Investor Connect Podcast

This is the Investor Connect Crowdfunding Launch Program. I'm Hall T Martin, the host of the show, in which we take questions from startups and investors on crowdfunding topics.

I hope you enjoy this episode.
________________________________

Thank you for joining us for the Investor Connect Crowdfunding Launch Program where we help startups prepare for a fundraise.

For more episodes, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org  

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/  
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/  
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Key Components of a Crowdfunding Campaign

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

There are several key components of a crowdfunding campaign.

Consider how to include these in your fundraise:

Goals -- set goals for the campaign including mailers sent, investors contacted, and funds raised.

Draw from the experience of other crowdfunders to set realistic goals.

Platforms -- research the various platforms and choose the one that best meets your fundraise needs.

There are many platforms and campaign services available.

Networks -- catalog potential investors from your network and then look for additional networks to engage.

There are many investor types, so you’ll need to customize the presentation for each group.

Investor closing -- many investors will express interest, but it takes a dedicated follow-up to close those investors - budget time for investor follow-up.

Campaign -- spend time developing quality campaign materials that exude professionalism and showcase your product in the best light possible.

There are many ways to position a product, so think broadly about how to position the campaign.

Investment offering -- consider well the terms you offer, as investors see many deals and will compare yours to others in the market.

Outreach -- develop a plan on how best to engage your network with your campaign materials.

Spend time on each of these components in building your campaign plan.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
____________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

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Direct download: Key_components_of_a_crowdfunding_campaign.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Set Your Crowdfunding Goal

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In setting your crowdfunding goal, create a list of needs for growing your business.

From this list, create an overall fundraise goal. 

Break the goal into three stages.

Set the first stage relatively low, as the initial funding is the most difficult.

Focus on family and friends to fund this stage.

Set the second stage target to reach your minimum fundraising goal.

This is the amount you need to implement your core growth plan.

Set the third stage target to reach your maximum fundraising goal.

This is the amount you need to fully install everything on your growth plan.

Stick to the fundraise plan and avoid overfunding as it causes dilution.

Keep your list of needs in mind, so you fund the most important elements of your growth plan first. 

Remain flexible in deploying your growth strategy as funding comes in fits and spurts and is rarely a smooth and steady flow. 


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: How_to_set_your_crowdfunding_goal.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Joe Raczka, Co-founder, COO, and Managing Partner at York IE.

Headquartered in New Hampshire, USA, York IE is a vertically integrated strategic growth and investment firm helping reshape the way companies are built, scaled, and monetized. Through Fuel™, its SaaS platform, hands-on advisory services, and selective early-stage B2B SaaS investments, York IE supports ambitious entrepreneurs, operators, and investors on their quest to scale startups and disrupt markets.

Joe is an avid angel investor and startup advisor focused primarily on the SaaS and IaaS markets, bringing with him a stellar Rolodex across the investment banking, market analyst, venture capital, and private equity landscape. Previously, Joe was the Vice President of Strategic Development at Oracle where he oversaw all of Oracle Cloud Infrastructure’s Market Intelligence, Product Strategy, and M&As, including leading the acquisition of Zenedge, a cloud-based, artificial intelligence-driven cybersecurity business. Joe joined Oracle through the Dyn acquisition. At Dyn, Joe was first Vice President of Finance, Dyn’s first formal finance hire, and then Vice President of Corporate Development where he raised $100 million of growth capital, participated and led diligence in eight acquisitions, and led the strategic process and diligence that resulted in the strategic acquisition by Oracle.

Before joining Dyn, Joe spent the first part of his career in New York City and Boston as a financial analyst at Bloomberg, Pali Capital, and Fidelity, starting out in the family office division. In addition to his work at York IE, Joe is active in the community. He serves on the board of directors for several non-profits including Catholic Charities New Hampshire, Greater Manchester Chamber of Commerce, and Bishop Guertin High School. Joe has also become a respected angel investor, mentor, and growth advisor to many innovative startups. Joe has a BS in finance from Providence College.

Joe advises startups and investors, discusses the state of startup investing, and shares his investment thesis and some of the startups which fit that thesis. 

You can visit York IE at https://york.ie/, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/york-ie, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/yorkgrowth.   

