Ian
The toughest part of a start-up’s journey is building capital. Angel investors are, as expected, anonymous. And, remember that they are complete strangers. So, how do you go about finding them and wooing them?
1. Stay in touch with industry pioneers
If you have a peer who has found success, reach out to their top people. Try to have them on your advisory counsel. Build a rapport with them. Where is this leading to? Of course, see if you can convert this lead to an angel investor! So, it goes without saying that you don’t start with asking for VC help! Even if he doesn’t invest, your credibility with him might want him to refer you to other VCs.
So, make the most of the contacts. And make contacts, the right kind of them.
2. Venture Capital Firms
There are several venture capital firms that can help you out. They have their network of angel investors. So reach out to them for guidance. Angel List is a good place to start looking for angel investors. You can narrow down searches for your region/industry. VC firms are aplenty in regions that favour start-ups. Go to them with your pitch.
Individuals who are known VCs have their own offices. Get in touch with them.
3. Angel Investor Network
Anonymous angel investors have a team of smart managers doing due diligence on investment targets. A number of angel investors team up and avail the services of these angel investor networks. Instead of one angel investing a certain amount, 100 angels aggregate a huge amount and invest it as a group in businesses they like the best, individually or collectively. So, it’s a good idea to start searching for angel investor networks in your vicinity. Have one hell of a pitch ready: this channel involves a bunch of really smart people who are hired to evaluate your business deal.
4. Research
Spend some time and look for the right people. You can find any information you want when you are online. So, research on what kind of investors and investor groups invest in your kind of business ideas. This can give you a lot of insight. While you tend to find the right investors, you also find what kind of business finds most investors. So, you might also get ideas on how to package your business idea in order to appeal to investors. Stay ahead of market trends and capitalize on what you learn from such research.
