The Fundraising Blueprint
The Fundraising Blueprint
A compilation of articles that I've written on raising your pre-seed or seed round
The startup world is opaque and filled with terminology that can make it prohibitive for people to confidently immerse themselves in the ecosystem. Being able to break down the barriers here is something I am deeply passionate about.
Since starting Superfluid, I’ve focused on this within the fundraising context. I’ve sought to write articles with actionable and practical advice for founders looking to raise a pre-seed or seed round.
Founders and operators have used these articles globally to raise millions in VC funding and have encouraged 100s of founders to embark confidently on their fundraising journey.
This guide will be a living compilation of all the articles I write about fundraising. I’ve structured this almost like a guide or blueprint for the work you need to do before, during and after the fundraise.
All of these articles have been written to address direct reader enquiries. I’d love you all to give me feedback on what resonates, what needs improvement and more importantly, what other questions you all have so that I can answer them in future articles.
Pre-Raise Work
Before you start raising, figuring out whether the venture capital pathway is right for your business is important.
Raising capital is hard when you haven’t done the requisite thinking about your business. In the article below, I’ve compiled a non-exhaustive list of ‘homework’ you should do if you’re looking to shortcut the fundraising process.
This ‘homework’ also doubles up as a robust foundation upon which you can build your business regardless of whether you raise capital.
To unlock investor meetings, your pitch deck must meet a certain standard. Everyone has different views on what should and shouldn’t be included in a pitch deck. My thoughts and frameworks are below:
The final slide in a startup pitch deck is by far the most overlooked by founders. The ‘ask’ slide is an opportunity for founders to showcase their depth of thinking around what the next 18-24 months look like for their business. Moreover, by raising an adequate amount of capital, rather than a round number, you’ll be better prepared to weather any unexpected business shocks and pivots.
Kicking Off a Fundraise
Once you’ve done all the prep work required to be in ‘fighting’ shape, it’s crucial you do your training. Running a fundraise is like building a product. You need to test and iterate on your pitch and figure out what resonates and what doesn’t. The guide below gives you a step-by-step template to follow.
Fundraising Conversations
It’s hard to give general advice for fundraising conversations, however, the underlying principle of creating trust with investors is important.
Optimising for the Right Terms and Investor
Choosing the right investor is incredibly important, especially at the seed stage. Use the framework in the article below to figure out whose term sheet you should take.
Similarly, the terms you accept at the seed stage can impact the success of your business going forward. Be incredibly protective over your cap table.
I’ll be updating this article each time I write an article about fundraising. I’d encourage you to bookmark the page as well.
Feel free to email me at abhi(at)rampersand.com or leave a comment below on other topics you’d like me to explore.