Joe can be contacted via email at joe@york.ie, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/joe-raczka/, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/JMRaczka

_____________________________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org  

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/  

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group   

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Joe_Raczka_of_York_IE.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Key Elements of a Crowdfunding Campaign

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Successful crowdfunding campaigns share several key elements.

Here are some key points to include in your fundraise campaign:

Clear value proposition -- make clear what your product does and the value it brings.

Story -- tell what problem it solves and the background on how the product came to be.

Key numbers -- use numbers in your story to validate that the product works and customers will pay for it.  Stories tell, numbers sell.

Growth story -- show how sales, team, product, and fundraise are continually making progress.

Cause -- show how your product is part of a greater cause.  

If your product reduces  carbon emissions then use the tagline “help save the planet.”

Social proof -- show customers using the product and include testimonials.

Visuals -- show a picture of the product in the campaign so the investor can see what exactly it is.

You can also use video to show the product in action.

Supporters -- show the supporters you have including customers, partners, suppliers, and others who also believe in the product.

Include these elements in your crowdfunding campaign.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Key_elements_of_a_crowdfunding_campaign.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

What Is Crowdfunding?

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Crowdfunding refers to fundraising in which you can raise funding from anyone and not just accredited investors.

Typically, these investors fund early-stage companies in various ways.

Here’s a list of the different types of crowdfunding:

  1. Equity-based crowdfunding -- the investor receives an ownership stake in the company.
  2. Reward-based crowdfunding -- the investor receives a product or a reward in exchange for their funding.
  3. Peer-to-peer lending -- the investor receives a debt stake in a company for their funding.
  4. Inventory funding -- the investor funds the build of a product and places it on consignment with the producer. When sold, the investor receives a portion of the revenue.  

A startup can use crowdfunding to find investors for all of these types of crowdfunding.

Crowdfunding allows startups to raise capital from the broader market and structures the raise so it fits the needs of the company.

It is often called community funding, as the startup reaches out to its own community to find funding.

Investors often invest in smaller amounts.

Given the large number of potential investors in crowdfunding, a startup can raise substantial amounts of funding.

Crowdfunding gives more startups the opportunity to raise funding and more investors the ability to participate.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: What_is_crowdfunding.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

This is Investor Perspectives. I’m the host of Investor Connect, Hall T. Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding.

In our final Investor Perspectives episode entitled “Faith-Based Investing in a Post-COVID World”, you’ll hear about changes expected in the coming 12 months and our guests’ final thoughts.

As the COVID pandemic passes, we emerge into a new era. The faith-based investing space is now undergoing tremendous change as we shift to a post-COVID world. Faith-based investing takes precedence with many investors in the financial industry. We have investors and startup founders describe the changes coming up.

Our guests are:

Tony Long, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, CLX Ventures LLC [01:12]
David Simms, Managing Partner and Founder, Talanton [03:59]
Andrew Stoner, Chief Investment Officer, Paradiem LLC [06:07]
Wes Lyons, General Partner, Eagle Venture Fund [07:56]
Michael Arrieta, Founder and CEO, Garden City Companies [11:23]
Josh Wilson, Principal Broker and Owner, Kingdom Syndicate [14:04]
Bill Wichterman, Angel Investor [16:29]

We hope you enjoy the show.
_______________________________
For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/  
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/    
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/    
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/    
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/  

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group 

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.

 

Direct download: IP_Faith_Based_-_Show_8.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Mistakes to Avoid in Financial Modeling

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Your financial model can be used not only for fundraising, but also for running your startup.

Avoid these mistakes in setting up your financial model:

Tying your revenue to a factor that doesn’t actually drive revenue.

Figure out what actually drives sales and build your model around that.

Trying to identify exact numbers for factors such as conversion rate.

Instead, use a range of numbers to account for variations.

Skipping the research into companies in your sector.

Instead, spend time looking at similar companies to find out what drives their business.

Trying to include too many drivers in your business model.

Instead, focus on the top drivers that account for the majority of your sales.

Setting up the financial model for generating financial statements only.

Instead, set up the model, so it also calculates key performance indicators.

