Funding and money for startup

Have you looked at some of the startup accelerators around the country? the way they work is, you apply for their program and if you are one of the slected ones then they'll invest in your startup - up to $20K, it varies from program to program. The real value of these startup accelerators is, in my own opinions the access they give you to successful entrepreneurs, investors and the like which are all essential to help you make your startup a success.

• CapitalFactory Austin, TX
• YCombinator Mountain View, CS
• TechStars Boulder, CO / Boston, MA / Seattle, WA
• Founder's Co-op Seattle, WA

If you are in an area other than the areas mentioned above, check here for a list of startup accelerators around the globe.

Good luck!

and welcome to this site! :-)

I'm sorry to be a little direct with you in your first post here, but I think this needs to be said. The answers above are correct in their way, but they miss the point for your specific company.

Your site shows a company without a specified product or vision; more positioning itself as a general software development subcontractor.

Most startups do not get "funding", if by funding we mean a professional investor putting in cash. That kind of funding is sometimes available for a specific type of startups -- startups which have a product or a highly scalable service which has market potential to turn the startup into a larger, profitable, valuable company within a few years. Your company, as described on your webpage, won't interest venture capitalists / startup accelerators.

Perhaps you could look around in your local community for organizations that help entrepreneurs get off the ground with mentorship and information? In the US there is SCORE. In many places around the world there is something similar, organizations that help mentor and train entrepreneurs on a wide range of topics. These could tell you a little more about the sources of capital that exist in your area. But generally, early stage companies grow organically, i.e. from the profits that they earn.

Actually I had this issue too. I have visited dozen of investors without success. This is very normal to be rejected at start. So my advice to you is to try to make it work wit your own resources, once progress is noticeable you can go havest some money, this time you will have better chance because investors will have more confidence

There are a number of online resources for entrepreneurs seeking angel investment for their start up. Although many deals still end with numerous face-to-face meetings, for many small business owners the process is now starting through online angel investor communities. Although there are dozens if not hundreds of angel investor networks across the country, the following list of 10 are some of the most active and promising online angel investor communities and resources. In no particular order:

1. http://angelsoft.net - Angelsoft boasts that it is used by 1,000's of start-ups every month, its system provides entrepreneurs a way to reach the 450+ VCs and Angel Groups that utilize the Angelsoft platform. Angelsoft is a business planning and funding platform that has been used by 20,000+ investors to manage their end-to-end deal flow of their early equity investments.

2. www.angelcapitalassociation.org/directory/ - Although this is not actually an online community for entrepreneurs to submit proposals to angel investors, it is probably the leading directory of active angel investor networks in North America. The link above takes you to their state by state directory of angel investor networks.

3. http://www.angelcapitaleducation.org/listing-of-groups/ - Again this site is not an online community for entrepreneurs and angel investors to meet; however, it has an excellent directory of active angel investor networks across the country. It also provides a number of resources for both angel investors and entrepreneurs in the process of securing angel investment.

4. www.gobignetwork.com/ - This website claims to be the "biggest" community of startup investors. It is not clear if that has been validated by an outside source; however, the site is clearly active. Users can search for startups seeking funding, investors looking to provide funding, service providers for small businesses, and experts in various fields.

5. www.fundinguniverse.com/ - Over 100,000 entrepreneurs have already joined this network. This site was recently recognized as one of the Inc. 500 top 500 fastest growing companies in the United States. They will analyze all possible funding options to find your best match, create your path to funding, and connect you with active funding sources according to their website.

6. www.thefunded.com/ - TheFunded.com is an online community of over 14,500 CEOs, Founders and entrepreneurs to discuss fundraising, rate and review investors, and discuss strategies to grow a start-up business. This website will provide reviews of angel investor networks and individual angel investors to help the entrepreneur seek out the best potential investors for their business.

7. www.angeldeals.com - Angel Deals will assist entrepreneurs in learning about the angel investment process, create a powerful business plan and executive summary, develop a compelling presentation, and open doors to potential investors. There is an annual fee for this service, but it was only $29 at last check.

8. www.go4funding.com/ - This is a typical platform that attempts to match entrepreneurs with investors. Its purpose is to bring entrepreneurs, business owners and investors (angel investors and venture capitalists) closer together. The site is strictly intended for existing business owners and entrepreneurs to post their capital needs. Investors can browse through various investment opportunities as well.

9. http://www.fundfindr.com/ - This is an intriguing new site that is based on small business owners posting video elevator pitches that investors can browse through and then determine whether or not to pursue an investment opportunity. This is unique because it allows the entrepreneur to make that deeper connection through a video with an unlimited number of potential investors.

10. www.ideacrossing.org/ - IdeaCrossing is a free online community that connects Entrepreneurs with Angel Investors or Venture Capital firms. IdeaCrossing can also connect Entrepreneurs with Business Mentors willing to offer pro bono business assistance. The most compelling and unique offering of this community is the potential to find business mentors willing to offer free services and coaching.

There are many more resources for entrepreneurs in search or angel investor funding, but these 10 resources will certainly provide you with a great start in your search for capital.

You can borrow the money (friends, family, banks, etc) which would mean that you have to repay it down the line with interest, but you keep the entire equity yourself. You can get an investment (friends, family, angels) which will cost you equity. Or you can bootstrap the project doing the work yourself or with a partner, absorbing the costs yourselves, and trying to keep the budget down.

It really depends on what your idea is, what you really need the money for, and what you've put into the idea to date. It would also depend on whether your business has any revenues, how long it will take to see a profit, and what the risk of failure is balanced against the chances of success.

Your site indicates you're doing a consulting business. That's fine, but a consulting business is a low-risk operation. You just need to find clients and make some money on those clients. You can grow incrementally. Up front, assuming you already own the computers and software tools you need, you don't need more than $2,000 to get started. The most important ingredient in getting started is the first few clients and some money coming in.

In terms of raising money for a consulting business, I'd wager you cannot get an equity-style investment of any type without a lot of work. Consulting isn't a hyper-growth opportunity, which is what an equity investment is looking for.

So your likely sources of funding are your own bank account or loans from friends and family.

If you're not a consulting business, then your web site needs some updating!

(Actually, it needs work anyway--take half of the $2,000 and spend it on the web site to get a better and more modern look.)

Well Yama, this is just my opinion but also for your consultancy firm, you've to pay attention to communication.

Your web site is done with outdated technologies/style and the copyright note "2005?" suggests it is at least 5 years since last update.

I suggest you to install a CMS, start populating with contents about how cool are your services as outsourcers, use a clean theme with good typography and good color combination and have fun.

BTW, you can increase money with non direct advertising. Start giving suggestion on how to code, how to use that APIs, whatever... so people will be impressed saying "Hey Yama is an outstanding player in software development, I want him to code some stuff for me".

The previous answer regarding the top 10 list for funding are all good resources online. Another site would be Startup Addict http://www.startupaddict.com it allows the crowd to fund your startup or prototype. It's specifically geared toward funding startups.