The document summarizes key findings from research analyzing the fundraising processes of 200 startup companies that raised over $360 million. Some of the main findings include:
- The average successful seed round raised $1.3 million over 12.5 weeks contacting 58 investors and having 40 investor meetings. Pitch decks averaged 19 pages.
- Seed rounds that raised funds from venture capital firms rather than angels raised more money ($1.99M vs $989k) in less time (9.6 weeks vs 36.8 weeks) contacting fewer investors.
- Consumer, business, marketplace and hardware startups had the most fundraising success, with marketplace startups raising the highest average amount.
8 simple questions inspired by 20 years of celebrating Canada's Best Managed ...Deloitte Canada
Applications are now open for the 2013 Best Managed Companies program. Learn more: http://www.bestmanagedcompanies.ca
Thinking like one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies is surprisingly simple…and that’s what so hard! But simplicity leads to clarity. And clarity leads to focus which leads to success.
That’s what twenty-plus years of working with Canada’s Best Managed Companies teaches us in Power of the Best.
We’ll show you how Canada’s Best Managed Companies responded to their challenges with simplicity, discipline and focus and by asking themselves questions about eight aspects of business, questions about innovation, talent, productivity and more.
Our “8 simple questions” were inspired by stories in the best-selling business book, Power of the Best: Innovative Strategies from Canada’s Best Managed Companies.
www.deloitte.com/ca/growthenterprises
If you are looking for an angel investor for your startup, here are the 20 rules of angel investing that will help your startup stand out as a good candidate for an angel investor’s dollars.
8 simple questions inspired by 20 years of celebrating Canada's Best Managed ...Deloitte Canada
Applications are now open for the 2013 Best Managed Companies program. Learn more: http://www.bestmanagedcompanies.ca
Thinking like one of Canada’s Best Managed Companies is surprisingly simple…and that’s what so hard! But simplicity leads to clarity. And clarity leads to focus which leads to success.
That’s what twenty-plus years of working with Canada’s Best Managed Companies teaches us in Power of the Best.
We’ll show you how Canada’s Best Managed Companies responded to their challenges with simplicity, discipline and focus and by asking themselves questions about eight aspects of business, questions about innovation, talent, productivity and more.
Our “8 simple questions” were inspired by stories in the best-selling business book, Power of the Best: Innovative Strategies from Canada’s Best Managed Companies.
www.deloitte.com/ca/growthenterprises
If you are looking for an angel investor for your startup, here are the 20 rules of angel investing that will help your startup stand out as a good candidate for an angel investor’s dollars.
True or False? 10 M&A assumptions private companies should be testingDeloitte Canada
The state of our economy shouldn’t be reason for private companies not to pursue mergers and acquisitions. Any deal can carry risk at any time. What matters is how you manage it.
Managing an asset management business is unique. Not only is it a professional service business but extraordinary portfolio management and sales talent is critical to the business. Balancing the business and the profession is essential.
There are several key traits that Canada’s Best Managed Companies share, enabling them to excel in the marketplace. How do you build a Best Managed company? Read further to learn the strategies that private companies have adopted to thrive in today’s changing conditions.
How is your company responding to the new realities of the market?
Is it evolving or going back to 'business-as-usual'?
How is the behavior of your company and in your company getting in the way of sustained, improved performance?
“Insights of a Maverick Exit Advisor” is a collection of diary notes to start a new career as an exit advisor and CEO coach.
Visit Us:- https://entrepcoaches.com/
“Insights of a Maverick Exit Advisor” is a collection of diary notes to start a new career as an exit advisor and CEO coach.
Visit Us:- https://entrepcoaches.com/
Working for a Startup: 5 Things To Consider Before Joiningjincy joy
Startups are unlike other workplaces. They perhaps sound exciting and glamorous. Here are 5 things to consider before leaving your cozy corporate workplace and joining a startup.
Insider's Guide to Raising Seed CapitalNnamdi Okike
How-To guide for entrepreneurs on raising seed capital investment rounds, with detailed information on topics such as capital sources (angels, accelerators, and venture firms) as well as valuation, terms, and due diligence. Written by an experienced venture capital investor and angel.
