Dream It

FEBRUARY 1, 2022

When pitching a potential investor or customer, time is of the essence. During Q&A, both sides start engaging in a sort of conversational dance - with one side leading (VC/customer) and the other side following (founder). Most of that time goes to the meat of the conversion: the question-and-answer portion.

VC 513

VC pitching health founder 513

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

What is a principal at a VC firm and how does it work at Upfront Ventures? ” Associates have different functions at different VCs. VC firm admin. VC firm policy or fund analysis. Helping be the VC “presence” at key events. inside insight into VC decision-making. Industry reviews.

investment 365

investment investing VC board 365

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 31, 2014

Even if you haven''t gotten offers yet, your time is valuable and you can''t pitch everyone. You feel like you have a decent shot of successfully raising, so you want to prioritize who to pitch to first. When you pitch, tell a firm how they can be helpful. How did you pick who to pitch? 5) Who helps you before a yes.

VC 393

VC pitching venture capital capital 393

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 22, 2018

This will be the post where I dangerously attempt to walk the minefield of a white male VC opining on the topic. 4) The diverse background of the founder is not the main reason why most diverse founders get turned down for investment. What about pitch competitions that sound like Ancient Roman death matches? Ducks head.]

VC 296

VC pitching peer-to-peer founder 296

This is going to be BIG.

DECEMBER 5, 2012

What is it about me that makes you want to pitch me? When you're pitching for a million bucks "I've never heard of them" is not an acceptable answer for when I ask about the team that tried to do the same thing as you just two years ago. 5) Aim for me to hear about you before you pitch. 4) Do your homework. Getting quoted?

VC 360

VC pitching disruption advice 360

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 16, 2014

How long does it take from first meeting a VC to getting cash in the bank? If all my deals came as intros from trusted connections that I know for years versus at founder pitch events that''s interesting data. If you meet someone at a pitch event, they''ve already got a company and they''re looking to close as quickly as possible.

VC 418

VC pitching networking venture capital 418

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2019

While most of the money that goes into VC funds comes from institutions that are highly experienced in the asset class, some family offices and high net worth individuals also invest in VC. They’re trying to get exposure and diversification at the same time, while potentially seeing co-investment deal flow.

VC 267

VC investment investing strategy 267

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 27, 2013

And I am often approached by entrepreneurs in cities which don’t have a vibrant VC community. If you don’t live in a major VC zone, I have some tips for how to make it easier to raise Venture Capital. ” Most VCs view it as their responsibility to mentor, debate, cajole and generally assist with investments they make.

VC 365

VC board communities pitching 365

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 11, 2015

As a single GP (a firm with one investment decision making professional), I get asked a lot of questions about how I manage my time considering the number of investments I make. Out of those, I take about 150 new pitches a year--about 3 a week. Actually, I don't do as many of these bike rides as I put down here.

VC 419

VC pitching board construction 419

Revolution

FEBRUARY 13, 2023

Since the beginning of modern venture capital investing — a relatively nascent asset class — the industry has been biased toward funding what it knows best: founders with familiar demographics (white, male) in familiar geographies (Silicon Valley).

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innovation investment investing pitching 264

Dream It

MAY 29, 2019

Startup pitch meetings are pretty predictable. You walk into a venture fund’s conference room or Zoom room (if they’re progressive), pitch the partners, offer to answer their questions, maybe ask them a bland question or two, and then leave the meeting to await a response. What metrics do you need to see to invest in my company?

pitching 284

pitching VC investment investing 284

This is going to be BIG.

JUNE 23, 2014

When I turn down the opportunity to invest in a startup, I really turn it down. It doesn''t help them improve their pitch or adjust their model. It just feels like the VC wasn''t that interested in the first place and so they''re not sure what the interest was in the first place. Venture Capital & Technology'

pitching 385

pitching VC venture capital opportunity 385

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 21, 2021

She was pitching for a pre-seed round of $400k. Founders hit the street with their pitch deck, some make it, and some don’t, but nearly all of them ascribe a lot more human influence over the process than there probably is. I’m a female founder. I don’t have a technical co-founder. I don’t have enough traction.

advice 476

advice pitching venture capital VC 476

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2013

As a VC you want to feel like you have “proprietary sources” of deal flow. There is one source that was always problematic for me – intros from investment bankers. This is no criticism of the investment banking industry (although I’m sure some will read it this way) for which there are very useful purposes.

