Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 22, 2021

You don’t need everyone, you just need a few core believers and having a hard “why buy me” pitch makes it easier to find and convert those leads. Why buy me” is also a good time to leverage references and external people who can vouch for you, who can champion who you are and why you’re a good bet.

investing 375

investing investment ventures pitching 375

TechCrunch

APRIL 25, 2023

But dealmaking is idiosyncratic: a few investors might be content to make a deal over coffee, but early-stage teams still need a sturdy pitch deck or memo they can leave behind. I’m going to save you some time: many (if not most) of you are not yet ready to pitch an investor. Are pitch decks still necessary?

pitching 98

pitching incubation board opportunity 98

This is going to be BIG.

JANUARY 22, 2018

Clearly he assumed that he was using some kind of username, and that it was a gang reference of some sort--like, "Young Blood" as in the bloods and the crips or something to that affect. What about pitch competitions that sound like Ancient Roman death matches? The person goes on to blame the uncommonness of the name.

VC 296

VC pitching peer-to-peer founder 296

Entrepreneurs' Organization

MARCH 17, 2021

Most innovation models refer to the final stage of the process as “execution” or “implementation”–making it sound very straightforward. In preparation, he spent months researching who might be amenable to his pitch. Tell us about the importance of navigation. What must entrepreneurs keep in mind as they take this critical step?

entrepreneurs 236

entrepreneurs frameworks innovation pitching 236

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. Your pitch deck should really be your best marketing tool Your pitch deck shouldn’t contain your deepest, darkest secrets and plans.

VC 239

VC pitching strategy investing 239

This is going to be BIG.

JULY 27, 2017

Make references to founders you've backed available upon request. Take a moment to think about who might expect you to pitch them--former bosses that have been successful, people who funded the last place you worked at. Make it clear where your money comes from and what control you have over it. Are you a fund? Is it personal money?

VC 357

VC pitching founder opportunity 357

TechCrunch

AUGUST 11, 2022

Today, we’re taking a closer look at the pitch deck it used to raise its pre-seed round. We’re looking for more unique pitch decks to tear down, so if you want to submit your own, here’s how you can do that. . Well, that’s the world Five Flute wants to live in. The company raised a $1.2 Slides in this deck.

pitching 89

pitching strategy development incumbents 89

This is going to be BIG.

OCTOBER 7, 2013

Because I''m in my market and in the flow of top teams and networked with the right folks, I''m never more than a character reference away through someone I trust and know well to just about all of the people I''ve backed. In many cases, I got to know the entrepreneur before they were pitching or even had a deck.

investment 363

investment investing construction venture capital 363

Both Sides of the Table

JULY 19, 2011

Often recruiters want to handle the final negotiations on package and/or do the reference calls. I’m also reluctant to hand over reference calling. I know that no recruiter will agree with me on this point, but I’ll tell you that I’m certain there’s a positive bias in reference calls.

real estate 319

real estate VC pitching entrepreneurs 319

Onevest

MAY 19, 2015

Refer Deals to Others Just because you aren’t interested in a particular deal doesn’t mean it won’t be a hit with someone else. Respond Respond when others refer you deals. You might not love every one of them, but they won’t keep referring if all they get is crickets. So how can investors improve their deal flow?

coworking spaces 116

coworking spaces coworking startup pitching 116

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 25, 2010

Push hard to set up the technical reviews, the due diligence meetings, the reference calls – whatever. If they want reference calls be ballsy. Push hard to set up the technical reviews, the due diligence meetings, the reference calls – whatever. If they want reference calls be ballsy. The squeaky wheel gets oiled.

venture capital 301

venture capital advice VC real estate 301

Both Sides of the Table

JANUARY 8, 2014

a really wide angle view of the tech industry since you see so many concepts / so many pitches and REAL data points on how startups perform financially. Great networking skills, which are critical when you want to be about to reference entrepreneurs & concepts and bounce your ideas off of other people in the industry.

investing 365

investing investment VC board 365

Dream It

APRIL 3, 2020

However, these executives usually have multiple lines of defense to shield them from sales pitches. This is why provocation-based selling requires the vendor to utilize what Moore refers to as “soft power”, specifically “relationship capital.” Then, when you are in the room establish a relationship around the problem, not the solution.

pitching 221

pitching strategy advice board 221

This is going to be BIG.