Design the spreadsheet for running the business in addition to raising funding. 


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Mistakes_to_avoid_in_financial_modeling.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Glib Buriak, Managing Partner at HIFE VC.

HIFE is a venture arm of the Ukrainian investment company Adamant Capital, with 12 years in the market. HIFE searches for local talents or teams to build or develop businesses in areas of MedTech, FinTech, AgroTech, EdTech, and digital transformation. The focus of the investment is guided by the expertise of investors who can facilitate or boost a business through their existing enterprises or business liaison. HIFE’s existing pipeline has over 7 projects assembled over 6 months from the launch and is looking for tickets between $200-500K.

Glib is a university professor, counselor to the Committee of Economic Development, contributor to Forbes Ukraine, business consultant, and former and future startupper. Glib was born into a family of university professors in Kyiv and lived in that city his whole life. He graduated from Kyiv National University where he majored in International Economic Relations. After graduation in 2005, Glib spent a month full of happiness as an intern in Irvine, California. However, choosing between IB in California and returning to Ukraine, he chose the latter.

Glib pursued a career in public office, became a counselor to the First Vice Prime Minister of Ukraine at the age of 25, but gave up the work and dived into academic work and wrote his Ph.D. thesis on "International Corruption".

Since the age of 28, he has combined academic work, business and PR consulting, started a couple of businesses in the areas of data analytics and social research, taught over 2,000 students from around the globe while teaching in 3 different universities, and published 3 diverse books — an academic monograph, a book for children, and a history of Ukrainian IT.

Glib advises startups and investors, shares what he thinks will be the biggest change we will see in the world of startup investing in Ukraine, and discusses his investment thesis. 

You can visit HIFE VC at www.hife.vc, and via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/hifevc.

Glib can be contacted via email at glib@hife.vc, and via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/glib-buriak

______________________________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org  

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/  

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group   

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Glib_Buriak_of_HIFE_VC.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Back of the Envelope Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In setting up a fundraising plan at a high level, you set a revenue target five years out. 

You then draw a line from today to that five-year mark. 

Your fundraise and hiring plan will come from that.

To calculate this quick and dirty version of the financial model, follow these steps:

  1. Start with current revenue.
  2. Apply your organic growth rate and map out your top-line revenue for five years.
  3. Calculate your revenue per person metric.
  4. Apply your expenses for five years using that revenue per person metric.
  5. Identify the negative profit line. 
  6. Set your fundraise to cover the negative working capital.

If the amount is greater than one million dollars, then break the fundraise into two rounds.

This will give you a rough idea of how much you need to raise and how many people you will need to hire. 


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Back_of_the_envelope_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Show Financials in a Pitch Deck

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

The financial projection is a key element in the presentation to investors.

Many founders cut and paste cells from the financial model spreadsheet into a slide.

This renders the information unreadable as the spreadsheet doesn’t fit with the presentation format.

To show your financial projections, consider the following:

Don’t cut and paste from the spreadsheet.

Investors cannot take in a detailed spreadsheet on a slide in such a small font.  

They can only take in the high-level information.

Choose specific numbers from your financial model and place them into the slide using the same font and format as the rest of the deck.

Choose three sets of numbers: revenue, costs, and profits.

Show last year, this year, and the next three years in your presentation.

This yields a five-year window into the company.

Create a line graph showing each one.

The revenue shows what growth rate you are projecting. 

Avoid hockey sticks as investors will discount those numbers as unrealistic.

Show the costs and then the profit line.

Include 1-3 key metrics as well. 

Also include additional fundraises proposed in the model.

Investors will look for the growth rate you are projecting.  

They will look to see when you go cash flow positive.

Investors will look at the burn rate on the profit line and then check the fundraise to see how much cash runway you are proposing.

The key to presenting the financial projections is to call out three key numbers such as the growth rate, months to cash flow positive, and the number of months of cash runway.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: How_to_show_financials_in_a_pitchdeck.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Thank you for joining us today for our TEN Capital Fundraise Launch Program.

In this program, we help startups prepare for a fundraise. 

We provide templates, tools, eGuides, and advice to founders who are working towards raising funding.

We’ll kick off the session with a short overview on a fundraising topic, then we’ll answer questions from the founders.

