Stream of Consciousness

There’s a 2015 blog post from Taiwan Startup Stadium titled “Pitching ain’t easy: Robert Neivert of 500 Startups on how to grab & keep your audience’s attention.” Pitching ain’t easy. Short. Simple. True.

Pitching is even more challenging if you don’t know what motivates a VC to want to invest in your startup. So, that begs the question, what is most important to VCs? Let’s take a deeper look.

Founders:

• What are the founders backgrounds?
• Are the founders passionate about their vision?
• Can they elicit that same passion in others?
• Do they have the business acumen to continue to push the ball forward?

Company/Performance/Metrics:

• Key management team members
• What is your business model?
• What is your MRR/ARR?
• How many users/customers do you have?
• What has your growth rate been?
• What is your churn?

Market & Fit:

• What problem is your product solving?
• Competition within the sector
• How has your beta or MVP performed?
• Barriers to Entry/Success
• How big is the market in its entirety?
• What share of the market do you realistically think your company can grab?
• What is your go-to-market strategy?

Regulatory & Legal:

• Do you require FDA approval?
• Where are you related to FDA approval?
• Do you have patentable IP?
• Have you already filed for any associated patents?
• What is your patent status?

VC/Fund Fit:

• Do you fit their portfolio wants?
• How much capital is required?
• How do you plan on using the capital?
• Do you have the correct valuation?
• What ownership stake will they be receiving
• Number of board positions
• Do they see you bringing a minimum of 10x ROI

Article Sources:

• Investopedia: How Venture Capitalists Make Investment Choices
• Forbes: 15 Key Questions Venture Capitalists Will Ask Before Investing In Your Startup