MARCH 25, 2013

Back in 2006, when I started working on putting together some community groups for entrepreneurs and tech people, I looked for a better name to reference this collection of people. Tech community" seemed too much about people soldering things together and writing code. So, want to know where to find me over the next thirty plus years?

communities 315

communities innovation creativity real estate 315

Startup Catalyst

MARCH 27, 2018

The meetings included co-working spaces, accelerators, investor groups, tech giants, University startup hubs, maker groups, and pitch events. They collaborate and refer to those that play their specific role. People here are incredibly willing to help, to introduce and refer. Aussie startups can and should plug in.

communities 140

communities startup incubation accelerator 140

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 4, 2015

It has become so synonymous with Internet companies that the French have invented a disdainful term including Amazon: “les GAFA,” which they refer to as Google-Apple-Facebook-Amazon to talk about American dominance of the Internet. It is a household name. ” Let’s start with some basics.

real estate 364

real estate startup disruption incumbents 364

Both Sides of the Table

FEBRUARY 22, 2011

And I always encourage entrepreneurs to do reference checking. Always Pitch Outsiders for Follow Ons. So it seems strange advice for me to recommend that you pitch outside investors first for follow on investments. My corollary for VC is “pitch outsiders and you’ll have great insiders.&#

VC 314

VC advice pitching investing 314

TechCrunch

AUGUST 26, 2022

The secret to doing great reference checks for potential hires. I’ve hired enough people to understand that cognitive dissonance and confirmation bias is endemic when it’s time to check a candidate’s references. The secret to doing great reference calls. Image Credits: Simba Chain (opens in a new window).

pitching 80

pitching venture capital capital leadership 80

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 21, 2014

Who was willing to jump on a plan on a Sunday morning with a hang-over to make sure they were there the night before an important biz dev pitch on a Monday morning. When you’re hiring most reference checkers focus on the person’s former bosses. Who in stead said, “That’s what Skype is for?” ” Wowza.

board 320

board VC construction opportunity 320

Gust

JULY 23, 2014

So even if my own mother asked me to meet with you, and you were pitching me a biotech opportunity for a $10 million investment at a $90 million valuation, I might take the meeting, but it wouldn’t be particularly useful for either of us. In this case, it’s not a lack of interest, just a lack of time and efficiency.

pitching 153

pitching angel investing investing investment 153

Both Sides of the Table

JUNE 5, 2016

This led median valuations to triple in 3 years and led to this stupid phenomenon that people refer to as “unicorns ,” which I am convinced will the the thing most historians laugh most about in this era. The fact that I still see it referred to in pitch decks is farcical. Late-Stage VCs Pay Up.

venture capital 271

venture capital capital ventures VC 271

Both Sides of the Table

SEPTEMBER 20, 2009

This is part of my ongoing series, “ Pitching a VC.&# Getting a meeting with a prominent angel or VC is difficult enough. I am really surprised how many entrepreneurs pitch me and then I never hear from them again. Start with a very short thank you email the day after your pitch. This post covers the day after.

VC 277

VC pitching advice strategy 277

TechCrunch

APRIL 23, 2023

Your first slide is obviously important for a pitch deck; first impressions count, and having a solid introduction goes a long way. Sure, startup names are often catchy and pretty self-explanatory (Lyft, DoorDash), but it’s hard remember that Orange refers to a car-charging company , not the fruit. Are you Turo for caravans ?

pitching 91

pitching creativity advice opportunity 91

TechCrunch

APRIL 1, 2022

Perfect pitch, a singer’s ability to produce any given musical note without a reference tone, is a rare phenomenon — only 1-5 people out of every 10,000 have it. While your odds of creating a perfect pitch deck that captures coveted VC interest aren’t quite that dire, they’re not exactly in your favor, either.

pitching 89

pitching VC construction venture capital 89

TechCrunch

OCTOBER 25, 2022

I get a lot of pitch deck submissions for this TechCrunch Pitch Deck Teardown series from people who are raising friend and family rounds, and I mostly pass on them. It was against that backdrop that I received the pitch deck for the Palau Project. Its founder, Jerome Cloetens, is a professional kite surfer (!) Problem slide.

