5 Questions for Entrepreneurs to Ask Before Accepting Investment

The Reverse Pitch (Short Version)

The mental image that forms when one imagines an entrepreneur raising investment capital is that of an entrepreneur coming into the posh offices of a Sand Hill road venture capital firm and pitching using a Microsoft PowerPoint pitch deck to one or more partners dressed in smart casual attire.

Let’s imagine a different scenario. Imagine a venture capitalist pitching an entrepreneur on why the entrepreneur should accept their capital and allow them to become a shareholder. We will call this the reverse pitch (I did my first full reverse pitch to an entrepreneur last week — see below for the story). This process helps the entrepreneur understand what role and or value the investor can provide for the company; this process also allows the investor to establish a common understanding with the entrepreneur.

Here are five key questions that can serve as the base of a reverse pitch:

1. Why are you interested in investing in this company specifically?

2. What do you know about the market that the company is operating in?

3. Who do you know that could help this company?

4. How will you help raise follow on funding at the next round and or additional capital for the current round?

5. What is your track record as an investor both in this space and overall?

Why are these five questions important? Read more: http://bit.ly/1mCBOPE