Tips, tactics, and strategies on startup fundraising aimed to help founders raise capital for their startup at the seed stage and beyond.
In recent months, funding rounds featuring “pay-to-play” provisions have surged. These provisions aim to encourage reinvestment and attract supplemental funding. During the recent financing boom, these provisions were largely absent due to a thriving market. However, as capital began to dry up, they started resurfacing. Earlier this year, Sequoia Capital generated headlines when it declined … more
Investors in the startup ecosystem are growing more and more concerned about the rise of zombie funds. Currently, the venture capital space is at risk of experiencing substantial consolidation. As startups face increasing pressure to locate fresh capital, they are stunted by limited investment opportunities as investors hold tighter onto their funds. All of these … more
It has been a tough year for venture capital (VC) firms, with several accelerators closing their doors. Nonprofit programs like Venture for America, Byte Back, and Girls Who Code, once celebrated for their support of emerging talent, have suddenly gone dark. One of the most significant closures being that of the Roux Institute’s Techstars Accelerator … more
Virginie Raphael, founder of the pre-seed fund FullCircle, is currently based in New York City, but her upbringing was far more quaint. In the tiny town of Lyon, she grew up among the mere 800 inhabitants. Half of whom, she jokes, “were probably somewhat related to me in one way, shape, or form.” When Virginie … more
Pre-Seed Funding: The Complete Guide Sergio Paluch September 25, 2024 This is a complete guide to pre-seed funding. In this all-new guide, you’ll learn all about: What is pre-seed capital What investors look for in pre-seed startups How do you know when you are ready to raise pre-seed capital How to find investors and secure … more
The U.S. has become a hostile environment for advocates of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI). The opposition to DEI initiatives, which are designed to assist historically marginalized groups, can be summed up in one word: politics. Conservatives claim that DEI is “reverse racism” and are pursuing legal action. As a result, businesses are slashing funding … more
Every VC is different. There are thousands of funds and investors within those funds, and they vary tremendously even within a fund. Some love crowded spaces, some will only invest in blue sky verticals. Some will only invest in Ivy League grads, others don’t like high-pedigree founders. Some will only invest in startups that came via … more
Woman and multicultural founders are often judged with exceeding scrutiny. That’s why it’s important to find angel investors with a proven history of investing in diverse founder teams, such as those below. In this article, we rank angel investors with the highest investing rates in women and founders of color according to available Crunchbase data. … more
Despite an uptick in venture capital investments in Q1 of 2024, the fundraising climate continues to be challenging as the great reset continues from the hysteria that peaked in 2021. As deals continue to happen more slowly than in the previous decade and the bar for what investors look for at these stages has changed, … more
This is the full 34-page guide on how and where to find, reach out to, and pitch angel investors. This epic guide is meant to help any founder find angel investors for their startup, even if you don’t have a huge network or a diploma from a fancy university. My sincere goal is to level … more
Who are the top women angel investors? We’ve got a list of top female angel investors in the U.S. ranked by the success rate of their portfolios and investment rate. In this article, we look at the most active women angel investors, with at least 20 investments, as well as those whose portfolios had the … more
Why can’t someone explain, in simple terms, what TAM, SAM, and SOM mean? Well, as it turns out, there is no common standard for calculating these measures of market sizing. But never fear! In this article we’ll take a close look at different ways to think about and calculate total addressable market (TAM), serviceable addressable … more
Having spoken with hundreds of founders winning and failing to win angel investment, there are a couple of clear trends that come up repeatedly. Many founders want to skip right to blasting countless angel investors with emails, or they spend the majority of their time designing and re-designing their pitch deck. I’m yet to meet … more
Okay, now you know how to identify angel investors, vet, prioritize, and meet with them. There are a lot of questions about logistics that you might still have, such as how to take in the investment, how to track connections, and what’s the best way to email them. This chapter covers all those questions and … more
After you have qualified your angel investor leads and prioritized those with the highest likelihood of investing, it’s time to reach out to them. This is usually the part where founders get most intimidated and confused about what to do. Fear not, however! I’ve got some actionable and effective tactics that will demystify the process … more
Fundraising is sales, and as any good salesperson will tell you, the first step in the sales process is qualifying or vetting leads. In other words, it’s deciding, based on pre-determined criteria, how likely a lead is to buy what you are selling. You can either spend 10 hours trying to convince a lead that … more
How and where to find angel investors that are likely to write your startup a check? This chapter is all about identifying prospective angel investors. Chapter 5 is focused on ways that you can get on their radar. In my experience, it’s best to think of this process in these two steps because they are … more
Not all angel investors are the same. In fact, there is an incredible amount of variety among angel investors. Some angel investors are one-off investors that invest based on how much they know and trust you. Other angel investors make dozens of investments per year and are very sophisticated. Still other angel investors write $1-10 … more