Don't ever feel sorry for VC's - but some empathy could help

Last week I got a little taste of what a top level VC's life is like when they're on the road meeting startups.  (Let's be clear: Startupbootcamp is not a VC firm!)

I had the pleasure of spending a day in Tallinn meeting with Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian entrepreneurs together with Tom Keller of TechStars.  The day was organised by our gracious host Ragnar Sass of the Estonian Startup Leaders Club.  We met teams and people back to back from mid-day to late evening and it was an edifying experience!

At the end of a long day I have to admit the startups started blurring. It was difficult to remember who had what idea and more importantly who needed what.  You should never feel sorry for a VC, and they often come across as terribly cynical, but this experience taught me that some empathy on the part of entrepreneurs pitching their idea would vastly improve the outcome for them.

So here's some quick notes and tips if you get to meet an investor for 15 minutes:

• Show me the demo!
  For god's sake, get to the demo!  When you're on your tenth presentation or discussion with the same marketing buzz words you just stop listening. Investors want to see what you can actually build.  If your prototype isn't ready, show something you've done before. If you're not a programmer give evidence of some success you've had in the past. 

• Never start with an apology or qualification
  "We're only early stage", "This is the first time we pitch".  You're never going to have the perfect conditions whether it's pitching to an investor or selling to a customer.  Investors know this so they're looking for evidence of your ability to make the best of what you've got.  Starting with a negative is just a bad start.

• Don't ask others to decide for you
  Never ask "should I do X…?" The investor doesn't know and it just demonstrates your indecision.  Open ended questions are really hard to bounce on.  Rather argue something strongly and let the investor react, you never know, you could start a great discussion.

• Don't make someone ask you "how can I help you?"
  Tom Keller introduced one team to a very senior connection at Disney and another to a totally relevant senior exec in New York so I know some teams got a lot of value - but in many cases he had to ask "so... how can I help you?".  Even if you're not raising funds, every quality investor you meet knows someone who can help your startup so don't waste the opportunity by not asking.

• Be different and/or aggressive
  At the end of a day with 15 back to back meetings, all the startups and entrepreneurs start to blend together.  Have you thought about what you're going to do to stand out? And how will you follow up the meeting? 

 

--> Want a great outcome from meeting an investor? Be sharp and get to the demo; never apologize; start an engaging discussion; be different; and be clear about you want to the point of being aggressive.

-Alex