Fundraising a business idea or product requires knowledge and preparation. Knowing how startup funding works, proper preparation steps and knowing where you can get that funding from are key elements to take into consideration when fundraising. On July 15th The LAB hosted a fundraising workshop with Founders Institute. Throughout this workshop entrepreneurs who have succeeded in raising money for their businesses alongside investors actively funding businesses, provided practical steps in order to achieve the funding needed. Speakers such as Silvio Frank Pupo, CEO of Logos Capital, Robert Himelfarb, partner of Randall Investment Partners, Andres Hurtado, CEO of SynerTechCloud, Thomas “Tigre” Wenrich, CEO of Lab Miami Ventures, Roxette Miranda, Co-founder 305 Works, James Irvina, Founder of 305 Works and Pitch Night NYC, where the main participants of this event.
Seeking funds is a difficult task that all start-ups need to embrace. The advice from such speakers was:
Invest in the marketing side. The first step should be to present your product in the most appealing way, so before you decide to contact investors, create an appealing website, brochure or social media account that represents the image you are trying to portray.
Have a clear idea of the goal and the problem you are trying to solve. This sounds easy, but a lot of people get it wrong. You should know the reason why people are eager to buy your product and you should be able to express this to the investor in an appealing way.
Invest some time in the consideration of its utility. Investors should know that you are passionate about your starter and that you are indeed solving something with it. People should crave what you are selling and presenting your customer acquisition cost should be a plus.
Know who you are approaching. Before contacting an investor you should know who you are dealing with, what he is looking for and what companies he has been interested in. Approaching investors who have spent capital in start-ups in the same field shows that you have been studying the market.
When pitching, describe your company with confidence and keep it simple. Only describe the problem, solution and the response from the masses. These entrepreneurs emphasized that the shorter and clearer your statement is (a length of about three sentences), the more convincing it will be. Avoid confusing terminology and industry terms, and write three sentences that could be easily understood by a high-schooler.
File your email, and do more than just share numbers. This is not a numbers game; you should find an investor who finds excitement in your product. Remember that the best investors are those who want to work for you, instead of the other way around. These transactions works like a marriage; your success becomes their success. Investors should be also giving you more than just money, so commit to those who will offer you connections or other benefits as well. If you take money from the wrong investor, you may go bankrupt. Be careful and make decisions that will benefit you in the long run.
By Alesia Lopez and Ina Murube