The Art of Startup Fundraising

Craft and deliver a persuasive pitch

Instructions

Create an 18-month plan showing how you’ll use the capital you’ll raise.
While it is worthwhile to invest in a good business plan, an investor will prefer more specific details of how you plan to use the capital.
Get your marketing message right and your team behind it.
First, define to whom you are speaking. Then, determine how you can win the opportunity to serve them by highlighting that you have exactly what they are looking for. Next, emphasize specific words that will resonate and improve your positioning (and that connection). Finally, get the whole team on the same page
Master the elevator pitch.
You may start by role-playing your pitch with team members, friends, and family or simply record yourself and tweak it. You may also listen to other successful pitches or pitches of your competitors. Then, see what works and what doesn’t.
Invest in a great pitch deck.
Check out pitch deck templates online, go to pitch nights, and look up some of the publicly posted decks.
Be strategic on the ‘ask’ side (in terms of how much funding you are seeking).
Don’t include the specific amount that you are raising. For example, if you would like to raise $5M, include a range between $3M and $5M. Some firms have limitations on investment amounts, so including a range means that you might not get passed over.
Create a one-page, winning executive summary.
Get your data, messaging, elevator pitch, and visuals together, and boil them down to one winning, multi-million-dollar page.