Survey: A Portrait of How U.S. Small Businesses Get Started Intuit Inc.
At Intuit, our mission is to enable more small business to succeed. That’s why we decided to look more closely at the root causes of low survival rates among small businesses. We conducted a nation-wide survey that provides a snapshot of how small businesses get started, and some of the common risks that pop up in the early years.
Fundraising (Comprehensive) PowerPoint Presentation 155 slides with 2 diagra...Andrew Schwartz
PowerPoint Presentation Content Slides Include:
• Definition/s of fundraising
• Learning objectives for this presentation
• What fundraising for-profits is (9 points)
• Easy tips for fundraising (27 points)
• Angel investors (4 points)
o Is your business is suitable for angel investment (16 points)
• Venture capitalism (4 points)
o Venture capital firms (7 points)
o Venture capitalists (5 points)
o Should use venture capital for financing (12 points)
• Beware of debt overload and simple debt indicators (27 points)
o How much money you need (16 points)
Six questions to determine startup cost
o Borrowing money from friends and family (15 points)
• Seller financing (13 points)
o Why a seller would offer financing (6 points)
o Why a buyer should ask a seller for financing (6 points)
o How seller financing is usually secured (16 points)
o How both the buyer and seller can benefit (11 points)
• Business loans
o Types of business loans (26 points)
o Applying for a business loan through a bank (31 points)
o Getting a bank loan approved (12 points)
o The government’s role (6 points)
• Actions steps (16 points)
True or False? 10 M&A assumptions private companies should be testingDeloitte Canada
The state of our economy shouldn’t be reason for private companies not to pursue mergers and acquisitions. Any deal can carry risk at any time. What matters is how you manage it.
Managing an asset management business is unique. Not only is it a professional service business but extraordinary portfolio management and sales talent is critical to the business. Balancing the business and the profession is essential.
There are several key traits that Canada’s Best Managed Companies share, enabling them to excel in the marketplace. How do you build a Best Managed company? Read further to learn the strategies that private companies have adopted to thrive in today’s changing conditions.
How is your company responding to the new realities of the market?
Is it evolving or going back to 'business-as-usual'?
How is the behavior of your company and in your company getting in the way of sustained, improved performance?
“Insights of a Maverick Exit Advisor” is a collection of diary notes to start a new career as an exit advisor and CEO coach.
Visit Us:- https://entrepcoaches.com/
“Insights of a Maverick Exit Advisor” is a collection of diary notes to start a new career as an exit advisor and CEO coach.
Visit Us:- https://entrepcoaches.com/
Working for a Startup: 5 Things To Consider Before Joiningjincy joy
Startups are unlike other workplaces. They perhaps sound exciting and glamorous. Here are 5 things to consider before leaving your cozy corporate workplace and joining a startup.
Insider's Guide to Raising Seed CapitalNnamdi Okike
How-To guide for entrepreneurs on raising seed capital investment rounds, with detailed information on topics such as capital sources (angels, accelerators, and venture firms) as well as valuation, terms, and due diligence. Written by an experienced venture capital investor and angel.
Survey: A Portrait of How U.S. Small Businesses Get Started Intuit Inc.
At Intuit, our mission is to enable more small business to succeed. That’s why we decided to look more closely at the root causes of low survival rates among small businesses. We conducted a nation-wide survey that provides a snapshot of how small businesses get started, and some of the common risks that pop up in the early years.