I hope you enjoy this episode.
________________________________

Thank you for joining us for the TEN Capital Fundraise Launch Program where we help startups prepare for a fundraise. 

For more episodes, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Assumptions and Drivers in the Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In building out your financial model, make explicit the assumptions you are using and identify the drivers in your business.

Create a tab on the spreadsheet for assumptions and drivers for the investor to review.

As you build out the revenue forecast, capture the assumptions behind the growth rate.

For the costs, make clear which are fixed and which are variable costs. 

Identify the drivers within the business.

Typically this is the number of products sold or the number of customers signed up.

This drives the revenue line as well as the variable costs.

For example, the more customers targeted for revenue, the higher the cost of sales and sales commission.

Investors look to see if the costs align with the revenue forecast.

Understanding what drives your revenue and costs will help you build out your financial model and create more accurate projections.


T
hank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: Assumptions_and_Drivers_in_the_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How Investors Use the Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Investors use the financial model to understand not only the business but also to learn about the founder and their skills. 

Here are some key points investors look for:

  1. Salaries -- investors look to see how well the team is compensated and if it fits the stage of the business.
  2. Customer acquisition and retention -- investors look to see you have built a system for acquiring customers and retaining them.  
  3. Traction -- investors look to see what traction you have going so far.
  4. Knowledge of the business -- investors look at the numbers to see how well you know the costs of running the business and what factors drive revenue.
  5. Scale factors -- investors look at the costs and customer acquisition model to see how well the business can scale.
  6. Use of funds -- investors look to see how you are going to spend the funds raised and if it makes sense for the stage of the business.
  7. Potential outcome -- investors look to see if this is a venture business or a lifestyle business.

Consider how the investor will view your deal in building out your financial projections.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

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Direct download: How_investors_use_the_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Characteristics of a Good Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

The purpose of the financial model is not to predict the future with great accuracy but rather to understand the business and how it works.

Here are some characteristics of a good financial model:

The model shows what drives the business, such as leads generated, products launched, or sales reps on the team.

The customer acquisition and retention model is defined so it’s clear what must be done to reach a sales target or performance metric.

The financial model shows what actions must be taken by the team such as website traffic and conversion rates, sales closure rates, and more.  

The model has clear logic to it so investors can follow it easily.

It should be flexible and allow for changes in assumptions.

It should be accurate, which means you applied a bottoms-up approach and not a top-down.

It contains instructions on how to read it if it’s not readily apparent.

It should be visually appealing with a clean design that exudes professionalism.

Finally, it should be printable so that it comes out neatly on a page.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ 
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ 
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ 
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ 

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.

Direct download: Characteristics_of_a_good_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

This is Investor Perspectives. I’m the host of Investor Connect, Hall T. Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding.

In our new Investor Perspectives series entitled “Faith-Based Investing in a Post-COVID World”, you’ll hear about changes expected in the coming 12 months and our guests’ final thoughts.

As the COVID pandemic passes, we emerge into a new era. The faith-based investing space is now undergoing tremendous change as we shift to a post-COVID world. Faith-based investing takes precedence with many investors in the financial industry. We have investors and startup founders describe the changes coming up.

Our guests are:

Steve Gatena, Founder and CEO, Pray.com [01:26]
Shane Enete, Associate Professor of Finance at Biola University and Investment Analyst at Inspire Investing [05:31]
John Siverling, Director of Private Markets, OneAscent Capital [10:58]
Endel Liias, Founder and Managing Principal, Nexus Impact Advisors [15:48]
Jeff Shafer, CEO, CommonGood Capital [17:20]
Kenn Kelly, CEO, Never Settle [21:22]

We hope you enjoy the show.
_______________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/    
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/   
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/    
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/  

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group  

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.

 

Direct download: IP_Faith_Based_-_Show_7.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Best Practices for Building a Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Here are some best practices in building a financial model for your startup.

Consider setting up the model to use for managing the business as well as the fundraise.

Design the layout so you can test assumptions and scenarios.

Capture your assumptions into the model so you can change them when the business conditions change.

Use conditional features of the spreadsheet to highlight in color the status of the metric or result.

