Fundraise Faster: Part 1

The Why, When and How Much of Startup Fundraising

Fundraising.

The most common topic I cover with entrepreneurs is Fundraising. This makes sense, it takes capital to grow a business. If your company runs out of money, you die.

I’m a big believer that to be great at fundraising you need to have a process. This is what I cover in Fundraise Faster, a presentation I put together based on my own experience raising capital as a founder, being pitched by thousands of entrepreneurs and supporting our portfolio through their fundraises. I’ve heard the good, the bad, the ridiculous and, most often, the unprepared.

In Section 1 of Fundraise Faster, we tackle some key elements of any fundraise:

Why — Don’t just raise venture capital because it’s the “thing startups do.” We talk through how to figure out your “why” so that you’re doing what’s best for you and your business.

When — How long does raising venture capital take, and what does that mean for when you should start your process?

How Much — This is a big one. How much should you actually be raising? We’ll talk this through. When we talk financial projections, I mention Troy Henikoff’s great resources on how to work through your own which you can find here.

All of these questions are important to have figured out before you start pitching investors!

After watching this video what questions do you have about the Why, When and How Much of your fundraise? Drop them at Twitter or in the comments and I’ll make sure to answer.

Next up, we’re talking doc prep — that means exec summary, detailed projections and most importantly — your pitch deck.