Traction speaks louder than words and pitch decks. Even more so in 2024! And not just any traction. In 2024, your traction must be the result of a capital efficient go-to-market strategy. Regardless of your specific product and market, there are 4 keys to executing capital efficient go-to-market in 2024. Define Traction All too often, …
Not finding product-market fit (and the systematic revenue that follows) is the most common cause of startup failure. So, what does it take to find product-market fit? I’m not asking how you find product-market fit. I covered that in this blog post. I’m asking about the traits that separate successful founders from the rest. What …
Christoph Janz (PointNine) recently published the 2022 version of his popular SaaS Funding Napkin. As the name implies, the SaaS Funding Napkin aggregates primary SaaS milestones required to raise venture capital and summarizes them as if on the back of a napkin. The SaaS Funding Napkin is useful reference material for any SaaS founder. …
We all know that finding product-market fit is critical for any founder looking to grow their startup and attract investors. Accelerator and investors constantly stress to founders that they must acquire and demonstrate that they have product-market fit in order to be successful. But how do you know when you have product-market fit? For starters, …
A lack of local capital. That’s one of the most common challenges that we hear from accelerator operators (and founders) in nascent startup ecosystems around the world. In reality, when we dig deeper, in the vast majority of those ecosystems the challenge is not a lack of local capital. The capital is there, it’s just …
Raising venture capital is so much more than building a pitch deck. So, why are there so few resources to help founders understand what venture capital is, how it behaves and why, and – most importantly – what it expects of a founder. Don’t wait to learn about your investor after you’ve already cashed their …
The standard to become investment-ready has changed and it now requires a systematic go-to-market strategy. Savvy venture investors are no longer distracted by a shiny new product and an ultra-large total addressable market. The application of existing technology to a new problem and a market large enough to enable the big, fast growth required by …
You’re Investment-Ready When You Have Investable Revenue Read More »
Here are the five primary reasons why your accelerator needs go-to-market programming (including a detailed guide to help you implement best practices today). 1. Your founders need a go-to-market strategy to satisfy the new standard of investor-readiness. Times have changed for accelerators. It’s no longer enough to help your founders build their pitch deck, organize …
5 Reasons Your Accelerator Needs Go-To-Market Programming Read More »
When reviewing your pitch deck, investors are looking to quickly assess whether or not you’re a good fit for what they invest in and at what stage they invest, and then to qualify whether or not you merit a deeper look that includes an initial meeting. Your pitch deck is not being used by an …
The most important slide in your pitch deck is the one slide that is most often missing, buried or has the least amount of useful detail. Every pitch deck I see includes a slide showing off an ulta-large Total Addressable Market. It shows a number with lots of trailing zeros in 35-point font. This top-down …
What to Include in Your Pitch Deck: The #1 Slide You Need Read More »