Fundraising (Comprehensive) PowerPoint Presentation 155 slides with 2 diagra...Andrew Schwartz
PowerPoint Presentation Content Slides Include:
• Definition/s of fundraising
• Learning objectives for this presentation
• What fundraising for-profits is (9 points)
• Easy tips for fundraising (27 points)
• Angel investors (4 points)
o Is your business is suitable for angel investment (16 points)
• Venture capitalism (4 points)
o Venture capital firms (7 points)
o Venture capitalists (5 points)
o Should use venture capital for financing (12 points)
• Beware of debt overload and simple debt indicators (27 points)
o How much money you need (16 points)
Six questions to determine startup cost
o Borrowing money from friends and family (15 points)
• Seller financing (13 points)
o Why a seller would offer financing (6 points)
o Why a buyer should ask a seller for financing (6 points)
o How seller financing is usually secured (16 points)
o How both the buyer and seller can benefit (11 points)
• Business loans
o Types of business loans (26 points)
o Applying for a business loan through a bank (31 points)
o Getting a bank loan approved (12 points)
o The government’s role (6 points)
• Actions steps (16 points)
How Groupon Manages 15 Million Social Relationships Sprinklr
Groupon recently had its fifth birthday. Though still
considered to be a young enterprise, the brand is
valued at more than $6 billion, operates in 48 countries
and is considered one of the fastest growing companies
in history.
The company’s growth is remarkable, but it hasn’t always been easy.
A couple years ago, Groupon acquired an international subsidiary, and in the blink of an eye, this North American startup became a global powerhouse with new customers in dozens of countries.
Groupon needed to find a way to manage consumer relationships, at scale.
Here's how they did it.
Here are 10 good reasons why you should attend Citrix Synergy May 6-8, 2014, in Los Angeles plus one bonus reason that you won't be able to resist!
Citrix Synergy is the premier enterprise mobility conference for organizations seeking solutions that empower people with new ways to work – anywhere, anytime, on any device. Register here: http://bit.ly/1meLPUG
You may be chomping at the bit to get started with contract management, but without the proper building blocks in place, implementations can lead to problems like protracted go-lives, poor system adoption, and runaway project costs. This guide will shed light on the most common implementation pitfalls companies face and suggest strategies and tactics to prevent them.
The Sophisticated Marketer's Guide to LinkedIn: The WebinarLinkedIn
Once you have downloaded the Sophisticated Marketer's Guide to LinkedIn (Free download here: http://lnkd.in/sgm) It's time to put everything into action. The Sophisticated Marketers Guide to LinkedIn: The Webinar is a one hour strategic live webcast with LinkedIn’s senior content marketing manager Jason Miller.
Jason Miller, Sr. Content Marketing Manager at LinkedIn shows you how to tap into the vast opportunities that await your business —increase brand awareness, influence perception, generate leads, and ultimately drive revenue with LinkedIn.
In this exclusive webinar you will learn:
• Why LinkedIn is a necessary part of your businesses integrated marketing strategy.
• How to tap into LinkedIn’s powerful marketing solutions including Company Pages, Company Updates, and gain value immediately.
• How to expand the reach of your content marketing strategies using LinkedIn by sharing relevant targeted content to the world's professionals.
• Go visual or go home. See real world examples and take away key insights for utilizing SlideShare for thought leadership and lead generation.
• And many more tactics that Jason has implemented for social media marketing domination.
Oracle Buys Compendium: Adds Leading Content Marketing Platform to Oracle Elo...Ellen Funke
The Announcement
-- Oracle buys Compendium
-- Adds leading content marketing platform to Oracle Eloqua Marketing Cloud
-- The transaction has closed
-- About Compendium
-- Compendium’s content marketing solution helps companies plan, produce and deliver engaging content more effectively by aligning content with customer data and profiles
-- Established in 2007, Compendium is headquartered in Indianapolis, IN
-- Customers include leaders across many industries, and include CVENT, Gymboree, Trane and others
-- Combination creates advanced marketing platform that enables companies to effectively deliver targeted and compelling digital content throughout the customer lifecycle
-- Compendium’s data-driven approach enables companies to plan, produce, publish, and promote relevant content and analyze its performance across their customers’ buying and ownership journey
-- Oracle’s comprehensive Customer Experience solution includes the Oracle Eloqua Marketing Cloud and delivers complete management of the customer journey through unified data, integrated business process management and business analytics
-- Oracle Eloqua Marketing Cloud with Compendium is expected to enable modern marketers to align persona-based content to customers’ digital body language, to increase engagement, improve conversion and drive top-line revenue and loyalty
Oracle and Compendium
-- Oracle Eloqua and Compendium creates an advanced marketing platform that enables
companies to effectively deliver targeted and compelling digital content throughout the
customer lifecycle for an exceptional customer experience
-- Oracle Eloqua Marketing Cloud helps target audiences, know buyers, and automate multi-channel marketing campaigns
-- Compendium’s content marketing platform helps plan, publish, manage and measure engaging content across content types and channels
-- Oracle Analytics and Big Data solutions to improve measurement and performance
-- Together, Oracle and Compendium are expected to increase customer engagement,
drive top-line revenue and improve the return on marketing investment
-- Compendium’s management team and employees are expected to join Oracle and
continue their focus facilitating excellence in marketing
IBM’s Point of View on Social Business.
