It’s pretty amazing that the video is from five years ago and has been viewed something like 500,000 times.
Even though in the years since, I’ve done a lot more pitch coaching with a lot higher production value, it turns out that there is not much I would change in the content all these years later. Good luck with your fundraising.
Articles by David S. Rose
The reality of returns on angel investment
Editor’s note: This was originally a question and answer on Quora, but the community response was so significant we decided to syndicate it on our blog.
Q: If I want to invest $5,000 as a new angel investor into a new company or companies as part of an angel syndicate, what chances do I have of making a profit in 5 years?
A: ”Very, very slim” to “almost negligible” if you’re talking about investing into one company, increasing to “slim” if the syndicate invests into a dozen or more companies.
I know I’m going to draw the ire of some of the angel crowd, most of the entrepreneurial crowd and all of the crowdfunding crowd with this response, so it’s important to back it up with an explanation, namely:
A majority of all new, angel-backed companies fail completely, so if you invest in only one company, the odds are that you will LOSE ALL YOUR MONEY, not just “not make a profit”. Read more
Who, When, and How Much? A Quick Introduction to Startup Financing
For a first time entrepreneur trying to figure out the arcane world of startup financing, it can be very confusing to understand the roles that different types of investors play in funding promising companies, as well as the point in a company’s life at which they enter the stage. It is not unusual to hear people refer to “angels-and-vcs” in a single breath, even though those are two very distinct groups with different attributes. If a company is appropriate for angel financing, for example, it is highly unlikely that it would also be in a position to raise venture capital, and vice versa. Read more
The World of Gust
Today’s unveiling of Gust, the global infrastructure for early stage entrepreneurial financing, is a milestone that has been seven years in the making. When we originally conceived of a single platform tying together the world’s entrepreneurs, angel investors, venture capitalists and supporting organizations, it quickly became apparent that the biggest challenge had nothing to do with technology. Instead it was the proverbial ‘chicken and egg’ question that bedevils all two-sided market place ventures. Read more
