Fortech Investments’ Post

They say Fundraising is like dating - You set a meeting 📆 , it gets rescheduled 📩 , you get ghosted 👻 . I used to get surprised when hearing founder stories about working hard to get warm intros to meet investors >>> set meet >>> investor cancels with promise of follow up >>> then ghost. But it happens more often than you think, you start to know which investors do it. From a branding POV founders definitely remember this behaviour and share with others, because there was good energy spent getting the warm intro and setting the follow ups to just end in a wormhole. Just waiting for someone to create the VCGhost index to call it out. Whether it's dating or fundraising, just say thanks but no thanks. Simple. #vc #fundraising #investorrelations #founderjourney #feedback

Here's a non-obvious take: Raising investment isn't a victory lap. It's more like an IOU note from your future self. 📝 Yes, you've convinced someone to believe in your vision. That's commendable. 👏 But remember, every dollar raised is a promise to deliver. A commitment to scale. It's a liability, not a trophy. 🏆 Investors are not your fans. They are your accountability partners. Their applause comes with expectations. 📈 Fundraising isn't a finish line. It's the starting gun. 🏁 So, next time the champagne corks pop, let it be a reminder. A reminder that the real work, the real celebration, starts now. 🚀 Here's a tip: Celebrate progress, not promises. 🎯 Now, go out there and make those dollars count. 💪 --- #design #marketing #startup #brand #connection #people #community #opportunity #product #tech #communication #strategy #personalbrand

"Confession time! I & Srikanth Gundavaram have bombed fund raise pitches, rushed through slides, and forgotten to breathe (yes, really!) "💦 But we've learned from those mistakes, and here's our key sharing ℹ️ ✨ 45 minutes is the magic number! ✨ It's long enough to share your vision ; short enough to keep investor engaged 👩💼 In shorter duration of 20mins to 30mins we missed sharing fewies 🥺. Longer duration more suitable for late stages & convo with industry experts Trust me, I've been there - trying to cram too much in, or worse, not enough! So, here's our 45-minute pitch duration break-up: 👋 Intro (5 mins): Who are we, and why should you care? 🎬 Problem and solution (10 mins): What's the issue, and how do we fix it? 📈 Business model and market (10 mins): How do we make money, and who's our competition? 🚀 Progress and growth plans (10 mins): What have we achieved, and what's next? ❓Q&A and chat (10 mins): Let's discuss, and make connections! Would love to hear more experiences around fund raise 💰 #startuplife #funding #fundraise

Most founders are clueless on how to react when investors say no. Here is the best tactic: 1. Thank them for their time. 2. Ask them what led to a no. Don't expect clear feedback. 3. Do not bitch at them. You will never get a second chance. 4. Do not beg, just ask if it make sense to re-connect when you've grown more. 5. Move on to the next investor. I've raised $7M in 5 years. Now you can have my playbook for free. Grab my 8-page Ultimate Fundraising Guide to get my >exact< tactics that can help you close your round in 3 months. Join 513 smart founders and get the guide here 👉 https://lnkd.in/gwfy2igH

🚀 Fundraising secrets for first-time founders 🚀 Raise Millions by Hustle Fund simplifies fundraising. No longer just for Silicon Valley insiders, this guide empowers first-time founders everywhere—from solo entrepreneurs in 🇮🇳 to fresh graduates in 🇺🇸. Thank you Rubén D. for recently sharing this great resource! Learn step-by-step: 🏦 Fundraising Process 📊 Crafting a Killer Pitch Deck 🤝 Investor Relationship Building 🎤 Perfecting Your Pitch ✔️ Securing Verbal Commitments Anything else that should be included? Let us know in the comments! #report #founder #insights #fundraising

The SOLUTION of a spreadsheet doesn’t scale; the PROBLEMS do. Any pain in a spreadsheet exponentially increases with each line added. #spreadsheet #techdebt #analysts #compounding #problems

Fundraising is a core pillar of the venture backed ecosystem. Managing relationships between investors that are relevant for a current fundraise, and those who will need to be cultivated ahead of a future round; is often touted as the art vs science skillset of a great founder. The truth is, more often than not, it’s about managing a spreadsheet daily and weekly regardless of where a founder is in the fundraising cycle. We’ve built a CRM to not just keep track but actively remind founders about keep warms and critical follow ups, so you don’t burn time building flows and lists in excel. #worksmarternotharder #founderlife #fundraising #crmsolutions #investorrelations

Many founders face this big question at some point in their journey... Should I raise money, or should I bootstrap? After speaking with Scot Chisholm, founder of Classy, I gained a new perspective on the timing of raising funds. Scott emphasized that many founders raise money too early, and here's the key point: funding robs you of focus. When you're bootstrapped, you’re forced to focus on the things that matter, sharpening your strategy and separating the mediocre ideas from the truly game-changing ones. Once you've proven your strategy works, that's the time to raise capital to accelerate growth. In the early stages, less can be more. Constraints force clarity and precision, which lead to sustainable growth.

One really boring thing that separates successful fundraisers from the rest? The best practice. Don't just take my word for it Here's Elad Gil on the subject, he's invested in 40+ unicorns "Your first few pitches will likely suck. Take a few days to practice your pitch on advisors, other entrepreneurs, or on angels you really don't want to raise money from. Else you may spend a few weeks getting nos before rev'ing the pitch anyways." People practice more for their Harvard interview than the Avg founder practices before they ask for $5m... Don't burn meeting, practice! *** I'm an ex VC who writes a newsletter filled with detailed advice on fundraising from VCs. It's read by 100s of founders just like you. I've left a link in the comments below - check it out. ***

Hey founder friends, I've got a critical piece of advice for you today. As a founder who has raised over $10M for my companies and an angel investor receiving cold inbound daily, I'm going to shout this one:   ‼️ PERSONALIZE YOUR OUTREACH ‼️   Seriously, form emails are ignored. Even if you replace the first sentence with language directly from my profile, it's still a form email. Using generalized language like "we both care about diversity" doesn't cut it either.   Angel investing is often a side venture. We're busy people investing our own money, not managing other people's capital like fund managers. Everyone has their own motivations, and at the early stages, a big component is feeling a connection with you, the founder.   We want to know why you're reaching out to us *specifically.* Do we have expertise that will be relevant and helpful as you build? Have we said something in a post, article, or interview that struck a chord? Start your outreach with a sentence about the person receiving the email. Yes, it takes more time. It also increases your response rate and interest.   We're hosting a virtual Scroobious panel discussion next Thursday, 3/28, from 2-3 pm ET about breaking through the noise and catching an angel investor's attention. Stephanie M. Fowler, Richard Millunchick, and I will share relevant, tactical tips on using cold outreach for fundraising. You can bet I'll be emphasizing personalization during the chat.   👉 Register here: https://buff.ly/3uX48ta #fundraising #pitching #investing #angelinvesting #entrepreneurship #founders #coldoutreach #virtualevent