Highlight key numbers such as revenue, margins, and cash flow.

Embed metric calculations into the spreadsheet, so it automatically calculates often-used metrics.

Set up the spreadsheet so you can have multiple scenarios.

Apply checksums to verify your spreadsheet is accurate.

Be sure to use a standard font and a clean design throughout the spreadsheet, as investors will correlate a clean-looking spreadsheet with accuracy of numbers.

While these practices will take a little more time, the benefits outweigh the cost.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Direct download: Best_practices_for_building_a_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Adam Judelson, President and COO at mePrism.

Founded in 2019, me​Prism believes that your online data is your property and that you have a natural right to privacy and the freedom to make choices without hidden influence. me​Prism hopes to help its clients collect all of this data from the many corners of the Internet, organize that data and place it in their mePrism Data Bank account. If companies need that data to make their products work for you, they can pay you for your consent through mePrism’s marketplace. Companies that bid for your data are required to explain how they will use it so that you can decide for yourself if that is what's best for you and your family's privacy. You control your data. You know who is using it, why, and exactly how they are using it.

Adam is a serial entrepreneur. He has spent his career protecting the public interest with data, from his time as a national security analyst in the government to Palantir Technologies where he headed up the most profitable product line, to his role as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown teaching a course he pioneered called Disruptive Analytics. Adam brings a unique blend of mission orientation, product and technology passion, and analytic rigor to each of his endeavors as well as the ability to convey the most complex topics simply to any audience.

Adam discusses what led him to start working in the data industry and how mePrism fits into the landscape, government controls and how it impacts businesses, monetizing data and more.

You can visit mePrism at www.meprism.com, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/meprism/mycompany/, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/mePrism1

Adam can be contacted via email at adam@meprism.com, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/adam-judelson, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/Ajuggles.  

_____________________________________________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Using Your Financial Model in a Pitch

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

The financial model is a key component of your pitch.

Use key financial numbers from the model to tell the story of how your business can scale up.

Here are the steps:

Start with your unit economics to show the business works.

Show how the systems you have built drive the business using the financial model.

Highlight the market size and how fast the market is growing, as well as how you will go to market if you are in the early stage.

Call out key cost figures to demonstrate you know your numbers that drive your customer acquisition process and retention rates.

Show how you will use the funds by pointing to the costs for building products, generating leads, or closing sales.

Show your cash burn and how the fundraise will give you runway.

The financial projections alone don’t tell the story of your business.

You have to pull out key numbers to tell the story.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Use Your Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

After building your financial model, you can use it in several ways.

Here is a list of use cases:

Raising funding for the business by determining how much you need to raise and when.

Generate financial forecasts and projections for managing the business.

Project key financial statements such as profit and loss statements, balance sheets, and cash flow statements.

Setting up budgets for daily management of the business, particularly around cash flow.

Determining hiring decisions, including what roles to fill and when.

Setting strategic plans for growing the business.

Estimating the value of the business for negotiating acquisitions by other companies.

An up-to-date financial model is a must-have for every startup.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Patrick Michael Snyder, Executive Director at BizStarts.

BizStarts brings entrepreneurs together from all backgrounds, ethnicities, and beliefs to create a collaborative learning environment that embodies positivity, inspires confidence, and develops people’s capacity to achieve personal success and business growth. Working together, they are creating economic opportunity, communities with unique character, and a vibrant city with prosperity for all. BizStarts provides education, training, one-on-one coaching, and connections to resources. All services are free of charge.

Patrick has tremendous experience running social and for-profit ventures. His largest wins are in the area of organizational growth. At the age of 27, Patrick started, grew, and sold Shoreline Magazine. The publication went from having two to 20 employees in roughly three years with Patrick as Founder and CEO. As Executive Director, He transformed The Illinois Travel and Tourism Association, Visit Illinois, from a 30-member club into a federation of Illinois Tourism Associations with a membership in the hundreds of thousands while increasing the budget by a factor of six!

Patrick has excellent consulting and operations experience. While working with Billionaire, Best Selling Author Steve Kaplan, Patrick and Steve focused on “Consulting for Growth” for small to mid-size companies, associations, and chambers of commerce--Patrick also performed big client sales and customer service training events and consulting for companies like Panasonic, AT&T, Frito Lay, and Oracle.

