fundraising basics
DESCRIPTION
TRANSCRIPT
FUNDRAISING FOR STARTUPS
Ivaylo Simov
Venture Capital
Private
EquityVenture Capital
Seed
FFF / Accelerators
More$$$
Sources for you
Angels VCs Crowdsourcing Other?
Pitch Aroundwinning = recognition ≠ investment
How to Approach Investors
GET AN INTRO. ALWAYS! No NDAs Elevator Pitch. Demo. Deck Less Features. More Focus What is the goal of the 1st meeting?
How Much Do You Need
Plan 1 year ahead Add a 30% buffer Fundraising will take 6-12 months Is bigger always better?
Valuation
Pre-money and Post-money It’s an art. Try to turn it into a dog race Stock option pool (10-20%) Convertible debts (20% discount, caps) Exit considerations How much do investors expect to
make?
Standard Terms
Don’t waste much time negotiating Seedsummit standard terms Get to an “Yes” before you talk terms
Proverbial Principles People give to people. Not to ideas,
companies or strategies. Fundraising is not about money. Money
is the means to an end. Traction matters. Honesty is the best policy. The mountain and Mohammed.
Fundraising Tactics
Ask for money and you will get advice. Ask for advice and you will get money.
Raise money when you don’t need it. Investors’ herd mentality is notorious. Friend-making comes before
fundraising. Build relationships.
Do Your Homework
Be ‘15 minutes ahead’. Know your audience. Know whom to ask, how much to ask
for, and when. Successful fundraising involves
storytelling (with passion). Practice a lot
Watch Shark Tank.
How to get the best of us
Show commitment
Keep us in the loop
Use the network
Collaborate
Build a board
Fundamental mistakes
Didn’t research the competition The better mousetrap Painkillers versus vitamins The more features fallacy
Fundraising mistakes
Things take longer than you expect Didn’t take the money Chasing investors instead of
befriending investees Trying to win over everyone Fundraising is not (exactly) selling.
Don’t oversell.
Last words of advice
Fundraising is hard Listen to investors Time is flying. Speed up Traction > Execution > Ideas