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RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
WHY FUNDRAISING IS A LITERARY PROCESS, NOT FINANCIAL
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
AGENDA
▸ Who’s Zack Miller?
▸ What investors are “really” looking for
▸ How to give it to them
CEO, Tradestreaming, Early stage investor/advisor, published author, sought-after speaker, popular podcaster, Forbes columnist, About.com Expert
As consultant, helped build many of today’s top venture-
backed next generation investment firms
General Partner/CMO (acquired 10k high net worth investors, $150MM invested
online), 75 early stage investments
VP, BizDev (first biz dev exec, landed early
syndication deals with WSJ, Yahoo Finance, Reuters)
brings a unique perspective as an entrepreneur and investor in fintech to build Tradestreaming
Zack Miller
WHAT DRIVES INVESTORS
AN INSIDER/OUTSIDER VIEW
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
THE GAME
Bragging rights/ Trophy investments
Power plays
Quid pro quo of the investment industry
Telling their own story
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
SPECIALIZATION
Investors typically have boxes to tick (even if they say they don’t) — check the website!
Impacts what sector, what stage, whether they lead, how much $
Most of this information available on their websites
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
INVESTORS ARE LIKE CUSTOMERS, NEED TO MARKET
Marketing is everything needed to do before someone buys
Need create demand + FOMO = your deal has to be one an investor can’t afford to miss out on
Best time to raise money is when you don’t need it
Fundraising is about creating a sense of momentum — investors need to get on the train before it leaves the station
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
FOMO FORMULA FOR SUCCESSFUL VENTURE FUNDRAISING
Hot market/space +
Solid lead investor +
Great team +
Traction +
Have a deadline +
Good press =
Investor interest
Source: Terrance Yang/QuoraPhoto credit: AFGE
HOW DO YOU GET YOUR VENTURE BUYER TO BUY WHAT YOU’RE SELLING?
MARKETING IS ABOUT STORYTELLING
VC ISN’T ABOUT FINANCE — IT’S LITERARY
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
STORYTELLING
AIDA:
The storyteller’s formula to getting b2b buyers to buy
“EVERY SOCIAL INTERACTION IS A COLLISION OF FRAMES, AND THE STRONGER FRAME ALWAYS WINS. FRAME COLLISIONS ARE PRIMAL. THEY FREEZE OUT THE NEOCORTEX AND BRING THE CROCODILE BRAIN IN TO MAKE DECISIONS AND DETERMINE ACTIONS.”
Oren Klaff, Pitch Anything
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
RESOURCESRAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
CRUNCHBASE
▸ Great resource on companies — look back through competitors to see who’s invested
▸ Can research investors for industry match, investment size, portfolio composition
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUPTEXT
CONSIDER CROWDFUNDING
▸ Reward/Debt/Equity and Alternative Financing are becoming more accepted practices for raising money
▸ Reward crowdfunding (a la Kickstarter) = non-dilutive capital, builds customer base
▸ Equity crowdfunding = easier than dealing with dozens of angel investors
▸ Debt crowdfunding = Sometimes easier, faster than getting bank loans (sizes increasing)
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
40 EPIC RESOURCES FOR INVESTORS IN STARTUPS
▸ I wrote this article as a 1-stop resource for investors but it’s structured well and valuable for entrepreneurs too
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
GET SOME ORGANIC PR EARLY
▸ PR may be the tail wagging the dog but it has major impact on investors
▸ HARO = use HelpAReporter.com to become a source for reporters
RAISING MONEY FOR YOUR STARTUP
COMMUNICATE LIKE A PRO
▸ Get a simple Social CRM like Nimble to create targeted lists of journos and investors
▸ Build relationships before you ask anything — give to get (eg., I created a podcast and have people I’m trying to meet on my program).
▸ Don’t stalk but communicate with your targets over the channels they prefer (social, email, Skype, etc)
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