Patrick is a former Adjunct Professor at Kendall College, and Roosevelt University. As an educator, he is constantly searching for ways to enrich the lives of students. Patrick is also a published contributing author in the highly acclaimed book, “he Start-up Student” and has served on the advisory boards of several companies. Patrick served as Executive Director of the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship for 5 years, where he grew reserves from 28K to over 500K during that time! Most recently, Patrick was named  Executive Director at BizStarts Milwaukee. 

Patrick has a BA in Communications from Eastern Illinois University, an IOM designation from the US Chamber's Institute for Organizational Management at the University of Notre Dame, and holds a graduate certificate in leadership from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

Patrick details his background before BizStarts, discusses how he sees the self-employment industry evolving, and some of the challenges faced in customer funding.

You can visit BizStarts at www.bizstarts.com, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/bizstarts/, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/bizstarts.

Patrick can be contacted via email at psnyder@bizstarts.com, and via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/patrick-snyder

____________________________________________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

What to Include in Your Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In building your financial model, make sure you include the following:

  1. Revenue projections -- your estimate of revenue from all sources.
  2. Cost of Goods sold -- your estimate of how much it will cost to build and deliver the product or service.
  3. Customer acquisition costs -- your estimate of the sales and marketing expenses required to acquire the customer.
  4. Operating expenses -- your estimate of the cost of running your business, such as office space and utilities. 
  5. Capital expenditures -- your estimate of the cost of acquiring physical assets, such as equipment and machinery.
  6. Cash runway -- the amount of cash available based on operations as well as any fundraises.

Include metrics such as customer acquisition cost and customer lifetime value.


T
hank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ 
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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

This is Investor Perspectives. I’m the host of Investor Connect, Hall T. Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding.

In our new Investor Perspectives series entitled “Faith-Based Investing in a Post-COVID World”, you’ll hear our guests’ investment theses.

As the COVID pandemic passes, we emerge into a new era. The faith-based investing space is now undergoing tremendous change as we shift to a post-COVID world. Faith-based investing takes precedence with many investors in the financial industry. We have investors and startup founders describe the changes coming up.

Our guests are:

Tony Long, Co-Founder and Managing Partner, CLX Ventures LLC [01:12]
David Simms, Managing Partner and Founder, Talanton [02:49]
Andrew Stoner, Chief Investment Officer, Paradiem LLC [04:11]
Wes Lyons, General Partner, Eagle Venture Fund [05:28]
Michael Arrieta, Founder and CEO, Garden City Companies (startup) [06:19]
Josh Wilson, Principal Broker and Owner, Kingdom Syndicate [08:04]
Bill Wichterman, Angel Investor [08:57]

We hope you enjoy the show.
_______________________________
For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at:
http://investorconnect.org

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Direct download: IP_Faith_Based_-_Show_6.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Build a Bottoms-up Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

There are two approaches to building a financial model: top-down and bottoms-up.

The bottoms-up approach uses specific data from your financials, such as historical revenue, specific expenses, working capital, etc.

You apply assumptions to the historical numbers to build out the projections.

To build a bottoms-up financial model, consider the following:

Sales and marketing expenses drive the revenue.

Review the historical relationship between sales and marketing expenses and revenue. 

Project expenses and revenue based on the monetization model you have, such as recurring revenue, transaction fee, contract work, etc.

Calculate your cost of goods sold which is the cost to build and deliver the product.

Project the operating expenses which are those that do not directly drive the revenue, such as office leases and utilities.

Fixed expenses remain the same.

Variable expenses rise and fall with the activity of the business.

Calculate your working capital, also called cash runway.

Add key metrics into the model such as customer acquisition cost, lifetime value of customer, and growth rate.

Adjust the model for any other business conditions or events such as a fundraise.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Hernan Haro, Founder and General Partner at MrPink VC.

MrPink is a VC seed fund that invests in founders located in Colombia, Peru, Chile, Argentina, and Uruguay, that address large regional or global challenges. MrPink empowers entrepreneurs in CAPUC (Chile, Argentina, Peru, Uruguay and Colombia), by providing the capital, hands-on support, advice, and connections needed to launch global businesses. 

