-vote each other’s stuff a lot. I think we each really like to see other women show up and add their voices to the mix.  Come to think of it, boards with women regulars are also funnier.  It’s really no different from a good cocktail party — more fun in mixed company.

And there’s a lot to be said for being a “regular”, where people know you over time.  Other places, I leave a comment and no one responds, likes it, or anything.  It’s like if a tree falls in a forest….I get no satisfaction.

Hi Tara — I am a regular commenter on Fred Wilson’s AVC.com blog and I believe the 2nd or 3rd most frequent woman commenter.  Honestly, I have no idea how this happened, except that even though I am not a startup founder or a techie, when I arrived at AVC for the first time, it felt like coming home and I’ve been coming back ever since.  I do have a passion for entrepreneurship, a strong interest in innovation and disruption, and a fascination with VC.  

I initially began to frequent AVC.com because after discovering Fred Wilson, I decided that I wanted to learn as much as possible from him.  Much of the reason that I kept coming back has to do with the respect and the welcome that I experienced from Fred and the AVC regulars.  They actually responded to my questions and at least pretended to take me seriously! 

I agree with @Tereza:disqus that one of the things that makes it easier to comment at AVC is that there is a community dynamic in which we interact with each other rather than feel the pressure to make some brilliant comment in response to the day’s post.  I also saw how Fred responded to other women like Tereza and @ShanaC:disqus  who have become the two top women commenters and this gave me the courage to speak up more as well.  After reading her comment to this post, I now realize why Tereza “liked” so many of my comments.  (Well, T, it worked!)

To those women who are testing the waters:  Commenting on blogs is a lot like walking into a room full of strangers at an event.  It helps to be friendly and fearless and to ask the question “What can I contribute here?” rather than “What can I get from this?”  Or better yet, “What do I have to lose?” Just ask a question and see what happens.

If you see an interesting woman make a comment, then follow her on Disqus and see where else she is commenting.  That may make it easier to join in the convo.  If you see me on a blog, say “hi.”  I’ll give you a “like.”  ;-)

Hi T.  Didn’t want you to feel like a tree.  ;-)

+1

For the record, I read two of the blogs other than @avc but rarely comment.  In part, that’s bc on @avc I’m as often commenting on other people’s often brilliant comment string vs. responding to @fredwilson:twitter ’s blog post itself.  I don’t have a tendency to comment if i have nothing to contribute or say.  Funny though, I feel way more comfortable commenting there then i do on your average Mommy blog.  Things that make you go hum……..

Me too, Leigh — more comfortable than on the mommy blogs or even the blogs more directly related to my profession.  Glad YOU’re commenting on AVC!

Hi Tara — I am a regular commenter on Fred Wilson’s AVC.com blog and I believe the 3rd or 4th most frequent woman commenter.  Even though I am not a startup founder or a techie, when I arrived at AVC for the first time, it felt like coming home and I’ve been coming back ever since.  I do have a passion for entrepreneurship, a strong interest in innovation and disruption, and a fascination with VC.  I am also seeking ways to be supportive to entrepreneurs and the startup community.

I was drawn to @fredwilson:disqus  because he seemed to be a VC who actively engages in supporting entrepreneurs — his blog being only one example of this — and he was saying things about the VC industry that no one else seemed to be saying.  I wanted to learn as much as possible from him.  

Part of what kept me coming back over 2-3 years now is the fascinating community that Fred’s blog attracts and his hosting (or “bartending” as he calls it) that cultivates and perpetuates this community.  He asks questions of the community and really means it, and is actively involved in the convo.  And even when he is not, the stage has been set for the community to continue the convo without him.  (Another AVC.com regular @awaldstein:disqus  describes this dynamic very aptly:  http://bit.ly/ncsuFS ) 

I agree with @Tereza:disqus  that it is this community dynamic that makes it easier to comment at AVC whether you are a woman or a man.  It’s not about making some brilliant comment (although there are plenty of these), but about joining the conversation.  Much of the reason that I kept coming back has to do with the respect and the welcome that I experienced from Fred and the AVC regulars.  I got the sense that “there is no stupid question” and that just that fact that I brought a different perspective was valued in and of itself.  And Fred set the stage for this.

