Have you ever wanted to sit down with an investor and ask THEM the questions? Turn the tables and find out what they’re thinking and what they’re looking for… without potential funds on the line? We got you.
We asked 7 Canadian investors a series of 9 questions that we know our startup founders want to hear. Their responses did not disappoint.
Meet the panel:
- Snita Balsara – VC at MaRS Investment Accelerator Fund (IAF)
- Yuri Navarro – Managing Partner at Kanata Ventures
- Nolan Beanlands – Executive Director at Capital Angel Network
- Cory Michalyshyn – CFO at Celtic House Venture Partners
- Eleonore Jarry-Ferron – Principal at Brightspark Ventures
- Sanjay Zimmermann – Principal at White Star Capital
- Code Cubitt – Managing Director at Mistral Venture Partners
This chat is full of nuggets of wisdom that you won’t want to miss, and if you’re a startup founder we recommend giving this chat a thorough read! In the words of panelist Snita Balsara during last week’s chat:
“Great founders are students of their knowledge gaps and welcome thoughtful discussion.”
We’ll recap the questions below! Follow the link on each question to be taken over to Twitter to get the full thread of responses, we promise you it’s worth the read. Here are some highlights:
A1: Find some common ground (ideally get a warm introduction), avoid the COVID small talk.
Investors won’t judge if you have the typical at-home interruptions (pets, kids, etc.) but they are likely more distracting for you, so do everything you can to be fully engaged #SaaSChats— Nolan Beanlands (@NolanBeanlands) July 7, 2021
A-2: Pitching in person will depend on the same basics. Be authentic, be passionate, good eye contact and body language counts.
Coming prepared to an investor meeting is a must! In-person or online. Don’t be afraid to be direct and let the investor get to know you personally.
— Yuri Navarro (@YURI_NAV) July 7, 2021
A3: Focus on some tangible result you’ve achieved that the specific investor would be interested in (downloads, DAU/MAU, MRR growth, etc) and be short and succinct:
Here is what we do
These are our results to date
Can we chat more— Cory (@CoryMichaly) July 7, 2021
A4:
Looking for the deck to answer 3 questions:
(i) Why does the customer care?
(problem/solution/value prop)(ii) Why should the investors be excited?
(traction/mkt opp/projections)(iii) How will you be successful?
(gtm/team/raise)#SaaSChats— Snita (she/her) (@snitabalsara) July 7, 2021
A5 Red Flags: There are quite a few! Hockeystick growth projections with no track record. Dismissiveness of all competition. Limited team / market experience. Lack of product or technology differentiation. Bonus flags for defensiveness, linear thinking, and arrogance. #SaasChats
— Code Cubitt (@MotoCode) July 7, 2021
A6: I had a company (that does real time delivery) have something purchased and delivered in real time during the 1 hr pitch. Absolutely nailed it in every way!
— Cory (@CoryMichaly) July 7, 2021
A7 – Challenge your own business and market assumptions. Know your metrics and numbers. Have back-up slides and other materials ready to deep dive on specific topics. #SaaSChats
— Eleonore Jarry (@eleonorejarry) July 7, 2021
A8:
Have a tight understanding of the problem being solved, and the metrics used to measure that problem.
Is the customer measuring the problem on a ruler of time or costs? Demonstrate the value prop of the solution on those same rulers. #SaaSChats
— Snita (she/her) (@snitabalsara) July 7, 2021
A9:
Before: Share your deck or some recent updates ahead of the meeting to give the investor more context to have a deeper conversationAfter: Have a prospective investor update newsletter ready if not fundraising or pre term sheet data room ready to share #SaaSChats
— Sanjay Zimmermann (@sanjayzimmerman) July 7, 2021
