Event Summary
- How to effectively network
- How to create value and traction for Investors
- Should you use letters of intent
- How to get warm and soft intros to Investors
- Should you share inflexion points with Investors
- Good and bad pitching examples from an investor
Strategies to effectively Network
Andrew talks about networking by finding the right people, places, time, and events in cities or universities. Don't be scared or embarrassed to do this, as it’s an essential part of being an entrepreneur. But, make sure to start doing this before you make your rounds, what's the worst that could happen.
If you don’t learn or gain something from an event, try it one more time before not returning, as there will be plenty more events to go to.
One thing Andrew always does at these events is pinpoint someone new to talk to,
“Never underestimate the value of being new and interesting” - Andrew Hatcher.
How to create value and traction for Investors
This is one of Andrew favourite areas to talk about as he tries to understand where the value is, who accrues the value and what stage does the value increment.
One area Andrew talked about is Inflection points. These are milestones in a project that you achieve and can communicate with investors. For example, good PR, %active users, revenue and more. These are all things Inflection points that can be shared.
A straightforward trick Andrew mentions to gain traction is to show that the customers are happy. Are they buying or counting to purchase the product, and have they recommended the product or service to someone else. If you can get a video testimonial of a customer saying this, it proves strong signs of early traction.
“Anyone will do something for free, but they need to pay for it”
How to find investors
Andrew tells us that finding an investor is not an easy process. Andrew shares a story about how he knew someone who made a list of all the VC’s in the UK (about 800) and contacted all of them about investment opportunities. However, this is not the right way to go about finding investors.
One thing you can do to help find an investor is to outline the right one for you, do your research on who you want to invest in you and who could potentially invest in your company. Make a target list, then talk to the companies they have invested in to see if they are right.
Good and Bad Pitching examples
At the end of our discussion, we discussed terrible examples of pitching with Andrew. Form an investor here is what not to do when pitching;
- Timing, Make sure you’ve still got money left before you’ve started your rounds
- Make sure you have nailed your Q&A, drill yourself on the worst 20 questions they could ask you
- Know the basics about your company
- Make sure you dress properly
- If it's clear someone won’t be investing in you, don't push too hard. Change your strategy and learn something from them, like what to improve on or who else could be interested in investing
3 Things that Andrew looks for in a founder: accuracy, honesty, and making sure the teams works well together.
All this and more in the entire video, so make sure to watch it.
Thank you to Andrew Hatcher for some fantastic insights to help early founders, be sure to watch the full interview
