Originally written by Matthew Cushen on Small Business
This article will explore how start-ups can create irresistible investment proposals.
Imagine you saw a tinned soup on a supermarket shelf, you might have seen something like it before, but possibly not the exotic flavour. You’re intrigued enough to pick it up and take a closer look. The packaging is poorly lined up, some ingredients are missing, the allergens are unclear and there are some spelling mistakes. It’s unlikely to get into your basket.
So I ask myself why, over 16 years of seed investing, and thousands (upon thousands) of investment decks, have I seen only a small fraction of investment proposals that have been thoughtfully constructed to sell the investment? With the right amount of information to give confidence and the creativity to instil some emotion?
Any pitch document should be aiming to make any investment proposals irresistible, and land in the investor’s ‘basket’ (their portfolio). So the ingredients of a compelling pitch to investors are the same as a compelling offer to consumers — differentiation, distinctiveness and price.
1. Differentiation
• Insight: It is difficult to create new ideas out of the same view of the world that everyone else has. A real innovation is usually
Tag Archive for Crowdfunding for Business
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3 ways to rescue a struggling crowdfunding campaign
by John Auckland • • 0 Comments
Originally written by John Auckland on Small Business
Raising finance is tough, but there are a number of steps you can take to rescue a struggling crowdfunding campaign.
In my years of running a specialist crowdfunding agency, I like to think I’ve developed a pretty good intuition around what will work in a campaign and what won’t. In reality, I’m not often too far wrong, but I am still constantly surprised about which ones take off like a rocket and which ones have a hard time meet their target.
What causes a crowdfunding campaign to falter?
I think that one of the biggest issues can come down to timing, which is hard to predict. New regulations are published, trends change quickly and competitors launch new products to market ‒ all of which could hinder the chances of a successful raise.
Some campaigns struggle to get initial cornerstone investment. Instead, smaller investments drip-feed into the campaign page, never really giving it any momentum or exposing it to a wider crowd of potential investors.
‘One of the biggest issues can come down to timing, which is hard to predict’
Finally, and potentially the most manageable, is that crowdfunding campaigns can be let down by unclear messaging or simply a
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Crowdfunding UK small business: everything you need to know
by Rob Murray Brown • • 0 Comments
Originally written by Rob Murray Brown on Small Business
How can my start-up raise money through crowdfunding?
Crowdfunding or, more strictly, equity crowdfunding is a way for companies to raise capital by selling their shares via an FCA-regulated platform. Private investors who like the company or idea can invest as little as £10.
How many crowdfunding platforms are there in Britain?
There are three main platforms in the UK – Seedrs, Crowdcube and Syndicate Room and a variety of other platforms which offer different versions of the same thing. All in all, there are no more than five currently active that are worth considering.
How big is crowdfunding in the UK?
Equity crowdfunding in the UK started in 2011 and has grown to levels where it is now described by some commentators as being in the mainstream. I think this is an exaggeration but to give you an idea the data – which is produced by the platforms, so should be treated with some caution – puts the total raised from 2011 to 2018 at between £600m and £800m.
Which is the best crowdfunding platform, CrowdCube or Seedrs?
Horses for courses. Crowdcube are larger than Seedrs and have been going longer. But Seedrs offer a different package based
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Crowdfunding 2.0: why security tokens will transform start-up finance in 2019
by Ransu Salovaara • • 0 Comments
Over the last ten years, equity crowdfunding has emerged as one of most innovative ways to raise growth. It has democratised finance, providing opportunities to retail investors which would otherwise be restricted to institutional investors such as venture capital or private equity, and it has provided a fresh way for companies to access growth finance.
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PURE Spa & Beauty launches first crowdfund to boost UK grow
by Stephanie Spicer • • 0 Comments
UK spa group PURE Spa & Beauty has announced the opening of its first crowdfunding campaign, seeking upwards of £150K to scale up its urban wellness brand around the UK. Through Crowdcube www.crowdcube.com/purespa, investment will start at £10 with VIP rewards and benefits on offer for shareholders investing £50 or more. PURE, which has been
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Crowdfunding the most searched finance term for businesses
by Owen Gough • • 0 Comments
New research from accountancy and business advisory firm, Cowgill Holloway, reveals ‘Crowdfunding’ is the UK’s most frequently searched term on business funding. Cowgill Holloway has produced a league table of the most searched terms, highlighting the popularity of crowdfunding searches amongst other alternative finance terms including ‘p2p lending’ and ‘crowdsourcing’. The term ‘crowdfunding’ was significantly
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