Pitching venture capital funds for your new business

© Infopark AG (Flickr) iico_17-05-11_hotel (92)
© Infopark AG (Flickr)

Here are four useful tips that can help you when you are pitching a VC fund to invest in your new business.

Come prepared with a bound business plan

Venture capitalists are hard-nosed executives who are looking for very promising people with concrete plans.

You cannot approach them with a vague business idea in your head. It must be put on paper in a professional manner, and it must quantify its estimated fixed costs, operational costs, sales revenues and profitability. The figures must be calculated and precise, and not just roughly rounded figures.

Present professional profiles of team members

Provide detailed professional profiles of each of the members of your team, including your own. Include educational qualifications, work experience and any other relevant details that may be connected to your proposed business project. Include contact details as well as basic personal information such as age, gender and marital status of each of the team members.

Make your presentation with authority

VC funds like to associate with entrepreneurs who believe in their project, and display a fair degree of passion and authority about it. Authoritativeness comes only from real in-depth knowledge of your subject. You cannot fake it with VCs because they are always going to be sharper and more experienced than you. Therefore, be well-prepared and address all queries and doubts of the VC fund executives accurately and authoritatively.

Be open-minded to suggestions

More often than not, VC funds like to add value or contribute to the proposed project with their own ideas and suggestions. Do not be rigid about your ideas, and listen intently to feedback of your angel investors. If the venture capitalists engage with you in a discussion, it is an indication of their interest in your project. Allow them to point out any flaws in your proposal, and be open to any suggestions or ideas. Adopt a collaborative approach, and do not be emotionally attached to your original ideas.