What we have observed…
Knowledge is being created and shared at unprecedented rates. But many organizations aren't activating this collective knowledge.
What we have learned…
Social Business starts when you put people at the center.
To connect. To unlock insights from social interactions. To evolve to a customer-centric organization.
20,000 engagements later
Here’s what we believe about Social Business
Start with any of these 6 entry points to help you put Social at the heart of the modern enterprise.
1. Create open and authentic engagement between customers, employees and communities.
2. Create exceptional customer experiences through personalized and rewarding interactions based on customer insights
3. Create a collaborative workplace culture to engage talent and increase productivity.
4. Tap into analytics to measure, understand and drive business decisions to innovate faster.
5. Design and implement social strategies to transform organizational processes and best practices.
6. Manage a secure social platform that enables engagement while reducing risk and protecting intellectual capital.
Evolve your social business by putting people at the center.
Amplify the value of human connections.
See download link below.
Here is a free compilation of all the freebies you might need for your presentations, or other creative projects, including fonts, colors, icons and more.
Download link: https://www.dropbox.com/s/ziy3976c8qxn51y/The%20Ultimate%20Freebies%20Guide%20for%20Presentations.pdf
This presentation was created 100% in PowerPoint by my presentation design agency Slides. We are based in Spain (Europe) but have clients worldwide.
Drop me an email and we will discuss your project.
You and I have wasted enough time on PowerPoint Presentations. It's a necessary evil, but there are much better ways to approach it. Based off a talk I gave @ APTS. Enjoy!
Your welcome email (or lack thereof) sets the tone for the email marketing relationship you have with your subscribers—make sure it's sending the right message!
Did you know that Tuesdays at 11am is one of the worst possible times to send your email campaigns? Stop relying on guesswork and hunches to drive your email marketing--you might be shooting yourself in the foot. Learn How to Tweak Your Email Messaging to Generate More Leads!
View full presentation here: http://www.hubspot.com/the-science-of-email-marketing/
The Best Startup Investor Pitch Deck & How to Present to Angels & Venture Cap...J. Skyler Fernandes
Take the online video course on Udemy:
https://www.udemy.com/course/the-best-startup-investor-pitch-deck/?referralCode=A5ED0FBD65120A93A16E
3.5+hrs of video content, walking step by step each part of the pitch, with personal VC stories, examples, and advice.
The "Best" Startup Investor Pitch Deck is an aggregation of some of the best pitch decks and wisdom from some of the top angels, VCs, and entrepreneurs including my own person insight/experience. The slide deck includes a template for entrepreneurs to use to present to investors, with details on what should be addressed on each slide. There are also additional slides on how best to pitch to investors effectively, how to design and format slides, and what to do before the pitch.
Are you leveraging social proof to optimally boost leads and sales? Checkout out these tricks for harnessing current and past customer success (testimonials, star ratings, customer action shots, etc.) to drive more conversions.
You'll learn:
- What kinds of social proof aid conversion (and why)
- Common conversion-killing social proof cases to avoid
- When and where social proof matters on a landing page
- How to score/grade the quality of your social proof
- What elements make a highly persuasive testimonial (and how to get them)
BONUS: Learn my "CRAVENS" methodology -- a simple scorecard for measuring the quality of social proof to effectively persuade conversion. CRAVENS = Credible, Relevant, Attractive, Visual, Enumerated, Nearby [anxiety points], Specific.
