Ben Zises’ Post

1 year ago I helped a founder raise £2m. When we began working, it seemed impossible. Why? Because he couldn’t stop talking during investor calls! This man had a great network. We were not worried about getting enough meetings for his fundraise. But as soon as he was in the meetings he would crumble. For the 1st call that he recorded for me. He spoke for a whole 29 minutes out of the 30 minute call! The investor asked one question before the founder who go on tangent after tangent. His 2nd call was better. But not by much. The investor was able to ask 3 questions, even though 2 of them was ignored or talked over. This founder was so focused on telling investors everything about his business. That no-one actually liked him. And they didn't want to keep speaking to him. Luckily we caught this early. (And why I say its so important to get practice calls in and record them). Because we then worked on how he answered investors questions in the right way. All so he could be more: - Clear - Concise - Conversational. And in the end he was successful. £2m successful. — P.S. If you want to chat about how I can help you with exactly this, comment below with "RAISE" or dm me. Because the only way to actually know how to speak to investors is to work with someone who's sat on all sides of the table.

I raised £500k for my business before I had an MVP. If you are looking to do the same, this is how to pique an investor’s interest👇🏻 Think about the pieces of the puzzle that you’ve actually got, and create momentum around those - then go out and sell it. - How many potential customers have you spoken to and what feedback have you received? Tell them about key people of interest that you have shown. Detail their interest. Name-drop the companies that they work for. - Do you have any designs? Show them what you are working to build. Explain how it’s going to work. Paint them a picture. - Is there any existing traction on investment or conversations about investment? Name the funds and angels that you’ve spoken to. Tell them which ones are committed and which ones aren’t. Detail their excitement. - Who is the team working on it? This can be existing employees as well as those you have lined up. Tell them about the conversations you’ve had, mention names and companies where you can. Show them that there are world-class minds working behind the scenes. - What makes you, the founder, investible? As much as raising pre-seed cash is about showing momentum on all the other component parts, it is also about your personality, drive and the confidence investors have in you to deliver. Lock them down and make them feel like they cannot miss out on the opportunity you are putting in front of them.

𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐝𝐨 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠? Funding is just the start of building a business but why do we celebrate it? My understanding says the following: 1) 𝐖𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐯𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 - our marks, our degrees, all are externally focused. Funding in a way gives us that validation. 2) 𝐁𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 - No one likes to talk about building a business - getting the first customer, getting the PMF, and scaling. It is boring. So founders look for their moment of fame and funding gives them that moment of fame. 3) 𝐓𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫'𝐬 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 - A few founders could think that the investor's money can be used as their own money - they want to spend it on plush offices, on good salaries that can bring them to the limelight. Money is important for a venture to thrive. But it is a means to building a great business and not an end in itself. Let's start celebrating '𝐛𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠' rather than '𝐟𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠'. #funding #venturecapital #entrepreneurialjourney

Early-stage founders looking to raise money this year should be aware of this single piece of advice. 🗣️ Raising money in a hurry seldom ends well. First, derisk your business by validating your idea. 💹 If you're generating revenue from customers who are not close friends or relatives, then the risk associated with your startup is halved, and it becomes considerably easier to land investors. 🤝 It's easier said than done, I know. But the alternative can be quite ugly. Relationships with investors can last a lifetime. They could be great intros for another ambitious founder down the line. When relationships with investors go badly, it hurts your reputation with other investors. Don't scurry into it. 🏃♂️ 🚫 Building investor relationships is a strategic move for founders. ♞ Find ways to minimize their risks by validating your idea first. ☝️

You will fail. It’s unavoidable. No matter how hard you try. You will fail. But you shouldn’t be scared of failure. All of the greatest entrepreneurs have failed time and time again. Let me give you an example. Stephen A. Schwarzman(CEO of Blackstone Group, one of the biggest private equity firms in the world), Had failed many times when he was trying to raise money for the first time. But no matter how many times he failed, He got up and tried again. Eventually, he struck gold, The art of not giving up paid him back. And if not giving up paid him back… Why shouldn’t the same happen to you? Not giving up guarantees success whether that’s hitting on hot girls(or guys) or scaling a business to 7 figures. Simply not giving up will help you achieve the dreams you have. I’m sure you got this. I believe in you. Your #1 fan, Orestis ************************** Consider resharing this post and following me for more content.

I just read through Carta's State of Pre-seed Fundraising (Q2 2023) and wanted to share the highlights. 1️⃣ We're in a buyers marker. Valuation caps have declined: The median valuation cap for post-money SAFEs was $10 million this past quarter, down from $15 million at the beginning of 2022. That means investors have gotten much more sensitive on how much they're paying for companies, which also means the bar is higher to get investment. 2️⃣ Legacy venture ecosystems dominate the pre-seed stage: Of the 2,103 companies that raised some form of pre-seed financing in H1 2023, over half are headquartered either in California or in New York. 3️⃣ Median Check Size remains small: 80% of all your checks sizes in a pre-seed round will be $100k or small

Funding from family and friends… As the start up scene is getting better at recognising and supporting founders coming from all backgrounds, many of these founders would not be able to rely on that elusive cheque from a family member(s). Does the start up eco system still assume people are from the kind of worlds that allow them to tap up friends and family. Complete transparency, yes, I had two friends who loved the vision of Bezzelle and what we stood for. However, this is not the world that I come from. Most people who I know are from places where a £1000 is savings for a truly rainy day. Recently I have had a few interactions where people have assumed I can turn to a friends and family support system to bump up my funding round. Is this still a thing? #founders #funding #investment #friendsandfamily