There’s no way to sugarcoat it. Fundraising is not a fun process. You see the end results through splashy headlines about extravagant sums and big expansion plans that make it look easy and glamorous. Unfortunately, the process for all but a few companies is close to the exact opposite. People will tell you that fundraising is hard and will take a lot of time. What they don’t tell you is that the process is tedious and can feel arbitrary at times. Fortunately, there are some straightforward and repeatable steps for maximizing your chances of success.
这听起来可能很明显，但是您需要做的第一件事也是最重要的事情是客观地评估您是否真的需要筹集资金，以及您是否有一定程度地吸引投资者。企业家经常将筹款活动视为验证的标志，而且肯定可以，但是筹款只是您可能需要或可能不需要做的许多事情之一来建立成功的公司。确保您不仅仅是因为您而筹集资金think你必须。对我来说，转折点是认识到我们已经在小规模上证明了该概念的生存能力，但是我们需要预先构建大量的技术和基础架构才能使其可扩展。
Start with thinking through how much capital you need, what you need it for, and how investing will lead to a great return. Force yourself to consider a plan where you don’t raise any capital. Raising money means selling equity in your business. While this is necessary for many businesses, the vast majority of successful businesses in the United States are bootstrapped or grow through traditional debt financing. If you have decided you must sell equity in your business to maximize its potential, here are the steps you need to take:
- 从计划开始：制定具有关键里程碑的三到五年计划（产品市场拟合，监管机构批准，盈利能力等）。然后弄清楚您需要多少资金才能完成每个关键里程碑以及每个阶段的潜在估值。这将是您的路线图，用于从系列种子到A系列，B，C等的融资回合汤的路线图。如果您不能以合理的股权和投资者回报结束旅程，请重新考虑您的计划。否则，您不太可能筹集资金，或者更糟糕的是，您不会为自己的所有辛苦工作得到适当的补偿。
- Research: Gather as much information as you can on which funds are investing in your space and why. Many funds have mandates on what stage of a company they can invest in and a thesis around a space (a fancy way to say they see a trend that is their focus area for investment). For example, Farmer’s Fridge is part consumer packaged goods, part quick-service restaurant, and part data-technology business. We looked for partners that invest in each of our focus areas and built a really representative, well-rounded group—Danone, Cleveland Avenue, and Innovation Endeavors each, respectively, bring domain expertise in their function. Another example is that three of our six largest investors have also made big bets on vertical farming because they are looking for ways that technology is changing access to fresh, healthy food.
- 网络：与空间中的创始人和天使接触，参加行业活动，并要求介绍。您需要开始了解可以帮助您扩大圈子并向您确定的资金进行介绍的人。理想情况下，您可以让另一位创始人以可靠的认可向您的一位投资者介绍您的投资者，或者找到在邻近空间中成功并愿意投资的天使投资者。当我第一次试图筹集资金时，我参加了一次食品和农业会议，在那里我遇到了垂直农场的首席执行官。他向我介绍了一个他的最大的投资者 - 后来投资于美国。这个想法是要把您的想法提出来，并建立信誉，同时建立可以帮助投资者进行热烈介绍的关系。
- 创建您的材料：我也喜欢将此步骤称为“记录魔术”。您将需要一个音高甲板，财务模型和备份数据来支持您的故事。首先将您的故事组织到15到25张幻灯片中，您可以通过电子邮件分享，以使人们有兴趣与您开会以了解更多信息。开会后，您将需要进行一份演讲来解释您的业务和增长计划。包括一个详细的财务模型，该模型阐明了业务在投资一生中应如何表现。这将使投资者能够对您的假设进行压力测试，并找出他们的潜在回报。
- Practice your pitch: It’s crucial to have your pitch nailed. Be prepared to answer every conceivable question about your business and practice with friends and mentors. Also, it is okay for you to ask questions of the investors, too. You will want to clarify upfront with funds to confirm that their check size, stage, and style are compatible with your stage and visions. Things like the life cycle of their current fund, and other investments that could also impact you, so you should feel comfortable asking these questions. This avoids wasting time for both groups and shows you know what you are doing.
- 开始您的伸手：一旦建立了一些联系，进行了研究并准备了材料，就开始获得资金介绍或接触冷。将其视为销售过程。您想拥有尽可能大的漏斗。与您进行对话的人越多，创建竞争过程的机会越大。计划与50多人接触，而不要仅仅因为几个人会感兴趣而停止。这是一个数字游戏，进球的镜头越多，成功的可能性就越大。
- 与潜在投资者的会议：每次推销会议都是完全不同的。我最好的建议是来自一位投资者，他坚持在锻炼中休息期间在他的健身房大厅见面。当他发送邀请时，我认为这是健身房附近的一个空间，但是当他走到他的背心并说我有30分钟的时间时，我们就在大厅里的那只鸽子。思考鲨鱼坦克，但是没有相机，最后没有报价。投资者正在评估您如何处理房间，并测试您对自己的知识的了解。做好准备。使用您获得的所有反馈来迭代下一个反馈和故事。
- 您需要的只是一个（但最好的两个或更多）：请记住，只需要一个投资者才能设置一个定期表，然后该过程通常从那里下降。尝试至少有两个人，以便您可以拥有一个竞争过程。
- 承诺是真实的：不要忘记您要与投资者结婚。认真地说，许多投资伙伴关系的持续时间比普通婚姻的时间更长，因此请确保您了解与谁合作。如果您获得了定期表，请随时询问参考电话。此外，您应该讨论有关结合节奏，沟通方式，报告，投资论文等等事情的预期，以避免出现问题。
- 这是一条双向街道：了解花钱意味着什么。您正在注册以竭尽全力为投资者提供财务回报，因此请确保您了解他们正在寻找什么样的回报，并确保您的业务可以交付。
- Get back to work: You knew I was gonna end with this, right? It’s easy to get swept up in the process of fundraising and think of closing a round as an end in and of itself, rather than as a means to an end. Raising money is not a sign of success. Running a good business and being realistic about your ability to take outside capital and deliver a return to your investors is how you build long-term value. Getting more money on your balance sheet will give you more resources to grow, but hitting the ground running after months spent fundraising and executing a strategy is the real work.
卢克·桑德斯（Luke Saunders）是Farmer's Fridge的创始人兼首席执行官，该网络由400多个智能冰箱组成，上面有新鲜的餐点和小吃。