In this interview with Adam Torres on Mission Matters Innovation Podcast, Nicole Casanova talks about scaling legacies by connecting conscious capitalists, emerging tech companies, creatives, brands, and revolutionaries. She also shares her focus on the “Connector Economy” and what she’s creating with The Conspiracy, a network of gatekeepers to the Who’s Who that are leveraging their relationships for good. The Conspiracy’s tech uncovers the wealth in any network and empowers Superconnectors to breathe life into the next great innovations.
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Nicole Casanova is a media and technology executive with a 25-year background in interactive marketing, emerging technology, social ventures, and startups. Nicole’s company, Casanova Ventures, uses what it calls “art of leverage advice” and “connection curation” to fast track traction by optimizing time, resources, and most importantly, relationships, for greater impact.
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What mission matters to you?
“I am here to Shift The Game and leverage technology and entrepreneurship to Power The People. That may mean us owning our identity, data, infrastructure, food, media, money. You name it. I scale the innovations and ideas that make us more sovereign and free so that all of us feel good and thrive.”
What do you do?
As a Connection Catalyst, Consigliere, and Trusted Advisor to tech and investment’s top players, Nicole says she enjoys bringing resources together to cultivate lucrative opportunities that match both parties’ needs. The core job of a connector in business, she says, is to listen for the party’s wishlist, whether they know it or not, pattern match, and curate the right relationships that will result in leapfrog moments.
“I connect disruptive ideas and emerging tech with their perfect resources. That may mean revenue generation, access to capital, media opportunities, building out an audience, network, or ecosystem, leveraging complementary technologies, growing the organization’s team or board, engaging brands and influencers. The list of results for bringing the right WHO to the table are endless.”
What is The Connector Economy and why is it important?
“Many of us are Connectors and I’m determined to create ways to reward us for our love of building relationships. Superconnectors, however, crystalize the wealth in the network,” she explains. “We know the right players and what gets them jazzed. We have years of trust to leverage and can open the doors that a sales team of 100 can spend years trying to access.” She believes that connections build all innovation. They build communities. They build economies. The right connections secure funding, raise brand visibility, offer media opportunities, marry technologies for efficiency, speed, and scale, generate more revenue faster, and disrupt markets. . “Superconnectors make or break brands, deals, and reputations. Word of Mouth is one thing. Endorsement from the right Superconnector is a different gold only the top influencers can convey.”
What is Casanova Ventures all about?
Casanova Ventures makes connections for its clients, from PE and VC firms to the philanthropist, activist, or tech founder. Over the years, Nicole has advised hundreds of founding teams and emerging leaders and has been a mentor and advisor for accelerators and startup studios, sometimes building out their networks.
“Sometimes we work with investors to monetize their portfolio companies, bring them deal flow, and gather their next fund’s investors” she says. “We may vet tech for investors deciding on leading a next round by introducing the startup to their wishlist clients or perfect partners. Or, we scout our own game-changing tech that empowers all of us to thrive. For example, we’re bringing partners to a new public Blockchain protocol that allows for self-sovereign identity. One application of the tech allows people to own and monetize their personal data with transparency and privacy. Because we work as a third party, we have unprecedented access to the top executives and brands. We are then privy to information they’d never hear otherwise and can condense time closing high level strategic deals.
Our sweet spot is at the intersection of media, influencers (artists, athletes, celebrities), brands, the creator economy, and any emerging tech that celebrates them. We’re industry agnostic though and have robust networks in every vertical. That said, if it’s novel, compelling, scaleable tech that makes people more free and sovereign, you’re more likely to get our attention.”
These days, Nicole acts as a Consigliere scaling the legacies of high networth individuals, philanthropists, impact investors, and serial entrepreneurs. “I’m a trusted advisor for these visionaries and it’s my joy to curate the perfect partners, resources, and opportunities around their table.”
Why she believes in The Conspiracy
“The word Conspiracy, in Latin, originally meant ‘to breathe together’ before we corrupted it,” Nicole laughs. “We’re creating the sharing economy for relationships and curating connections to breathe life into the next important innovations,” she says. “The Conspiracy is a referral engine for Superconnectors that can uncover and cultivate the wealth in any network. Built on the blockchain, it lets us cross-market deal flow, have a shared back office, and track deals to fruition. It values the power of The Connector Economy. However, the tech startup, although viable and positioned for a massive exit when the time comes, is just a front. The real business is under the radar and hush-hush. That’s because The Conspiracy is also a network of Superconnectors and Conspirators who are leveraging their relationships and resources for good. Our network of tech, media, and finance visionaries stands for Connection because we know it is the thing that will speed up the possibility for all of humanity to be free, sovereign, and thrive.
The road ahead
Currently, Nicole says she’s focusing on rebuilding herself in paradise on a Thai island (while staying up to speed on funding, VR, AI, Blockchain and emerging technologies and trends) so she can come back as a superhero and lead a revolution of goodness. “I’m plotting The Conspiracy and collecting technologies and partners to power The Connector Economy and make us more happy, abundant, and free.”
Click here to learn more about Nicole’s current focus, get her details, hear her speak, and learn more about The Conspiracy.
About Casanova Ventures
Casanova Ventures leverages its networks and resources to catapult the companies with the best leadership, coolest offerings, and bleeding edge technology. Their Art of Leverage advising and curated introductions deliver exponential results: increased revenue, strategic alliances and partnerships, higher valuations, investment and acquisition opportunities, royalty and licensing deals, talent acquisition and board placements, access to emerging technologies that alter industries, and more. We believe in serving rather than selling, that when we cultivate great relationships we develop the best businesses, and that Connection is the building block for everything.
