Tell me more ×
Answers OnStartups is a question and answer site for entrepreneurs looking to start or run a new business. It's 100% free, no registration required.
up vote 0 down vote favorite

This is a question about methodology for newcomers in the business of lauching firms. I propose that we list all the things that must be done in order to present a good proposal for potential investors.

So, in my opinion :

  1. A profile of each of the founders
  2. A short description of the product : how innovative? technical issues for prototyping? technical issues for mass production?
  3. A document that summarizes the structure you want to give to the firm, the kind of team you want to put together, etc.
  4. A document that explains why the founders are the best seed for this team.
  5. A business plan that explain the maturity of the market for your product, that extrapolates numbers (expenses, incomes)

What else ?

share|improve this question

1 Answer

up vote 2 down vote

To the extent your raising money from Angels and early-stage VC's, I would add a few other critical factors -

  • what is the business problem your product attempts to solve? why is that important to customers?
  • what is your initial target market? who is your ideal customer? why?
  • what is your economic model? In other words, how are you going to charge for your product and generate revenue?
  • something about the competition: what form does it take? how entrenched is it? what are your relative strengths and weaknesses, etc.
  • why is your product differentiating? how are you going to preserve your competitive advantage over time?

Many of the answers to these questions are going to change almost immediately after you begin to attack the market with your strategy. That's ok. Investors are really evaluating you, your passion for your solution, your ability to execute, and your ability to analyze a situation. Your presentation - both what it says and the way you say it - will go along way towards answering these questions. And this has nothing to do with the economics of the deal your proposing.

share|improve this answer

Your Answer

 
discard

By posting your answer, you agree to the privacy policy and terms of service.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.