How to Raise a Seed Round in PropTech
I get asked all the time, so I figured I would put it down in a central place.
Fundraising seems to be some foreign, abstract concept to most founders I run across. At best, they see it as a daunting challenge. At worst, it’s a necessary evil to be endured to let you get back to “the real work.”
But here is the truth — If you run a startup, you are a fundraiser. Always.
The intensity of your fundraising will ebb and flow, but YOU ARE ALWAYS RAISING CAPITAL until you sell the company or go public.
Should I say that again in a different way?
There shouldn’t be a single day at your startup that goes by where you are not doing something to move fundraising forward.
I’m going to break this out into component parts, because there is some art to go with the science here and each aspect requires too much detail for a single article.
So here is the basic breakdown of the content —
2. Timing — When should I start to raise capital and how long will it take?
3. Metrics — What should I track and why do investors care?
4. Deck — How to create a compelling deck for fundraising.
5. Financials — P&L and Cap Table — What do investors look for?
6. Cap Table — Tools and Tricks.
7. Deal Structure — Preferences and Best Practices
8. Valuation — What’s my company worth?
9. Term Sheets — What to expect and where to push back.
I know some of these topics are a little elementary, but I want to make sure this content is relevant to everyone. That’s why I broke it into pieces. Click on the topic(s) you find relevant.
I’d also highly recommend reading Venture Deals by Feld and Mendelson. I’ve read it at least three times and I still love it. (I’m not a nerd! You’re a nerd!)
That’s all I got. Drop some comments and ask questions and I’ll do my best to answer them quickly.
