Early stage investors have been arguing over this for years. Do they bet on the entrepreneur (jockey) or the business idea and plan (the horse)? This is serious stuff. If you are looking for money, this question will certainly come up in one form or another when you approach professional or organized angel or VC […]
Working with Investors
Investors, Your Board, and You: Who Controls Strategy?
You’re building a company from your vision and a passion, and lots of people are going to tell you that you have this or that wrong, and that it just won’t work. Business plans rarely survive market contact The truth is that very, very few early business plans survive in a form completely recognizable when looking […]
6 Guidelines for Proper Responses to Investor Queries
Entrepreneurs looking for investor funding often fail to realize that all money comes with strings. For example, if you have watched the Shark Tank TV series, you probably noticed that the Sharks always ask the entrepreneurs for their intended “use of funds.” Those who respond with one of the wrong answers, such as “I want […]
ICOs: An Exciting New Way to Finance Your Business Idea
Today, bank loans, grants, funding, donations and other traditional ways of financing business ideas have a new competitor. Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs) represent are an exciting and innovative form of investment for start-ups. The specificity of this method is based on blockchain technology known from cryptocurrencies. Business ideas quite often go hand in hand with […]
6 Common Misconceptions About Angel Investors
The question on Quora was “What do investors ‘get’ that other people don’t?” I answered that question from the point of view of angel investors, specifically … not just investors. 1. Some of the healthiest businesses are not good investments Many people think that a good business makes a good investment. The truth is not […]
5 Steps to Due Diligence on Your Potential Investors
Even though the color of their money is always green, all startup investors are not the same. Struggling entrepreneurs are often so happy to get a funding offer that they neglect the recommended reverse due diligence on the investors. Taking on equity investors to fund your company is much like getting married—it is a long-term […]
Ripple in 2018: Does It Still Have Potential?
Ripple is one of the oldest cryptocurrency networks. Launched in 2012, the ripple coin was once valued at 1000 coins for a dollar. Six years later, ripple coin is valued at $0.65, a growth rate of more than 40,000%. In spite of Ripple’s fast grown rate, however, many cryptocurrency investors still ask this question: Is […]
Avoid Competitor Bashing in Your Pitch to Investors
Don’t bash the competition. Every investor knows how vulnerable a new startup is to competitors, so investors always ask about your sustainable competitive advantage in the marketplace. How an entrepreneur answers this question speaks volumes about their knowledge of business realities, customers, confidence, and their ability to handle investor funding. There is no perfect answer to the […]
Take Only “Smart Money” Investments
This statement could be considered controversial. We have previously made the case that professional investors demand more in the form of restrictive covenants and lower valuations. Now we explore the other side of that coin. Professional investors usually bring “smart money” to the table, defined as money that comes along with good advice and great […]
Several More Real Costs of Taking Outsider Investments
Let’s talk about the reality of taking money from professional investors. It is not the first time we’ve covered this general subject nor the last. But this time, we concentrate upon governance changes. Once a company founder has tapped the funds available from his or her resources and from friends and family, if the company […]