The defining moment for my involvement in the AVC community is when Fred referred to me as a “regular” during the time that an AVC  Twitter list was being developed by  @ShanaC:disqus .  I hate to say that I needed a license, but, well, that was it.  I also saw how he responded to Tereza and to Shana and other women who showed up.  He didn’t pander to us or create a special class, but he subtly made it clear that we were welcome.  

I don’t know whether AVC is more welcoming to women or rather just more welcoming, period, and whether the varied topics that cover a wide range just provide more diverse opportunities to jump in. 

I am seeing some of these same dynamics occur on @msuster:disqus ’s  blog as well, but Mark doesn’t have the informal community managers that are found at AVC.  Perhaps a VC who doesn’t have Fred’s or Mark’s engagement capacity should recruit a few community managers.  And if you want women as commenters, then at least one of these should be a woman.

I think that any male VC who wants more women to comment on his blog should recruit a few women as regular commenters.  Nothing says welcome to a woman more than seeing another woman there.  

I will admit that part of the reason I comment on blogs is to encourage other women to do so.  That’s not the only reason, but it is part of it.  I understand how hard it is to jump in and how intimidating it can be.  But when you are passionate about a topic, passion pushes fear aside. 

To those women who are testing the waters:  Commenting on blogs is a lot like walking into a room full of strangers at an event.  It helps to be friendly and fearless and to ask questions.  Also, it helps to enter with the attitude of  ”What can I contribute here?”  And the answer to that question is “More than you will ever know.”  

After reading her comment to this post, I now realize why Tereza “liked” so many of my comments on AVC.com.  Well, T, it worked!

Sorry, Tara, this turned into a blog post of its own.  Another thing that happens over at AVC. And thank you very much for this post, BTW.

Excellent post. I’ve needed a kick in the pants to get myself on those blog comment threads. I have a question – do you have a list of female VC bloggers? That would be a goldmine. 

Hi Jan! Thank you for taking the time to read this post and for posting your thoughts on the topic.

How you are feeling is in line with what I hear from a lot of women. That being said, take comfort in knowing that some men also feel “left out/pushed out of the conversation” especially if they aren’t part of the very small inner tech circle. 

I know that some women feel locked out of the boy’s clubhouse, but some of that feeling may also be attributed to the stress of doing a startup and not getting the response or engagement that you desire, which everyone faces.

Hi Leigh – that is one of the reasons I only comment on blogs that have a commenting system like disqus, I like chatting with the other commenters and actually make interesting contacts that way.

I’m part of a Moms Group, but the few times that I have visited Mommy blogs, I feel like the commenters are pretty intense, even moreso than on a VC post.

Hi Tereza – Wow, 2800 comments, that’s impressive.

I totally agree that being a regular commenter on a blog post makes you feel part of a community and allows you to get to know others and their view points and they get to know you and your line of thinking. What’s the saying 80% of success is just showing up. In this case I would gauge success as you learning something new, people responding to you and making new contacts.

Hi Donna,

You provided a lot of great info and touched on a lot of important how-to’s when participating on any blog, VC or not.

It sounds like Fred Wilson has created a community, not just a blog, and he has made it welcoming. Many bloggers could learn a thing or two from him.

I like that there are informal moderators that help out at AVC. I think acknowledging new commenters and welcoming them when they make a first comment goes a long way. It’s like greeting a new neighbor and making them feel welcome to the neighborhood.

Thanks and I look forward to seeing more comments from you!

-Tara

visa versa

Totally agree.  I love blogs as community and the value i get from those weak tie networks.

Hi Bridget! That’s a great idea. Here is a list I found of VCs with female partners:

http://www.quora.com/Which-venture-capital-firms-have-female-partners

I haven’t clicked thru to see who blogs yet. 
The few that I did look at don’t primarily blog about investing…maybe they need to do more of that and have another blog for more personal/family stuff.

Personally, I don’t read VC blog posts. However, you may note that for most technical blog posts, more men comment than women. I assume that more women post on traditional women’s topics (cooking blogs, maybe) and more men post on traditional male blogs (like Football or cars maybe), but why the difference on more gender neutral topics?

You may find that more men comment on blog posts outside of the tech arena.  My hypothesis, though I have no data to back it up, is that in general, men post more than women on topics that are gender neutral (like politics) partially because men and women are socialized differently, because people react differently to content based on the gender of the author and because there are fewer comments posted by women.

