Prepare for & Raise Sufficient Funds to get through Proof of Concept Stage

Why is this Important?: You will need funding to take the company through the proof of concept stage and leave sufficient time to raise additional funding

Key Actions	Things to Consider	Tool Kit
Educate yourself on general terms and instruments used in early stage funding	Understand common financing terms (i.e. pre-money valuation) and those used in term sheets Study various financing vehicles (Notes, Equity)	Financial Terms Definitions Sample Term Sheet(AOA) Convertible Note(AOA) Equity Offerings(AOA)
Create a 10 min investor pitch suitable for raising money	Are all your assumptions covered? The Feasibility Report and the investor pitch should compliment and match content	Pitch Deck Template
Practice pitch in front of experienced investors & experts	Expect & encourage questions. Are all of them addressed in the pitch? Plan to iterate the presentation many times before actually pitching	LSWI Pitch Coaching and Consulting
Put together a budget that will get you through Proof of Concept and Series A financing	Try to be a virtual company as long as possible Only spend money on things that create value Avoid items that contribute to ongoing overhead Use consultants where you can	Startup Financials Template
Identify potential investors: Angels & Angel Networks Friends and Family Self Funding Sweat Equity Funding Non-Dilutive Funding: Government grants, etc	Good investors bring more than money to the party i.e. expertise, network, credibility, etc Get ones you can and want to work with long term	WA Investor Database LSWI SBIR Grant Writing Program
Raise enough money to get you through Proof of Concept and to Series A financing	Don’t try to raise money before you firmly understand your final value proposition Do you have a valuation? Put a realistic valuation on the company Don’t be too valuation sensitive Take money when it is offered and, if possible, take more than you think you need. It generally takes longer and costs more than you think to get to the next stage. Running out of money before you have reached your next investable milestone can result in unhappy investors and loss of credibility	Valuation Worksheet

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