Investors
Venture Capital
![John Greathouse]()
It Made Sense at the Time: Why I Passed on Uber's Seed Round
The opportunity to invest the equivalent of a down payment on a modest Silicon Valley house in the early Uber would be worth a billion dollars now. When you pay that kind of tuition, you need to learn the lesson.
Fundraising
![Alex Iskold]()
The Tried-and-True Process for Getting Investors to Give You a Straight Answer
You want to hear "yes,'' and you will survive hearing "no,'' but you can't work with a "maybe'' that never ends.
Pitching Investors
![Martin Zwilling]()
10 Answers That Will Make Your Startup Plan Worthy of Investment
Having all the answers when you pitch investors will lead them to ask only one question: ""How soon can I sign up?"
Startups
![Alex Iskold]()
7 Things That Define Exceptional Founding Teams
When a business is launched, every member of the team is crucial to success. Picking those people is the founders primary job.
Fundraising
![Andrew Hsu]()
How Industry Analysts Can Help Entrepreneurs Raise Money
Getting venture capital funding is a constant game of selling, and it's far easier to sell yourself if independent third-party experts rave about you.
Fundraising
![Alex Iskold]()
Raise More Capital When You Can
Investors and founders both sense the venture funding pool is drying up. If you're raising money, take every dollar you can when you can.
Investors
![Anthony Kennada]()
How Investors Value New Category Creation
Nakul Mandan, investor at Lightspeed Venture Partners, talks about the dynamics of investing in companies that are building new market categories.
Raising Capital
![Doug Winter]()
What a 1990 Chevy Pickup Truck Purchase Taught Me About Raising Capital
I didn't really need the truck back in 1991, but I learned to look for opportunities before I thought it was the right time.
Fundraising
![Alex Iskold]()
Be Meticulous About Your Investor Funnel to Achieve Funding Success
Persuading investors is a long process of getting their attention, then their enthusiasm. It helps to be methodical.
Investors
![Carol Roth]()
Why I Don't Want to Get in on the Ground Floor of Your Company
Savvy investors avoid ground-floor investments, because there is typically too much risk to offer attractive risk-adjusted returns.
Closing Deals
![Martin Zwilling]()
Deal or No Deal? Here Are 7 Ways Due Diligence Can Help Before a Final Commitment.
Due diligence might sound daunting, but it's really just an in-depth common-sense risk analysis before closing a business deal.
Pitching Investors
![Vincent Molinari]()
How to Land Your Startup's Funding Before You Even Pitch Investors
If you want investors to take you seriously, you need to demonstrate your growth potential and prove you know your market inside and out.
Pitching Investors
![Alex Iskold]()
Before Asking to Meet an Investor Know Why the Investor Should Talk to You
Asking for an introduction to an investor without explaining why the investor will be interested reflects very poorly on you.
Venture Capital
![Richard Maclean]()
Startups Don't Need Unicorn Aspirations to Attract Investor Attention
Investors fixated on finding the next startup to attain the exalted $1 billion valuation inevitably miss many very good investments.