Unfortunately, there is still sexism in our society. When men and women make the same comment disagreeing with a poster, a man might be viewed as assertive, whereas the woman might be viewed as agressive. A complaint may be viewed as “feedback” or as “bitching” (the latter seems to be a word attributed mostly to women, if you know what I mean). 95% of the population may be forward thinking, but that 5% of the population that have their sexist heads up their sexist asses are much more likely to troll and share their douche-baggery either in the comments, in their own blogs, on Twitter and/or in IRC. 

In general, the (fortunately fewer and fewer) remaining men who are socialized to be sexist are more socialized to believe that everyone is entitled to their opinion, much more so than women (sexist or not) and non-sexist men. And, unfortunately, even generally non-sexist men and women have also been socialized along gender norms of whether people want to hear their opinions, and when it is appropriate to debate one’s opinions (and therefore when we feel it is appropriate to share those opinions and/or debate).

There are indeed fewer women posting on VC and technical blogs. This fact actually perpetuates the disparity. If one is the only woman posting on tech blogs, one is more likely to be noticed and remembered. All comments being equal, a single Jane, just based on the name, is more likely to be remembered in a series of Johns, Daves and Mikes. If this single Jane posts repeatedly, it is more likely to be remembered and noted than a single John, Dave or Mike. Because of this, some women may feel awkward posting. Sometimes, if I have a valid point and disagree with the premise (whether the author or commenters are douches), I’ll post a comment under a pseudonym. I want my comment to be noted for the content, not for my unique gender and even more unique name (how many different Estelle’s post on tech blogs?)

For example, the WHATWG IRC is full of douche-baggery. There was one very active, very opinionated woman in the WHATWG, along with many, many very active, very opinionated men. The rules seem to continually change in the WHATWG process to continue to exclude her now. However, the males in the room who are just as opinionated, but definitely less eloquent, continue participating unabated. There are several men in that chatroom who aren’t asses, but most of those don’t realize that their treatment of this one woman has made most other women hesitant to join actively and openly in the discussion. 

Because of socialization and because of the dearth of women voices on these male-dominated feeds, we have to be proactive in making a change.

It’s probably because they are busy working. 

When I see the lengthy comments below, all I can think is, “They must not be very busy at work.”

And that’s why we don’t comment. Anonymous douche-baggery is a total turn-off.

Hi Estelle! So nice to hear from you. I hope that you are doing well.

Very valid points that you bring up. I didn’t mention tech blogs because there are a bazillion of them and I wanted to make a point around an area that lots of women complain about (getting funding) and was niche enough that I could get some data quickly. But yes, same holds true for both tech blogs in terms of the % of women commenting.

That stems from a smaller % of women in tech, but also a lot of it is due to a different style of participating in blogs/communities, etc. than men.

Lately I’ve heard from many women that they prefer to be anonymous when commenting so they don’t have to deal with douches. How sad.

I wonder which tech blogs and forums are more friendly towards women. And really it could be anything from blogs focused on languages, APIs, tools, hardware, you name it.  I would hope/guess that http://adafruit, owned by Limour (LadyAda) gets a good amount of women commenting.

[...] view. But last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” [it's short, you should read it] . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this blog [...]

[...] view. But last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” [it's short, you should read it] . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this blog [...]

This was a really interesting post, thank you.  I comment on VC blogs occasionally, but most of them I read in Reader and only click through for comment threads if I really feel like I have something I want to ask or contribute…like today, since this motivated me to comment on Mark Suster’s blog.  ;)  

[...] view. But last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” [it's short, you should read it] . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this blog [...]

[...] last week I noticed a blog post by a woman, Tara Tiger Brown, that asked the question, “Why Aren’t More Women Commenting on VC Blog Posts?” . In it she observes that only 3% of the comments on this blog are from women. I would love to see [...]

