What are the common negotiation mistakes to avoid with a startup's unique customer acquisition funnel?

2 Mistake 2: Not respecting the funnel

The second mistake is not respecting the startup's funnel, meaning that you try to impose your own assumptions, preferences, or standards on how the funnel should look like or operate. For example, you might try to push the startup to use a different channel, change its pricing strategy, or adopt a more conventional funnel model. This could be seen as disrespectful, intrusive, or ignorant by the founders, who have invested a lot of time and effort in creating and testing their unique funnel. To avoid this mistake, you need to respect the startup's vision, creativity, and expertise, and acknowledge the value of their unique funnel.

3 Mistake 3: Not aligning with the funnel

The third mistake is not aligning your goals, expectations, and incentives with the startup's funnel, meaning that you have a mismatch between what you want and what the funnel can deliver. For example, you might want a faster growth rate, a higher valuation, or a shorter exit horizon than what the funnel can realistically achieve. This could lead to frustration, disappointment, or conflict between you and the founders, who have a different perspective on what success looks like for their unique funnel. To avoid this mistake, you need to align your interests with the startup's funnel, and negotiate a deal that reflects the funnel's performance, potential, and risks.

4 Mistake 4: Not leveraging the funnel

The fourth mistake is not leveraging the startup's funnel, meaning that you don't take advantage of the opportunities and advantages that the unique funnel offers. For example, you might not use the funnel as a selling point to attract other investors, partners, or customers, or you might not help the startup to optimize, scale, or innovate their funnel. This could result in missed opportunities, wasted resources, or lost competitive edge for both you and the startup. To avoid this mistake, you need to leverage the startup's funnel, and support them to enhance, expand, or diversify their unique funnel.

5 Mistake 5: Not learning from the funnel

The fifth mistake is not learning from the startup's funnel, meaning that you don't use the experience and insights gained from negotiating and working with a unique funnel to improve your own skills, knowledge, and network. For example, you might not apply the lessons learned from the funnel to your own portfolio, strategy, or communication, or you might not share the best practices, challenges, or solutions with other investors, startups, or mentors. This could result in stagnation, isolation, or obsolescence for you as a venture capitalist. To avoid this mistake, you need to learn from the startup's funnel, and use it as a source of inspiration, education, and connection.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?