One of the areas that will always remain challenging while launching a startup, is funding. Funding is a necessary part of any startup and getting it is far easier said than done. The ideal type of investment for an early-stage startup is an angel investment, an injection of a good amount of cash to fuel the early stages of your project.
However, it is surely not easy and there are steps you can take to increase the likelihood of attracting one. So let’s take a look at what those might be.
Lay down the basics with care
A business needs a solid foundation. It has to be built on rock, not on the sand and if you are all enthusiastic but fail to and no planning at the start, then you won’t achieve this. This means bad things for the company as a whole, but it also means bad things for your investment prospects.
“Angels are looking at a few things when they size up a startup. One of those key things is how rigorous the process of establishing the company has been, something which will indicate to them the care and effort that will be maintained once their money has been put into the business,” explains Dick Rutherford, tech writer at LastMinuteWriting and Writinity.
Have a concrete understanding of the basic principals of your business to impress a potential investor.
Also Read: Angel investor Mike Flache shares his tips to begin investing in startups
Don’t be afraid to say what you need
An angel investor would far rather have you making solid demands based on actual projections and the data that you’ve gathered about your idea than floundering or asking them what they think they ought to give.
You’re not talking to them for business advice, you want money, it’s as simple as that. So there should be no beating around the bush, just try to get straight to the point about what it is you need to make your startup a success.
Research your angel
Reaching out to a stranger that you don’t have any information about and asking for massive amounts of money is not a good idea. You need to know who you’re pitching your business to in order to be able to impress them in the proper way.
“Ideally you know as much about your potential angel investor as you can without it getting weird. You need to be able to predict the conversation so that you come to it prepared with all you need to prove to whoever it is that you are worth both their time and, crucially, their money,” explains Doug Howard, business blogger at DraftBeyond and ResearchPapersUK.
Also Read: What your startup needs to know about angel investor funding
Contact people who know them, try and encounter them out of a pitch meeting, do anything you can to know that there won’t be any personality curveballs when it comes to the crunch.
Professionalism to a fault
Don’t make any mistake about it. It’s crucial that when you engage with your potential investor, everything about the way in which you act is geared for professionalism. Essentially, you’re auditioning and the part they are auditioning you for is the dedicated, organised professional who will continue to do their absolute best to avoid letting them down or causing them big financial losses.
Even once you’ve relaxed with them, you need to be on guard against any sort of test and make sure that you stay on top of your game for the entirety of your meeting and any further exchanges.
Conclusion
Getting an angel investment is hard, but it’s by no means impossible, it happens all the time. You just have to make sure that besides having a good idea, you are setting up for success in those crucial pitch meetings.
Hopefully these tips will help to maximixe your chances of securing funding.
–
Editor’s note: e27 aims to foster thought leadership by publishing contributions from the community. Become a thought leader in the community and share your opinions or ideas by submitting a post.
Join our e27 Telegram group here, or like e27 Facebook page here.
Image credit: Austin Distel on Unsplash
The post Tips for drawing in angel investors for your startup appeared first on e27.