Note: A "craven" is a chicken, quitter, scaredy cat, etc. The CRAVENS model focuses on leveraging social proof to strategically reduce anxiety (i.e. scaredy cat, abandonment tendencies) and in turn boost conversion. Get ready for some actionable social proof tips and some epic LOL cat slides! #RememberTheCravens (scaredy cats!)
>> Presented Aug 26, 2014 for an Unbounce Webinar.
Short link: http://j.mp/socialproofcrowebinar
Pitching Ideas: How to sell your ideas to othersJeroen van Geel
Learn how to convince others of your UX ideas by understanding them.
We are good in designing usable and engaging products and services. We understand the user's needs and have a toolkit with dozens of deliverables. But for some reason it remains difficult to sell an idea or concept to team members, managers or clients. After this session that problem will be solved!
Selling your ideas and convincing others is one of the most undervalued assets in our field. This ranges from convincing a colleague to use a certain design pattern to selling research to your boss and convincing a client to go for your concept. You can come up with the best ideas in the world, but if it is presented in the wrong way these ideas will die a lonely dead. This is sad, because everybody can learn how to bring a message across. The main thing is that you know what to pay attention to.
In this session I will take you on a journey through the world of presenting ideas. We will move through the heads of clients and your colleagues, learn what their thoughts and needs are. We will move to the core of your idea and into the world of psychology.
https://www.wrike.com/blog/08/27/2014/Crowdfunding-Sites-Infographic - In the last few years, the crowdfunding scene has exploded. It's not just about Kickstarter and IndieGoGo anymore. Now there are hundreds of platforms to choose from, with more popping up every day. But which crowdfunding site is best for your startup, small business, or charitable cause?
In this infographic, we cover 26 Top Crowdfunding Sites with all the essential details so you can choose wisely.
More info here on the blog: https://www.wrike.com/blog/08/27/2014/Crowdfunding-Sites-Infographic
Presentation based on Ben Holmes, Index Ventures Ventures http://www.slideshare.net/benholmes/venture-capital-an-entrepreneurs-manual
Created for EnterpriseTO
a presentation I made at Jacksonville State University's "The Alabama Conference for Inventors"... some content blatantly lifted from other great presentations
10 decisions that will radically improve your startups chance of successCo-founder Ignitor
A slide deck of 10 decisions that will radically improve a startups chance of success. As well as an introduction to a weekend seminar to help entrepreneurs kick-start their businesses. For more visit: www.startupcherry.com
1. Why do some startups get
funded? What makes for the
best pitch? How does the
process work?
DocSend recently teamed up with Professor
Tom Eisenmann from Harvard Business School.
Together, we conducted research that gave
us the answers to those questions. We studied
the fundraising of 200 startup companies as
they went through their Series Seed and Series
A rounds. Altogether, these companies raised
more than $360 million.
from
$360M
Who Raised
200 Startups
What We Learned
$360M RAISED200 COMPANIES
$
2. DocSend is a sales enablement tool
that tracks per-page analytics on
document usage and is a popular
way for founders to send pitch decks
to investors. This put us in a unique
position to conduct this study.
All of the companies that we chose
through our selection process opted
into the research. In addition to
sending their decks to investors using
DocSend, they answered a detailed
questionnaire on what the overall
fundraising process was like. Some
of the companies that participated
include August Locks, Panjo, Shift
Cars, Back to the Roots, Wiser, Tiggly,
20twenty, Boomtrain, and mNectar.
2
3. Here are some of our main findings:
Stats From an Average Series Seed Raise
Starting a company is a brutal process. Getting outside funding is a necessary step for many tech
startups, but it’s an opaque and frustrating process for those doing it for the first time. With that in mind,
we wanted to shed some light on what a typical successful seed round looks like.
DeckFundraising Process
58Investors
Contacted
40Investor
Meetings
$1.3MCapital
Raised
12.5Weeks
to Close
19.2Page Avg
Deck Length
03:44Minute Avg
Visit Time
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$
$1.3M
0
3
4. 20 1
2
3
4
5
20-30
7
6
Seven Actionable Takeaways
If you’re thinking of raising a seed round for your
startup, here are seven take aways from hundreds
of companies who successfully raised.
