They say it takes seven touches to close a sale – so it takes seven touches to close an investor. Some startups pitch to a group of investors and if they don’t see checkbooks coming out at the end, then in…
You have a good list. Next, you need to introduce your deal to the investors and demonstrate why it’s a good deal. The operative word here is “DEMONSTRATE”. Most startups tell the investor why it’s going to be a good deal…
A New Model for Startup Funding By now you probably have your pitch deck and financial projections ready and you’re due diligence box (some call it a data room) is coming together. The first step in a fundraise is to build…
A New Model for Startup Funding. Fundraising like everything else is moving online, almost all of it. Traditionally, those who wanted to raise funding would meet everyone in their local area. You would pitch to the local angel network or…
Entrepreneurs know the importance of the pitch to investors. There are many blog posts explaining tips and techniques on how to communicate your vision, passion, and story to the investor. Most pitches tell a story and some entrepreneurs use their…
Last year ICO promoters focused on how to get around the SEC by calling their offering a “utility token” maintaining it was not a security. As I’ve written before the SEC views tokens for what one can do with them,…
I often read “How I raised it” stories from entrepreneurs who recently raised their funding. Most are filled with a (journey to hell and back) saga about persevering against all odds. The entrepreneur’s journey is hard but it doesn’t have…
Startups ask me daily if they are fundable and I tell them one of the key factors is their growth rate. To raise funding you must be able to tell a growth story to the investors. Seed stage companies are…
There are many parallels between the blockchain/crypto world of today and that of the Dotcom era of the 90s. I often hear comments such as “It’s 1994 and it’s deja vu- all over again”. The hype, hysteria, and ultimate bubble…
Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) continue to attract large sums of investment dollars. With investor interest comes a volume of deals to sort through. My four rules for investing in an ICO are: The team is always the first criteria. The…