One might think that Pitchdrive is only interested in the best startups with the perfect founding team and the perfect business model. An outstanding cap table is obviously the cherry on top. However, Pitchdrive is not looking for the perfect business. 

The process of actually getting investment into early-stage startups is often surprisingly long and painful to people who haven’t gone and done it yet. Especially for startups, it is extremely challenging to raise funds: One in four businesses, surveyed by the NSBA, were not able to receive the funding they required, which led to limiting the growth of their business (Schmid, 2020).

Successful interactions with investors depend on prioritising information to enable efficient decision-making and agreed plans of action. Both updates and board meetings benefit from being highly organised so that they focus on what progress is being made towards the startup’s objectives, and how future strategy can be shaped to improve performance.

Angel investors are wealthy individuals who put money into startups early on, and receive part ownership of the business in return, which usually comes in the form of equity. Angel investors also advise and assist the founder in growing the startup so that it can begin to generate revenue quickly and reliably.

Valuation is the process of determining the current or future value of a business. There is no single method for calculating valuation, but most approaches draw on factors such as a company’s management team, capital structure, and future earnings potential.

If you’ve got a pitch deck and a great idea, there’s nothing to stop you reaching out to investors for the capital boost that will get your start-up to the next stage. 

Co-founder disputes are cited as the reason for around 65% of startup failures, according to research by Harvard Business Review. This makes the division of equity between co-founders a key decision that can make or break a startup.

Everything feels possible when you’re starting up a new business. You have a great idea, trusted co-founders, and everyone is cheering you on. Slowing down to make sure all the legal documents are signed and sorted can feel like an unwelcome delay, but it’s a vital part of making sure you, your co-founders and your business are protected for the future.