Keep your deck to 20 pages or
fewer. Each visit will only be 3m
44sec on average.
More meetings does not equal
more money. Focus on getting
quality introductions to investors
who are likely to be a fit. Quality
over quantity.
You’ll likely need to contact 20-30
investors. But you won’t need to
contact hundreds.
Don’t list your deal terms in your
deck. Deliver them in person.
The terms can vary by investor.
Spend time on your deck.
Specifically, make sure your
team slide looks awesome. If you
include a financial slide, which is
optional, remember it’ll be your
most viewed.
Raising seed funding will take
longer than you think. Don’t start
to despair until you’ve been at it
for a few months.
Try to raise from a seed firm
before you go to angels. Firms
will give you more money in
less time with fewer meetings.
4
5. What to expect and how to manage the
fundraising process
Series A, the next step
The optimal pitch deck
11-15
16-17
6-10
Slides
Table of Contents
5
6. Designing a Successful Seed Deck
The average length of the seed decks we studied was roughly 19 pages, and most had a similar format.
The following table shows the types of pages used in the average order by the frequency in which
they occurred. This table also notes the average length for each section of the deck, if that figure was
included. We categorized pages according to Sequoia Capital’s list of recommended categories.
Company
Purpose
73%
Category
% decks
including
Smart
Key
If included,
# of pages
Product
96%
Problem
88%
Team
100%
Solution
69%
Business
Model
81%
Why Now
46%
Competition
65%
Market
Size
73%
Financials
58%
1.8 2 1.2 1.7 1.4
5 1.2 3.4 1.4 2.3
6
7. The ordering for DocSend and Sequoia differed only in a few places:
SEQUOIA
RECOMMENDED ORDER
OBSERVED ORDER
Company
Purpose
Problem Solution Why Now Market Size
Product Team Business
Model
Competition Financials
6 7 8 9 10
1 2 3 4 5
Company
Purpose
Problem Solution Why Now Market Size
Competition Product Business
Model
Team Financials
6 7 8 9 10
1 2 3 4 5
Recommended Deck Ordering
The ordering of the sections was fairly standard, except for the team page. This page appeared either
at the beginning or the end, but never in the middle. Within the 200 companies we studied, more
companies placed the page at the end and not the beginning. This practice is in line with advice from
Reid Hoffman, who advises companies to lead with their investment thesis, not a team page.
7
8. Mobile
Views
100%
0
12%
investors
of
Viewers studied the average successful
deck for 3 minutes, 44 seconds. This time
might not sound like much, but the length
was more than we expected. Compare that
time to DocSend’s own pitch deck, viewed
on average for a little more than two
minutes. Twelve percent of investors read
the pitch decks from their mobile phones
as well, so make sure your deck looks OK
on a tiny screen.
The Average Pitch Deck View
8
9. Which Pages Matter the Most
A few questions arise: Where was this view time spent within the pitch? If you spend extra time fixing up
your deck, which pages should you focus on? Where should you anticipate questions? The following
table shows the average time spent per page in each category.
Interestingly, although the financial category takes the place, only 57 percent of successful decks
have this section. The low rate of inclusion is mostly due to the fact that many seed stage firms do not
yet have financial results on projections. Almost all of the seed decks, and many of the A decks, don’t
contain any significant financials to discuss.
If you include financials, be very thoughtful with the content, as viewers will spend the most time on this
section. Ensure your team slide, whether at the end or the beginning, also looks amazing.
One thing that’s important to note is that almost no decks listed the amount they were raising and the
terms of their fundraise. This information is always better delivered in person, and can vary from investor
to investor.
0 5s 10s 15s 20s 25s
Solution
Problem
Market Size
Product
Business Model
Company Purpose
Why Now
Competition
Team
Financials
10.6
11.3
13.3
13.9
14.9
15.3
16.3
16.6
22.8
23.2
Categories Time / Page View in Seconds
9
10. Example Pitch Decks
Some of the companies in our data set agreed to share their decks publicly. If you’d like to see some
pitch decks to get ideas to create your own, these samples are great.
