- Persuade & Raise
- Posts
- Reader Got 17 VC Meetings in 48 Hours
Last week, I got 20+ emails from readers (like you) who had big wins after buying my course. This week, I will screenshot some of those wins and explain the strategies they used in more depth so that you can mimic them.
Active Growth Phrasing
Read time 1.8 minutes.
This reader did two things to turn 43 NOs into 17 MAYBEs; that is a MASSIVE win in the world of VC. Any of those investors can give you $250k+ if you have a 10% conversion rate when you pitch those 17 people; you could walk away with over half a million dollars.
What are the two things he did:
Changed his ask/valuation based on the current market conditions.
Reworded the way he presented his ask.
There isn’t much to talk about on #1; make sure you are asking for amounts at valuations that match your progress and the current market conditions. There isn’t much more to that without a 20-minute video. So let’s dive into #2
 | Sandhill Markets is the “Robinhood for Pre-IPO Startups”, letting investors get into private deals like Stripe, Databricks, Discord, Anduril, Neuralink and OpenAI. Investing in these blue-chip startups typically involves $100k+ minimums and up to 20% in fees or carry. Sandhill lets you invest as little as $5k with 0% fees. |
How to present your ask
Most founders ask for money like this:
“ We need $500k to hire engineers, increase marketing and pay our management team for 18 months. We are raising on a SAFE with a $4M cap.”
What you should be doing instead is this:
“We are raising $500k on a SAFE with a $4M cap. These funds will help us as we continue to grow towards a $200k MRR. We estimate it will take us 18 months to get to $200k MRR, at which point we will raise a $5M round as we continue our growth towards $10M ARR”.
Why does this work?
In the first example, you are desperate; the company is going nowhere without the investor’s money. In the second example, you are a rocket ship on the way up, and investors have a chance to join you; a ticket costs $500k, the journey is to $10M ARR, and the next stop is at $200k ARR.
Are you going to change how you word your ask? |
Do you want a chance to be featured across my newsletter network, reaching over 5,000 investors and 90,000 subscribers for free?
Tweet @LawyerLiam with a review of this newsletter or, better yet, share how you are implementing what I share to benefit your business!
Onwards and Upwards,
P.S. Are you ready to take the next step in raising venture capital for your company? If so, you can book a 1:1 strategy call with me to help get you going in the right direction!
PPS If you are not already, follow me on Twitter, where I share tips and tricks for fundraising daily.
* Disclosure: Please read the offering circular at invest.modemobile.com. This is a paid advertisement for Mode Mobile’s Regulation CF Offering.17 V