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SPECIAL REPORT
From: Dave Lavinsky, President, Growthink Dear Entrepreneur: In this Special Report, Insider Insider Secrets to Raising Venture Capital, Capital I provide you with a sneak peak at one of our most effective strategies for getting meetings with venture capitalists. For my complete, StepStep-ByBy-Step Guide to Raising Venture Capital, Capital go here: http://www.growthink.com/products/venture-capital-guide To Your Success,
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even if you have a great company, if you fall outside of the VC's sector preference, they'll pass on the opportunity. o Stage preference: preference VCs tend to focus on different stages of ventures. For instance, some VCs prefer early stage ventures where the risk is great, but so are the potential returns. Conversely, some VCs focus on providing capital to firms to bridge capital gaps before they go public. o Geographic location: location Most venture capital firms only invest within 100 to 200 miles of their office(s). By investing close to home, the firms are able to more actively get involved with and add value to their portfolio companies.
So, for instance, if you are a pre-revenue software company based in Chicago, your best bet is to find a venture capital firm within 200 miles of Chicago that has experience funding pre-revenue software companies.
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THIS IS IMPORTANT!! IMPORTANT!!! !!! Do NOT send VCs your business plan.
You must realize that VCs are drowning in unsolicited business plans. They are NOT going to read your business plan if you send it to them in the initial email.
Actually, you shouldnt even send an Executive Summary or a PowerPoint in this first
email. So what should you say in your email?
Instead of sending your business plan, give the VC teaser points about your venture.
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If the VC is interested, they will email you back to request an executive summary, PowerPoint deck, or even your full business plan.
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Dear [Name], I am contacting you because I am confident that our company will interest you. Key facts about our company include: Leader in developing XYZ technology to improve ABC. 3rd party research shows that this market is poised to grow from $100 million in 2008 to $2.5 billion in 2012 Our president is one of the world's leading authority on XYZ technology . He has six XYZ patents and was one of twelve experts worldwide who spoke at the recent XYZ technology conference Our technology provides critical advantages over ABC devices (the technology it displaces) and other XYZ firms
2008 revenues/grants total nearly $500K Key strategic alliances/partnerships have been formed with Partner 1, Partner 2 and Partner 3 Our company is based in Madison, WI
We expect to close this round of financing in the amount of $5 million in the next 90 days. Please contact me directly at [555-555-5555] if you would like to learn more about our company and/or to schedule a meeting. Regards, Dave
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I hope youve enjoyed what youve learned in this Special Report. This methodology is time-tested and proven. In other words, if you have a fundable business and you follow the tips in this report, chances are you will get at least one meetings with a VC. Why am I so confident? Because getting meetings with VCs is actually pretty straightforward if you dont make the obvious bone-headed mistakes that hundreds of entrepreneurs make every day. But theres one (BIG) problem Lets say you follow the tips in this report and you are able to secure 10, 15 or 25 meetings with venture capitalists. Well, you might think youre about to get funded, but in reality
What you need to accomplish before raising venture capital The 2:6:2 rule of venture capital and how to modify the way you present your company to play into it The types of companies VCs love to finance and how to position your company as one of them
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The exact criteria VCs will use to judge your company How to create your high concept pitch, and why its so amazingly effective in attracting VCs The one, overlooked section of your business plan that is critical to raising venture capital (HINT: its NOT what you think it is) The ten (10) questions that your investor slide presentation must answer, and how to order and format your presentation to maximize effectiveness How to find the right partner to contact at each VC firm How to tell if a VC is serious about funding your business...or just wasting your time The exact technique a 22-year old college dropout used to raise venture capital What it means to over-shop your deal and how to avoid this like the plague What information to cover in your VC presentation and what NOT to say How to properly answer the trick questions that virtually all VCs will ask you How to develop rapport with VCs that results in a big financing check The fifteen (15) most important venture capital negotiating issues and which ones to fight hard on and which ones you can give in to How to gain leverage to better negotiate the terms of your financing What you MUST do before signing a term sheet, or your financing could disappear forever... Two (2) insider techniques to raise venture capital while protecting your business ideas and intellectual property (IP) How to expertly follow-up with VCs and when persistence is a good thing (and when its not) What to do if your management team is not complete
If youre serious about raising venture capital, you can learn more on this page, here: http://www.growthink.com/products/venture-capital-guide To Your Success,
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