VC investment in LATAM will exceed $10 billion this year, more than 2 times the levels of 2019, and more than 20 times 2016; Mexico and Brazil take three-quarters of the total pie. MrPink’s portfolio companies will benefit from their Venture Design & Growth playbook, leveraging their experience by building, investing, and refining over 40 startups, and producing 10x returns and multiple exits. 

Hernan is a tech entrepreneur and Founding Partner of MrPink. As an entrepreneur, he ran operations for Pulpo Media, a California-based startup, leading the company through 14X revenue growth and its successful exit to Entravision. At ConsumerAffairs, he built the Data and Analytics team from scratch, later running Finance and Growth at scale. During the last decade, he has been actively advising entrepreneurs and angel investing in the region. Hernan holds an MBA from UC Berkeley (2010), an MSc in Industrial Engineering from ITBA (2001), and a BS in Computer Science (1997) from ORT.

Hernan discusses the state of investing in Latin America, some of the challenges investors and startups face, and the biggest change he sees happening in the next 12-24 months.

You can visit MrPink VC at https://mrpink.vc/, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/mrpink-vc/, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/MrPink_VC/.

Hernan can be contacted via email at hh@mrpink.vc, and via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/hernanharo

_____________________________________________________________________

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Direct download: Hernan_Haro_of_MrPink_VC.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Build a Top-Down Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

There are two approaches to building a financial model: top-down and bottoms-up.

In general, you should use a bottoms-up approach for preparing the financial projections, which will be more detailed.

To build a top-down financial model, consider the following:

Start with the size of the market.

Estimate the market share of the company in a sector or region.

Use the price of the product to calculate the revenue.

Increase the revenue based on the growth rate of the market and increasing market share.

Input the expenses as a percentage of revenue based on historical data.

The top-down approach is relatively simple as it uses market sizes and market share estimates.

Use this approach to check against the bottoms-up model as a comparison.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Benefits of a Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Many startups build a financial model to show the investors and then leave it alone ‘til it’s out of date and no longer useful.

The benefit of an up-to-date financial model is that it can actually help you make management decisions.

Here are several ways to use a financial model to manage your business:

Determine what positions to hire and when.

Measure the performance of the team and highlight problem areas.

Shows areas that are out of their target cost or performance zone, such as having too much of a given resource.

Determine your valuation range for a fundraise or exit event.

Find ways to reduce the risks in the business.

Create consistent results by managing both cost and revenue drivers.

Provide ongoing monitoring of the business.

Consider setting up the financial model for daily and monthly operational use as well as for fundraising.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

On this episode of Investor Connect, Hall welcomes Sophie Liao, Founding Partner at Oyster Ventures.

Oyster Ventures is a seed-stage-focused venture fund based in San Francisco, New York, and Hong Kong. They target companies that bring liquidity and efficiency to antiquated industries and with massive potential to scale.

Since 2016, they have launched three funds and deployed capital into 80+ startups. Their checks start at $25k to $200k, from Pre-Seed to Series Seed. They typically continue to invest in their portfolio companies from Series A to C and beyond, and they can write checks up to $5M+.

Oyster Ventures generally doesn’t lead rounds, but when they do, they will invest $500k to $2M. When they lead, they join the board as a director or observer. They happily invest in companies anywhere in the world but have a preference for standard jurisdictions and structures (e.g., Delaware C Corps, Hong Kong or Singapore Limited companies, SAFEs, etc.) They don’t invest in markets they don’t understand well or markets that require deep specialization to evaluate. While they do invest in cryptocurrency and blockchain companies, they very rarely invest in crypto-tokens without an equity component. They don’t invest via SPVs, by mandate, they don’t invest in mainland China, and they don’t invest in uncapped notes and SAFEs.

Sophie is a three-time fund manager with a top-performing record by IRR. She was MD at Rothenberg and VP at Draper Dragon before setting off on her own to found Oyster Ventures as a solo GP in 2017. Prior, she co-founded and sold a VFX startup to a large media company in 2015. Before that, she ran M&A strategy and started her career by launching joint ventures for U.S-Asia cross-border businesses in the TMT sector.

