Tanner Potter

Evaluator
DISC Type : dcs

Partner at Kickstart

Salt Lake City, Utah, United States

Overview

Tanner Potter is a Partner at Kickstart, focusing on early-stage companies in the Mountain West. Leveraging his operator experience in product at Vivint and an MBA from Harvard Business School, he guides founders through the zero-to-one phase. Colleagues praise his analytical insight, creative problem-solving, and vision.

Outside of work, Tanner is a Utah native and an avid Utah Jazz fan, publicly stating his belief that this is their championship decade. He is an Eagle Scout and previously organized community events for youth while serving as a missionary in South Africa.

While at Vivint, he helped develop the first doorbell camera with a 180°x180° field of vision and holds a patent for enhanced camera interactions.

Personality Overview

Quality Focused

Thorough Evaluator

Hard To Convince

They are not very likely to become strong advocates of your product or service  They focus on the results, but can still be quite procedural and analytical about how to get there They have a unique set of diverse traits where they are decisive and methodical but can sometimes be extra cautious and skeptical

Topics They Care About

Early-Stage Investing
His role at Kickstart is dedicated to investing in and mentoring founders during the crucial "zero-to-one" phase of business building, primarily in the Mountain West.
AI in Automation
He has written about his investment thesis in AI for industrial automation, seeing it as the next frontier after its successful integration into white-collar workflows.
Product Development
With a background in product management at Vivint, he is described as a product-market fit expert who is passionate about building novel solutions.

Media Appearances

Tanner has no verified media appearances

Work History

7-2020
Partner at Kickstart
7-2025
Board Director at Havenly Brands (Havenly, Interior Define, Burrow, The Citizenry, The Inside, and St. Frank)
1-2025
Board Director at SponsorCX
2-2023
Board Observer at Alianza
3-2021
Board Director at Aervivo

Education

8-2018 - 5-2020
Master of Business Administration - MBA from Harvard Business School
2010 - 2014
Bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University

More Information

Social Presence :

Prographics :

Exp : 5 Location : Salt Lake City, Utah, United States Job Level : Mid-senior Designation : Partner at Kickstart
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Insights For Selling To Tanner

During A Call Or A Meeting

DO's

  • Showcase your competitive superiority clearly when possible or address it at the minimum
  • Be prepared for comments or questions that are critical of your product or your claims
  • Use phrases like ‘the ROI of this’, ‘X% more’ etc.

DONT's

  • Avoid making strong statements, instead invite them to agree with you by asking them questions
  • Don’t nudge them to do something by using the logic that others have done the same
  • Avoid too much small talk, just a few formal pleasantries should be fine

When Cold Calling

When Writing An Email

While Negotiating & Closing

    The secret to closing fast with Tanner is

  • ROI matters the most to them, followed by process and finally proof of results
  • Will you ever get a clear answer from Tanner

  • They might hesitate a little, but will go ahead and say no when necessary (or asked)

Insights For Deal Planning

    How fast (or slow) will Tanner move?

  • They are unlikely to move very fast, especially when it comes to new products or services
  • Can Tanner take some risk or not?

  • They have relatively low risk-appetite and are not very likely to go for something unproven and risky

You And Tanner

Personality Compatibility


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