Thanks Tara for your post.  Anything that gets women into contemplating venture or angel investment is great for female entrepreneurs generally.  If they comment on vc blog posts that is fabulous but for me if they just consider taking the venture path whether to get invested by venture firms or become female venture capitalists, it will help #changetheratio.  I have been video interviewing vcs, angels & women founders on the shortfall of funding for women for over a year & have recently launched an ebook “Why are Women Funded Less than Men? a crowdsourced conversation” with 120 embedded video clips & summary of my findings. http://www.ezebis.com/ebook  It is great to clear the path for women to venture into this territory (scuse the pun)! Good work

Well, actually, after several days of intense meetings (including the weekend) I finally had a break before getting back on a plane.  And I was glad to spend it commenting here. 

Encouraging others and building community online — well, this is important to me so  I make time for it.  It is a way to contribute.   Not as much as I’d like because raising four kids and building a business are pretty time consuming.   I just don’t sleep much.

And, BTW, that was not thinking, that was assuming.  You know the danger of that, right?

Tara, I am one of those women who regularly comments on the top 3 VC blogs but under a pseudonym that  doesn’t reveal my gender. I am a private person and don’t care to reveal much about that aspect of my life, and that starts with gender.

Hi Renee. I wish I was more consistent about using Google Reader but I tend to do searches for information using Twitter, which also isn’t great for comment threads. 

Hopefully more VCs will take the time to post their thoughts on this topic soon.

Swmqta – Thank you for your input. I totally get that some people just choose to be private!

Estelle/Donna ,

Don’t feed the trolls!

-Tara

@pemo:disqus Thank you for sharing. I’m watching the YT summary video now.

Thanks, Tara! I’m going to delve deeper into that list.  I posted a question on Quora asking about the number of women on Angel.co. I have found *maybe* 5. The numbers seem about on par with women YC founders. We just gotta get out there! 

Tereza and Donna are here! Of course you both are!

Leigh, Tereza and Donna – taking over the internet! Woot! Go girls go!

Unless you are Tina Fey.

http://www.badtvblog.com/2011/04/tina-fey-responds-to-internet-troll.html

[...] was reading this post on why there aren’t more women commenting on VC blogs and the slew of “No women in VC/Startups responses”  and as usual I sent it to my mom [...]

I would like to thank you for writing this post.  I have been interest in tech for a while and I often wonder what women were doing.  I am trying to push my way into the Tech world but have not found many resources in the area.  I will keep checking yoiu for updates.

@4c81cbae569e1f44421a1997bde119a1:disqus Thank you for your comment. I highly recommend joining the Systers email list. It’s all women in tech and engineering from different backgrounds and they are very helpful and resourceful. http://www.systers.org/mailman/listinfo/systers

You gotta know how to pick up women to recruit in this field.  Women are generally not interested in the tech field.  They think that it’s a male-dominated world.  Plus there’s the stereotype of men being better with electronics than women.

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering since women don’t criticism on VC blogs. Here’s a answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? we indeed consternation since Tara [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering since women don’t criticism on VC blogs. Here’s a answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? we indeed consternation since Tara [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

Tara – Its an interesting study, but just one indicator. Keep in mind, the noise you make does not indicate the impact you have. Most men I know think they rock at golf, most women I know think they suck at golf… but when you go out with either group the men swing far but way off center, the women go a few hundred yards down dead center. So if both groups played consistently they would both enjoy a good game of golf… But with their belief that they are great, there are more men playing golf. Women may come at it differently, one of which may be saying less, waiting longer, doing more homework before they get out there… but I think the true metric, the one metric on which we should champion each other, is companies created, revenue metrics achieved, jobs created… (not startups created). And there I think the bar is the same for men and women… (for the record I suck at golf too…)

Thanks for sharing it. I really liked the YT summary video. Great blog!!!

Hello, Tara. I wonder why does anything need to be “done about it”? As I mentioned on Twitter
last week, on average, women are more risk-averse than men.

[...] a post by Tara Brown wondering why women don’t comment on VC blogs. Here’s the answer: Because women don’t care. Is that okay? I actually wonder why Tara cares, [...]

 Woo … great video . Thanks for sharing it . Hope to see more .

thanks a lot for this nic Video and the VC blogger List Links. All the Best !!!!!

Hi, I have been reading this blog since many days and it is an interesting an useful blog really. I fully support your step that you have started a mini crusade to support women in technical fields, it will be really very much helpful for those women who have fear to go out side and work…! Once my wife started the same and got the digital publications from filmbelichtung with reasonable packages and boasted up the news and advertisements for her program that she just launched.
Thanks