Posts Tagged ‘Investors’
8 Ways an Investor Pitch Differs from a Product Pitch
When pitching to investors, entrepreneurs always seem to start with a customer pitch, then add a slide or two about the business. In reality, they need a separate pitch about the business, carrying over only a slide or two about the solution. Remember, investors are buying into the business, not the product. Investors are business…
Read More6 Startup Strategies That Turn Off Most 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…
Read MoreContrarian Advice on Investment Pitch from a Pitch Veteran
“We coach entrepreneurs ‘think big.’ ‘Think change the world.’ That doesn’t mean use adjectives that are not credible. Everybody’s revolutionary and everybody’s disruptive now.” That’s Bill Reichert, managing director Garage Technology Ventures, veteran investor, a board member on multiple startups, and someone who has heard and reacted to hundreds of investment pitches. In this talk…
Read More6 Reasons Smart Entrepreneurs Think Twice Before IPO
The visibility of Google, Facebook and a few others continues to propagate the myth that the ultimate objective of every entrepreneur should be to take their startups public via an initial public offering at the earliest opportunity. Everyone thinks this is the route to become the next billionaire like Mark Zuckerberg. In reality, this option…
Read More8 Business Name Mistakes Investors Hate to See
Every new baby gets a name before it is introduced to the world, and yet some entrepreneurs continue to send me business plans with TBD (to be determined) in place of a business name on the front page. They don’t realize that the name they choose, or lack of it, sets an initial perception of…
Read More7 Keys to a Compelling Investor Executive Summary
Few investors these days have the time or patience to read a full business plan, so a better way to catch their eye is with a tightly written and well formatted two-page executive summary. As a model, think high-quality marketing collateral, with text and graphics in columns and sidebars, but focused on the value…
Read MoreWhy VC Funding Might Not Be for You
It’s an exciting time for startups and aspiring business founders. With investors pumping so much money into the industry it’s easy to see why. We’re hearing more and more about “unicorns” valued at more than a billion dollars and companies spending enormous sums to acquire other businesses. The numbers look amazing. But not all funding…
Read More8 Lessons for Entrepreneurs from the Shark Tank
Premature Scaling Kills Businesses
How to Value a Company
