Looking for funds to establish or grow your business? Here are a few steps you need to follow to get the probable investor interested in your startup.
Also read: 12 steps to starting a business
Get started with an idea and a solid business plan
Generating an enthralling business idea is not enough to get it funded. You must have a clear underst anding of your subject and a well-tailored business plan. With the help of a business plan, you can outline the nature of your business and its futuristic goals to the investors in order to catch their attention.
Design a prototype
The prototype is just like a raw form of your product or service which exhibits the key features of your upcoming product. It might be a sample product or service with only the limited feature of your ultimate product or a video or a PowerPoint presentation depicting the same. Just integrate your business idea within this prototype and launch it confidently for your investors. Remember, sketching out a prototype is the best way to visualize the functionality of your product to the investors at the initial level.
Experimentation with the customers
It is far difficult for any customer to go for the newly br anded product or services, but yes, you have to initiate your business from this level with a prototype. You can start with the h andful of customers and seek their reaction. Consider your prototype as a sample and conduct an accurate market research with it.
Make the prototype functional
Once your market research is successful, it’s time to turn your pictorial prototype to reality. In other words, you have to develop your static prototype and make it fully-functional to resemble the features of your product.
Customer Acquisition
This is the real test of your product – customer acquisition. This step requires you to get traction for your product. With the utilization of various social media tools like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and LinkedIn, consider every medium of getting publicity because the more you spread the word, the more number of customers you get.
Effective marketing strategies
This is the best way to conquer the biggest achievement by reaching a large number of customers within the limited time. Having an accurate and effective marketing strategy will keep your traction process at the safer side.
Also Read: Top 10 Funding Options for Your Startup
Build a revenue model
In spite of various complications, your business has survived several transformations, and by now you should have a well-established mode of earning around your startup. In other words, your idea should have successfully turned into a business and if yes, this is the right time to seek the potential investors.
Create a pitch and do your homework well
In this step, you shall have to prepare a document, which could be in a word format, presentation, video or speech. Herein, you ought to mention your vision, the problem, product/service, revenue model, competition, marketing strategy, management team, financials and the required investment along with the timeline. Also, prepare yourself well, get all your facts clear and be ready to answer all the question, potential investors will put in front of you.
Find the investor
After creating the pitch, you can approach the investors who are visible on different platforms, and you can easily connect with them on Linked In or accelerator programs. It is entirely hit and trial, and we suggest knocking all doors to increase your chances of funding. You can approach an angel investor, venture capital, banks, microfinance providers or NBFCs. You can also participate in various startup contests and government programs and schemes.
Pitch the Investor
Everything boils down to those few minutes which you get to deliver your pitch to the potential investor. Make sure your impression totally hits the mark. As already mentioned, get all facts clear and be ready to answer every question.
The investor will not only be investing in your idea but also in you and your team. It is highly important to make your investor trust you and be confident of your caliber.
Learn and Refine your product
In the whole process of finding an investor for your business, do not stop learning and further improving your product. The more people you meet, the more you learn. Do not hesitate from changing and upgrading your product. This will not only make your customers more satisfied, but also ensure your investors of the growth potential of your business.
Also read: Some Considerable Tips to Find Investors via LinkedIn
Stay connected
Networking has always worked in the past and does so even today. Be active on social media, attend startup meets and grab every opportunity to interact with people. You never know where you might find your investor. And none the less, networking has the power to present you with the opportunities which cannot even comprehend if you are sitting in your room all day.
Consider the above steps and follow them in order to find the investors who can join h ands with you.