Boomtrain Panjo Shift Cars Yoga Trail
Smart Host Sunshine Dineserve DocSend
10
11. Surviving the Fundraising Process
A Matter of Time
How long does a typical seed round take to raise? Within DocSend’s data set, on average, the round
took 12 1/2 weeks. However, we saw much variation around this average. One-fifth of the companies
took 20 weeks or longer, and another one-fifth took six weeks or fewer. The longest successful round
took 40 weeks to close.
Companies that failed to successfully raise funds gave up after an average of 6.7 weeks. These
companies may have failed simply for lack of patience: the companies that had successful rounds
reported that the process took longer than expected. We asked the research participants to rate the
actual length of their fundraising round against their expectations. On a scale of one to five, where three
was “as expected” and five was “waaaaay longer,” the average response for seed rounds was 3.6.
Certainly, while patience is beneficial for startups, knowing when to give up, take a step back, and
take a fresh look at the situation is important. Three-fourths of the companies that failed to raise
seed funding planned to try again, and the average time until they plan to restart their efforts is 8.9
weeks—plenty of time to make progress on their business and incorporate feedback.
0 - 5
15% 6 - 10
26% 11 - 15
42% 16 and up
17%Seed Round in Weeks
11
12. Strive for Quality, Not Quantity, of Investors
It’s tempting to think that the more investors
you contact, the better your chances of raising
money. Unfortunately, this situation isn’t the
case. Certainly, the more investors you contact,
the more meetings you’ll get, up to a point.
Note: in the data reported here, an entrepreneur
could have multiple meetings with one investor,
making it possible to have more meetings than
investors contacted.
Contacting more investors will get you more
meetings, but it won’t necessarily get you more
money. Focus on the quality of your connection
to the investors you contact. In this graph, we
compare the number of investors contacted
and the amount of funding raised. There
isn’t much correlation, and if anything, the
impression is a bit negative.
Investors contacted vs meetings
Investors contacted
Investormeetings
0
0
50
200
150
100
100 200 300
Contacted vs money
Moneyoffered
Investors contacted
0
0
1.5M
6M
4.5M
3M
100 200 300
Contacting more investors will get you
more meetings, up to a point.
Contacting more investors won't help
raise more money.
12
13. How Much and From Whom to Raise
Earlier, we noted the average seed round in DocSend’s data set was $1.3 million. The amount and
the process, however, varied widely depending on whether the entrepreneur raised from angels or
a seed firm.
Angel investors are wealthy individuals who give their own money to a project; they typically give
between $25,000 and $100,000. Seed firms are small venture capital funds that pursue investments
on a full-time basis. These firms usually invest between $250,000 and $1 million in a project.
Angels
Seed firms
0
$25,000
$100,000
$250,000 $1,000,000
What to Do and When to Give Up
Create a list of 30 investors you feel would be particularly passionate about your pitch. Most of the
startups in our data set had to contact only 20 to 30 investors to close their round.
If none of them agree to invest, something may be off about what or how you’re pitching. Take their
feedback seriously and make some changes to your pitch before contacting more investors. If you still
haven’t closed investors after contacting 100 of them, you should seriously rethink either your timing in
the market or the project. A few companies raise money after contacting more than 100 investors, but
that scenario is rare and a big drain on your time.
13
14. The following are a few of the key trade-offs:
Angels are typically operators,
so they can relate and have a
personal interest in your
project. Because you'll have a
few angels in your round, you'll
have a sizable support group
behind you.
Seed FirmsAngels
These firms have professional,
savvy investors. The firms
invest more, so they have a
greater financial interest in
seeing you succeed. Firms also
have more money to give you
later if you need it.
Pros
Angels have busy lives and
fluctuating funds, so you may
not always be able to rely on
them for the money and
support you need. You also
need to sell to more of them for
a round.
Firms may try to control your
business decisions, and they
aren't always qualified to give
you the best advice. Firms also
see a lot of deals, so it's hard to
get their attention.
