Open in app

Sign In

Write

Sign In

The M8 blog
The M8 blog

534 Followers

Home

About

M8 Ventures

Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Pinned

You need one of four things to make your startup a candidate for VC investment

Yes, there’s just four. No, they’re not easy to achieve but here they are. — I spend most of my consulting days with founders and teams ranging from idea stage to minimum viable product (MVP) to early commercialisation, so I get asked one question a lot, “What will angel or venture capital investors want to see from us before we’re good candidates for investment?” The long answer is: every investor is different

Startup

4 min read

You need one of four things to make your startup a candidate for VC investment
You need one of four things to make your startup a candidate for VC investment
Startup

4 min read


irnzhn

irnzhn

·Nov 4, 2022

Frequently Asked Questions

People often see venture capital funds investing in companies, but the process of raising funds from limited partners (LPs) is not always as well understood. Here are some frequently asked questions from potential LPs we’re finding as we’re going through the fundraising process. Who can be a Limited Partner? Wholesale…

3 min read

Frequently Asked Questions
Frequently Asked Questions

3 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·May 26, 2022

Getting deals done

Startups grow through creating technology that solves valuable problems for customers but another way is by cutting smart deals with other companies. Here’s what I’ve learned about how doing better deals. — The first few deals I negotiated were content licensing deals, first for Microsoft’s online efforts and then for Yahoo, back in the mid-to-late 1990s. Since then I’ve cut maybe a hundred deals or so, and helped startup founders negotiate a hundred or so more.

Startup

7 min read

Getting deals done
Getting deals done
Startup

7 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Jul 29, 2021

An open letter to Michael Stutchbury, Editor in Chief of the Australian Financial Review

Update: now with more signatures (see end) Over the past few years, many of us in the Australian startup community have been shocked observers of a campaign of sustained bullying in print, as Australian Financial Review columnist, Joe Aston, used his readership to discredit and belittle one of our industry’s…

Gender

3 min read

Gender

3 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Feb 26, 2020

What’s a SAFE, what’s a convertible note, and are they really better than just selling shares to investors?

A common question from Aussie tech startup founders is whether they should raise their investment with a convertible note, priced equity, or a SAFE note. The short answer is that you can raise investment with a SAFE note or convertible note in Australia, but you may find it harder to raise your round. Here’s the longer answer (nothing that this advice pertains to Australian tech start- ups in 2020, that the future may be different…

Venture Capital

7 min read

What’s a SAFE, what’s a convertible note, and are they really better than just selling shares to…
What’s a SAFE, what’s a convertible note, and are they really better than just selling shares to…
Venture Capital

7 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Jan 22, 2020

Will investors think I’m too old/young to be a successful startup founder?

There’s always been a lot of time wasted over whether younger or older startup founders are more investible, or more likely to succeed. …

Startup

2 min read

Will investors think I’m too old/young to be a successful startup founder?
Will investors think I’m too old/young to be a successful startup founder?
Startup

2 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Sep 30, 2019

Summer can be a hard time to raise capital in Australia

We’re approaching the fourth quarter of the calendar year and once again, I’m warning founders hoping to raise: the next four months can be a hard time to close an investment round in Australia. Here’s why. — Most investors wouldn’t admit it – and some wouldn’t even be aware that they do this – but deal negotations start slowing down from about Melbourne Cup Day onwards and basically go nowhere from 1 Dec.

Startup

2 min read

Summer can be a hard time to raise capital in Australia
Summer can be a hard time to raise capital in Australia
Startup

2 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Sep 10, 2019

The law of small, surprising, memorable numbers

One of the hardest things about being a tech startup founder is getting people to remember anything about you for long enough to act or commit to you. …

Startup

3 min read

The law of small, surprising, memorable numbers
The law of small, surprising, memorable numbers
Startup

3 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Sep 3, 2019

How growing a tech startup culture could help rural and regional Australia thrive

Australia’s rural and regional communities depend on industries that are being automated fast, and employing fewer people as a result. We’re currently in the midst of the worst drought in recorded history. And we can see that global demand for our coal and gas will be much less in future…

Startup

10 min read

How growing a tech startup culture could help rural and regional Australia thrive
How growing a tech startup culture could help rural and regional Australia thrive
Startup

10 min read


Alan Jones

Alan Jones

·Aug 30, 2019

‪Why do VCs all give me contradictory advice?

Founders wishing that VCs wouldn’t contradict each other’s advice should understand that being a VC is all about being contrarian. The job and incentives are designed and attract and reward people who question everything, especially majority opinion.‬ Nobody fulfilled and happy in investment management, banking, law, business or tech would…

Venture Capital

1 min read

‪Why do VCs all give me contradictory advice?
‪Why do VCs all give me contradictory advice?
Venture Capital

1 min read

The M8 blog

Thoughts and opinions from M8 Ventures

Connect with The M8 blog

Editors

Alan Jones

Alan Jones

I’m Alan Jones, coach for accelerators, partner at M8 Ventures, angel investor. Earlier: founder, early Yahoo product manager, tech reporter.

Emily Rich

Emily Rich

Director Microsoft for Startups, APAC. Partner @M8Ventures. Product Person. Early Stage Tech. Mentor @Startmate @Techstars etc. Former Founder.

Elaine Stead

Elaine Stead

Reads, sings, travels, cooks. VC but not the Patagonia vest & khaki kind. Views are her own

Help

Status

Writers

Blog

Careers

Privacy

Terms

About

Text to speech

Teams