Douglas Gerard Kleinsmith

Top 10 Tips for Entrepreneurs Seeking Funding

Users who follow these tips increase their fundraising odds substantially.

• Complete Your Funding Profile
  • Complete your funding profile with all sections filled, including your products and services, a complete management team with headshots, and slideshow with product images.
• Complete a Business Plan
  • Complete a Business Plan in EquityNet and refine your financial projections using the benchmarking alerts in the Business Plan Analysis report.
• Upload Important Investment Documents
  • Upload and present any other important investment documents such as pitch decks, financial statements, and offering materials.
• Use EquityNet Crowdcast
  • Use the EquityNet Crowdcast system to automatically email invitations to your contacts in order to build additional exposure for your company.
• Construct Concise Introductory Messages
  • Construct and send a concise introductory message to investors, including primary reasons why they should want to invest such as KPIs, expected returns, and forecasted revenue.
• Be Proactive in Messaging Investors
  • Be proactive in messaging many investors and include a simple way for them to connect with you for a web meeting or call, such as a Calendly link.
• Use the Activity System
  • Use the Activity system to track interested investors, and send prompt follow-up messages to investors who viewed your profile or showed interest.
• Prepare for Due Diligence
  • Prepare for due diligence questions by interested investors and use your Business Plan and investment documents to satisfy such requests.
• Keep Your Funding Profile Updated
  • Keep your funding profile updated with new funding raised/committed and message interested investors with any new milestones achieved.
• Do Not Respond to Unknown Investors
  • Do not respond to or engage any parties outside of EquityNet that are not listed as approved investors (this may happen due to your public profile and LinkedIn connections).