Cons
Angels vs Seed Firms
14
15. The following summarizes the differences:
Firm Rounds: Rarer but Better
In general, angel-led seed rounds are much more common than firm-led seed rounds. According to
David S. Rose, an angel investor, seed firms fund about 1,500 startups each year while angels fund
roughly 50,000. This discrepancy is partially because seed firms invest in about one of every 400
companies they consider, while angels choose one out of every 40. Those numbers are by no means
exact, but they do illustrate that if you wish to get a firm’s attention, you need to have an outstanding
pitch deck and know the selling points of your business inside and out.
According to DocSend’s data, although angel-led seed rounds are more common, firm-led rounds have
much more favorable characteristics. If you are able to raise funds from a firm, you’ll get twice as much
money in 30 percent less time. You’ll also need to contact only 40 percent as many investors.
Our recommendation is to try raising from a Seed Fund first.
Firm Angel
9.6
29
27
13.5
68
45
Firm
Firm
Angel
Angel
$1,995,952
36.8%
$989,118
18.9%
Avg time to fundraise (weeks)
Avg investors contacted
Avg investor meetings
Avg money raised
% oversubscribed
$per contact
0 $100k
$91,830
$17,210
15
16. Series A vs Series Seed Rounds
Series A rounds are much less common than seed rounds. In DocSend’s data set, nine seed rounds
existed for every series A round. It appears that the Series A Crunch is still in effect. Although we have
fewer data points, we managed to collect some statistics on the differences between seed and A rounds.
If you are able to raise a Series A round, the process is easier than for a seed round. A rounds take less
time, yield more money, and require fewer investors than seed rounds.
Series A rounds
took an average
of 9.6 weeks, 24
percent less time
than the time given
for the average
seed round.
During A rounds,
companies contacted
an average of 26
investors, versus 58
investors contacted
for seed rounds.
During A rounds,
companies had on
average 30 investor
meetings, versus 40
investor meetings for
seed rounds.
The average money
raised during seed
rounds was just
under $1.3 million,
where the money
raised during A
rounds was more
than $8 million.
Here are some of the key facts we gathered:
9.6weeks
26investors
30investor meetings
$1.3million
16
17. Easiest Markets for Seed Funding
Consumers’ needs and other
economic conditions impact which
business models receive the
greatest success during fundraising.
While trends are always fluctuating,
in the past 12 months, four types of
companies stood out as having the
most success during seed rounds:
consumer, business, marketplace,
and hardware.
On average, marketplace
companies raised the most money
in their seed rounds. Successful
marketplace businesses are quite
rare, but when they work, they’re
also much bigger, like Uber or
Airbnb. Raising money for a
marketplace startup takes a long
time. Although there’s a lot of money
for companies in these categories,
convincing investors that your
startup is going to win takes longer.
The following are some of the key statistics on the fundraising
efforts of the four types of business models:
Consumer
32%
Business
32%
Marketplace
22%
Hardware
14%
avg $ raised
% deals
$1,330,000$1,738,750$1,245,435$945,870
$2M
17
18. 20 1
2
3
4
5
20-30
7
6
To Recap, Seven Key Takeaways
Fundraising for your startup can be an opaque and
frustrating process when the future of your business
is on the line. Keep these take aways in mind to
maximize your chances of successfully raising a
seed round.
Keep your deck to 20 pages or
fewer. Each visit will only be 3m
44sec on average.
More meetings does not equal
more money. Focus on getting
quality introductions to investors
who are likely to be a fit. Quality
over quantity.
You’ll likely need to contact 20-30
investors. But you won’t need to
contact hundreds.
Spend time on your deck.
Specifically, make sure your
team slide looks awesome. If you
include a financial slide, which is
optional, remember it’ll be your
most viewed.
Raising seed funding will take
longer than you think. Don’t start
to despair until you’ve been at it
for a few months.
Try to raise from a seed firm
before you go to angels. Firms
will give you more money in
less time with fewer meetings.
Don’t list your deal terms in your
deck. Deliver them in person.
The terms can vary by investor.
18
19. Wondering what happens
after you raise a seed
round of funding?
See what DocSend did on our blog
Want to see who reads your
pitch deck and where they
spend time?
Sign up for a free DocSend account