VC 347

VC advice pitching entrepreneurs 347

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 14, 2014

Last week, there was a Business Insider article measuring the percent of female founded companies that NYC seed funds invest in. The main driver of the skew towards men getting venture capital, statistically, is that far more men are pitching. In truth, that''s what''s actually driving my investments.

founder 400

founder pitching mix-use venture capital 400

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 17, 2016

Aren't VCs investing in companies that won't exit for another 5-8 years? The problem is that VCs raise funds theoretically every four years, but in a sense, they never stop fundraising. That means that while they're investing for the long term, their perception of their own portfolio is often short term minded.

VC 253

VC pitching board capital 253

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 24, 2018

In order to understand how to “get to yes” with a VC you first need to understand how VC partnerships make decisions and then you can understand how to increase your odds of closing a deal. VC Partnerships Start by understanding how many partners are at the firm you are approaching. It’s super easy to suss all this out.

VC 314

VC board investment investing 314

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 13, 2018

As a VC and former entrepreneur let me offer you some advice. The short answer is that you should have multiple versions of your “pitch deck” (a short, visual presentation in Keynote, PPT or similar and shared as a PDF) and each occasion has a specific goal. whether they invest or not. A great meeting is a debate, not a pitch.

VC 261

VC pitching advice entrepreneurs 261

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 9, 2014

If I had to put a number on it I’d say 1 in 20 pitches – maybe 1 in 30 – are by an entrepreneur who comes across as truly passionate about her project. On reflection of the role that I want to play as a VC it is clearly in the camp of passion. I’m a VC. But the two can of course go hand-in-hand.

peer-to-peer 373

peer-to-peer VC pitching entrepreneurs 373

Paul G. Silva

MARCH 26, 2020

This is the 2nd post in the “Startup Pitching” series. They have to be because about half of all angel/VC investments lose every penny invested. So simplify your pitch. If your product solves 10 pain points then in the pitch focus on the top 2-3 most important ones and simply hint at the others.

pitching 147

pitching startup VC investment 147

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 10, 2020

VCs are notorious for kicking tires. VCs take a meeting just to learn about an area. If deal flow is slow, a VC will take a meeting if you and your team seem mildly interesting even if your product isn’t. Some VCs have no money left in their funds, but they still like playing VC. Do you have dry powder for this?

VC 447

VC pitching opportunity founder 447

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 18, 2014

It got me thinking about the advice that I often give to new VCs. For years I saw myself as the new guy in VC but then you wake up one day and realize that 50% of your peers have been doing it for less time than you and time has moved on. I don’t want any formal pitches. It’s exhausting. Perhaps unsustainable.

peer-to-peer 317

peer-to-peer pitching VC accelerator 317

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 16, 2014

The speaks to the continued confidence in the venture capital markets and as I had predicted some time ago the VC markets right now are a great place to invest – especially relative to other places to put one’s money. If you want to understand how the VC industry is changing there is a great primer in the link.

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ventures VC venture capital real estate 396

This is going to be BIG.

NOVEMBER 1, 2016

I can't think of a single time when a white man came to pitch me and I told him his fundraising plans weren't aggressive enough. Yet, for some reason, the goals for her pitch were incremental--despite being in an extremely hot space. Ask them for an intro to a VC. They'll do it and the VC will probably accept it.

advice 419

advice founder pitching VC 419

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 16, 2013

It’s the first EIR that we’ve had in the years that I’ve been with the firm and I hope will be the start of our investment in this program. We’re excited to continue to grow our investment professional staff and will continue to do so over the course of 2013 & 2014 with our new fund. But I loved his hustle.