pitching 88

pitching sustainability founder investing 88

Both Sides of the Table

DECEMBER 3, 2009

When people refer to a strategic investor they are usually talking about an investor that comes from the industry you serve as opposed to an independent venture capital investor. Make sure to reference check with other portfolio companies. How have they behaved in good times and bad? I’d love to get the debate going.

advice 279

advice venture capital frameworks VC 279

TechCrunch

OCTOBER 13, 2022

We’re looking for more unique pitch decks to tear down, so if you want to submit your own, here’s how you can do that. . That’s what the industry refers to as a BHAG — a big hairy audacious goal. Pitch Deck Teardown: Supliful’s $1M seed deck by Haje Jan Kamps originally published on TechCrunch.

pitching 90

pitching startup founder education opportunity 90

This is going to be BIG.

APRIL 29, 2011

I had an interesting conversation with an entrepreneur last week about how he decided which VCs he was going to pitch. So, if your connection can't really speak that much to what you're doing, or you want to save them time, feel free to just point me to LinkedIn and tell me who we know in common that you think would provide a good reference.

VC 303

VC pitching entrepreneurs networking 303

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 4, 2009

Incidentally, VC’s hate when they hear companies pitching who say, “ I don’t have real competitors &# as I outlined point three in the linked post). They like to feel like they compared your solution to something else on the market. If nobody else does what you do then maybe it isn’t really such a big market after all.

startup 319

startup advice entrepreneurs networking 319

Dream It

JULY 24, 2020

However, this means that a CISO sees a LOT of pitches in their role. As a startup, you may not have enough customer references, but referrals from peer CISOs who have signed up as design partners or completed successful PoCs are just as valuable. When pitching to a CISO, preparation is key. Do your homework.

peer-to-peer 195

peer-to-peer pitching incumbents opportunity 195

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 3, 2010

Chris Dixon provided some commentary on Twitter that he believes I missed “the most important point about fund size.&# He’s specifically referring to his point of view that entrepreneurs shouldn’t take seed money from “big VC’s&# (he defines them as > $100 million). It’s not black-and-white.

VC 265

VC venture capital entrepreneurs investing 265

StartupNation

JUNE 1, 2021

As part of my role as a partner of HealthInc, I sit on the jury for the startup competition in which 20 finalists pitch their ventures, with 10 then selected to enter the program. For example, remember to finish your point if you are interrupted during a pitch. Using those jazz hands goes a long way in perfecting an engaging pitch !

entrepreneurs 109

entrepreneurs pitching construction accelerator 109

Both Sides of the Table

APRIL 1, 2010

When you’ve had 3 meetings, a partners meeting and some reference calls you’re not likely the only company in the circling pattern. Tags: Pitching VCs Raising Venture Capital VC Industry. You need to be aware of that and find a way to get land or get diverted. As you know, circling patterns suck. .’

VC 275

VC venture capital pitching board 275

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 19, 2020

In marketing materials founders often refer to their customer base as a “community”, but there’s a huge gap between having customers and creating a community. It’s clear things have changed for good and the need for managing remote communities of employees, customers and partners has become ever more important.

communities 234

communities peer-to-peer venture capital enablement 234

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 17, 2009

See, I don’t think it’s a question of To VC Seed or Not to VC Seed, I think it’s the age old question of who you’re working with and how well they reference. Tags: Pitching VCs Raising Venture Capital Start-up Advice. I’m surprised at how little referencing some founders do on their VCs.

VC 283

VC real estate advice venture capital 283

Both Sides of the Table

OCTOBER 6, 2010

Imagine the “typical&# deal – somebody comes into a VC’s office, they’ve never met, they’re highly referred by a friend and they’re pitching a product demo and a PPT. Some have “rules&# – everybody breaks them for the right deal.

startup 360

startup VC advice entrepreneurs 360

Gust

MAY 25, 2014

After my sales pitch, he was so excited I knew he could do the job.” Based on the glowing terms I heard from my friend, I’ll just skip the reference check.” In this litigious society, reference checks are more productive if you also listen to what is not said. Look for job knowledge first.

entrepreneurs 170

entrepreneurs advice pitching investing 170