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Every day, our venture firm’s analysts receive 10-15 pitch letters, resulting in thousands of letters each year. Over 30% of these startups are at the wrong stage of their growth to pitch for funding, and 40% come from sectors we don’t invest in. These figures clearly highlight the continued need for investment-raising guidelines, despite the wealth of material that’s already out there.
So, if you want to raise investments for your startup, here’s a checklist of major points to consider.
1. Determine Whether VC Is The Way To Go
Venture investment is far from the only option when it comes to funding, so the first thing to do is to understand whether your startup is a good VC fit. If you don’t want investors to partake in the company’s decision-making process, venture funding is not for you.
2. Know Who You’re Reaching Out To
If you do decide to seek venture investors, you must do the preliminary work of scouting the investors and their funds. Before you hit “Send,” read the fund’s site and business media to find information about the VC, such as what sectors they invest in, which funding stages they prefer and what their average check size is.
3. Find A Mutually Beneficial Fit
Search for win-win propositions. Study the investor’s portfolio to see whether it has any companies that are synergetic to your own. If your own solution can be integrated with any technology stack that’s already in the portfolio, note it.
4. Seek Funding Before You Need It
Remember that all of these things take time and cannot and should not be done spur of the moment. And this is just the preliminary steps you have to take before seeking financing. A funding round is rarely a quick affair. Never start raising investments when you are already short on cash; always do it six months in advance.
5. Make A Good First Impression
Your written presentation is the investor’s first impression of you. Don’t mess this opportunity up.
A good template for structuring your presentation is the Sequoia Capital Pitch Deck Template. And if you haven’t done so yet, check out Guy Kawasaki’s 10-20-30 rule for PowerPoint presentations.
Remember that product presentation does not equal investment presentation. Investors don’t need to see a 40-slide, 10…….