pitching 372

pitching advice VC entrepreneurs 372

Dream It

MAY 19, 2021

In this Dreamit Dose, Managing Director Adam Dakin presents his view on the right way to answer it after hearing hundreds, if not thousands, of founder pitches. Make the specific amount you are raising and corresponding milestones clear at the beginning of the pitch, and do not give a range. The amount you're raising is your ask.

pitching 393

pitching board health VC 393

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 9, 2018

This is a very common scenario when entrepreneurs pitch VCs and frankly is a very common scenario when VCs try to raise money from LPs. When you pitched me I really did love you. At night I had a group dinner where I met 6 new entrepreneurs and hung out with some old friends from law firms, banks and other VC funds.

pitching 381

pitching board funders entrepreneurs 381

This is going to be BIG.

MAY 16, 2024

Then, they need to figure out a way to project that brand up above the venture community, like a Bat signal calling for the best founders to come and pitch them. This is something I talk about a lot with my VC coaching clients. When Roger Ehrenberg set out to professionalize his angel investing into a fund, he used “Data” as the theme.

VC 243

VC angel investing networking pitching 243

This is going to be BIG.

FEBRUARY 19, 2014

Go pitch a VC with an idea, and they''ll tell you to build it. If someone actually did check all these boxes, it would be a Series B deal, not a seed investment. Go to them with a prototype and they''ll tell you to launch it. Launch it, and they''ll tell you to get more users. It frustrates me to no end. No risk, no return.

venture capital 400

venture capital pitching health VC 400

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 25, 2013

But VC is like congress. As you can see from the chart their data suggests there are about $25 billion of VC distributions per year in the US. According to FLAG Capital there are 100 active VCs (as defined by making at least $1 million in VC per quarter for 4 consecutive quarters). Their data looks at tech VCs.

VC 374

VC peer-to-peer entrepreneurs investment 374

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 22, 2014

How many more investments could I do? These are things that other VCs think about, but founders who come to pitch don''t think about too much. as a VC, sometimes your own website becomes an afterthought. Was the fund enough to keep me going? How where things going? When you blog, tweet , Instagram , etc.,

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pitching board VC opportunity 413

Hunter Walk

MARCH 3, 2025

When I’m scanning a pitch deck I’m basically looking to put it into one of two buckets – Traditional or Different. “ Different & Excellent ” equates to something that doesn’t exactly look like other VCs. of them, often as their first or second largest investor.

peer-to-peer 69

peer-to-peer VC investment investing 69

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 23, 2012

I've only recently started leading investments a little over two years ago. My track record of leading deals consists of only seven investments, luckily no zeros (knock on wood) and one exit. Try and figure out exactly what a startup had to show at the moment a VC chose to invest in them. I mean, what do I know?

advice 417

advice startup VC strategy 417

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 27, 2013

Your goal should be to turn your VCs into extended members of your team to get real value from them. Understanding where your VC partner sits in their respective fund and where their fund is in the cycle of its investment lifecycle will help you understand your VCs behavior. What Rob wrote in his post is right.

board 365

board VC advice pitching 365

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 23, 2018

I've seen this so many times over: A founder pitches a VC, or several of them, and then they come back from that process with all sorts of new strategy goals or worries that they need to be doing something differently. They don't want to invest in your company. So why is this feedback seemingly all over the board?

VC 170

VC advice pitching strategy 170

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 14, 2018

I know all of this because every VC knows this because we’ve all either funded companies that have marketing technology or we’ve seen a pitch with a company that does this. If you haven’t read the other VC fund-raising posts I’ve done as part of this series you can find the whole outline and this first in the series here.]

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VC pitching strategy investment 239

Dream It

FEBRUARY 5, 2021

Keep reading for some more of the most common mistakes startups make when pitching and for Steve’s tips on how to fix them. Investors want to hear, “Our unique insight is __”… in your pitch 2. VCs are judging your ability to sell If you are running a B2B company, investors know that you need to “sell” to potential early adopters.

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startup founder founder startup pitching 397