Sophie discusses her investment thesis, advises entrepreneurs and investors and describes some of the challenges they face.

You can visit Oyster Ventures at www.oyster.vc, via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/company/oyster-vc, and via Twitter at www.twitter.com/oysterventures.  

Sophie can be contacted via email at sophie@oyster.vc, and via LinkedIn at www.linkedin.com/in/sophie007

_________________________________________________________________________

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Direct download: Sophie_Liao_of_Oyster_Ventures_v2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

How to Build a Financial Model

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

It’s best to build your own financial model so you understand it thoroughly.

Here are the steps to build your financial model:

Define the goal for the model.  

Figure out how you will use it and what decisions you need to make.

This will determine what details you need to include in your model.

Input your historical results as this will set the format of the model.

Start with revenue and figure out what drives it such as number of customers paying or number of products sold. 

Calculate Cost of Goods Sold and include it as part of the revenue section.

Next, add salaries into the model as this is one of the biggest expenses you have.

Add in the other businesses expenses related to sales, marketing, and administration.

Set up a working capital section as you’ll need funds in the bank to pay expenses ‘til the revenue comes in.

Calculate your growth projections for each month for the next 24 months.

Review the model to see if it is achievable.

Finally, choose key metrics to include in the model and capture information that calculates those metrics.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Why Build a Financial Model?

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In building a startup, the financial model is a key step in validating the viability of the business.

Templates can educate on what to include and how to format, but it’s best to start from scratch.

Every founder should build their own financial model at the beginning of the company so they understand it thoroughly.

In fundraising, investors use the financial model for the following:

To check how changes such as increasing or decreasing revenue will impact the business.

To check your understanding of the business with respect to costs, revenues, and growth rates.

To check how you will use the funds raised for the business, as the financial model shows expenses and impact on the revenue.

To check when you will go cash-flow positive or break even.

To check to see how much runway the proposed fundraise will give you.  

This verifies you are raising sufficient funds to accomplish your goals.

You will need a detailed financial model to track your progress in running the business. 

Include the financial model in your presentation but at a high level showing last year, this year, and the next three years. 

Building the financial model is not about predicting the future but rather demonstrating how much you know about your business.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
____________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org 

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Direct download: Why_build_a_financial_model.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

Founder Business Skills Required

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In starting a company, there are key skills required of the founder:

Here is a list of basic skills:

Team building -- the founder must find a co-founder, build a board, and make the initial hires.

Leadership -- the founder must set the vision of the company and build support within the team.

Product -- the founder must specify the initial product and a roadmap for building it.

Sales -- the founder must be able to sell, including to customers, investors, team members, partners, and more.

Marketing -- the founder must be able to market the product by choosing the right market segment to pursue and creating materials for marketing the product.

Business model -- the founder must be able to craft a monetization strategy.

Finance -- the founder must be able to read accounting statements and financial reports.

Engineering -- the founder must be able to talk knowledgeably with the development team about their process and duties.

Get it done-ness -- the founder must be able to get projects done.

Emotional intelligence -- the founder must be able to set and build the culture of the company.

Founders should learn the basics in each of these areas.


Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let’s go startup something today.
___________________________________

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Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

This is Investor Perspectives. I’m the host of Investor Connect, Hall T. Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding.

In our new Investor Perspectives series entitled “Faith-Based Investing in a Post-COVID World”, you’ll hear our guests’ investment thesis.  

As the COVID pandemic passes, we emerge into a new era. The faith-based investing space is now undergoing tremendous change as we shift to a post-COVID world. Faith-based investing takes precedence with many investors in the financial industry. We have investors and startup founders describe the changes coming up.

Our guests are:

Steve Gatena, Founder and CEO, Pray.com [01:25]
John Siverling, Director of Private Markets, OneAscent Capital [03:53]
Endel Liias, Founder and Managing Principal, Nexus Impact Advisors [06:41]
Jeff Shafer, CEO, CommonGood Capital [10:19]
Kenn Kelly, CEO, Never Settle [12:25]

We hope you enjoy the show.
________________________________

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Direct download: IP_Faith_Based_-_Show_5.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 6:00am CDT

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