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How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

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Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#41

Post by intellegacy »

eterpstra wrote: post #28
mikecane wrote: post #22

This is the kind of thing independent filmmakers would do to raise funds. There was no Internet or VC funds in those days to help. They'd pitch professionals who needed to invest: doctors, lawyers, accountants, dentists, and the like. Do people still go after them to raise funds for tech startups too?

Spending so much time on sites like HN and TechCrunch, it's easy to forget that there are over half a million businesses started in the U.S. per year, with only a tiny smattering of those being VC funded tech startups. Determined entrepreneurs get money however they can, but mostly pay out of their own pocket or borrow from local banks or credit unions. VC funded businesses are few and far between (except in SF), but…

Yea, if you venture outside the HN/500startups tech ecosystem, you notice that there are many, many companies working on the same problems that YC companies are attempting to solve. They just don't get any recognition on HN, which is a little dangerous for HNers.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#42

Post by Smirnoff »

osirisnews wrote: post #39
Smirnoff wrote: post #36

"One thing Singaporeans love to talk about is FOOD and I made sure our conversation was filled with that." Isn't your company called LOVE WITH FOOD? Aren't you supposed to talk about food regardless?

In the context of that quote, she was referring to how that particular investor was from Singapore. So they might have talked about their favorite foods from their home as an ice-breaker?

Maybe but it wasn't clear from the post. I think a good take away is that entrepreneurs have to relate to other people when they pitch.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#43

Post by lsc »

sc0rb wrote: post #33
lsc wrote: post #12

1) Wear your Company T-shirt heh. I've actually thought about this a lot. I always wear a company shirt, yeah, but I also tend to wear the same clothing all the time, too, on the theory that it makes me more recognizable, and that being recognized is good. My theory (which may, of course, be wrong) is that in branding? being consistent and recognizable is far more important than looking good. But then, I'm trying to…

You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable? That's not normal and is certainly not required.

>You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable?

>That's not normal

that's... kindof the point, no? I'm trying to be abnormally recognizable.

(I mean, to be clear, I'm not a stinky hipster who goes for months without washing his jeans; I have a whole bunch of these things, and I wash them. They are just all the same.)

But yeah, I was joking with someone else I met a bit ago. "Yeah, I wear the same thing every day. Got a whole closet full of these. You know, like Steve Jobs... but without the good taste."

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#44

Post by lsc »

gregpilling wrote: post #30
Mahn wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Maybe it's just me, but I always thought wearing your company t-shirt makes you look obnoxious, specially if no one has heard of the company.

it is just you (kidding). How would they hear of you? Why not wear a t-shirt! T-shirts are a pretty low-cost investment in promotion. I can buy a black shirt with a single color imprint for $3.50 in small runs. A good pen with the company name on it would cost the same. (source: I have been buying giveaway crud for 20+ years) Giving away a metric ton of shirts can have some other interesting effects. In the early day…

well, for $3.50, you aren't getting a good T shirt, so it'd be better to compare it to the $0.25 pens.

Personally, I spend about 3x that, maybe 4x on small runs, and get nice T shirts. But then, it's rare I see people that I don't know/ that don't know they will be seeing me wearing the shirts. (and I've only given out a couple hundred) so it's possible that the 'blanket 'em with cheap shirts' strategy works better.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#45

Post by lsc »

Mahn wrote: post #24
lsc wrote: post #12

1) Wear your Company T-shirt heh. I've actually thought about this a lot. I always wear a company shirt, yeah, but I also tend to wear the same clothing all the time, too, on the theory that it makes me more recognizable, and that being recognized is good. My theory (which may, of course, be wrong) is that in branding? being consistent and recognizable is far more important than looking good. But then, I'm trying to…

Maybe it's just me, but I always thought wearing your company t-shirt makes you look obnoxious, specially if no one has heard of the company.

I worry about that, too. The way I see it, if it's your company, it does scream "I /really/ want to talk about my company" which is certainly obnoxious in some contexts... but not in others.

The difference, if it's a well known company, is that the talk is much shorter. "Oh, you work for Yahoo?" you know, they have the whole back story there. with my shirt? The conversation is longer, even if the level of enthusiasm is the same.

But yeah. It's a good point. And I'd probably have a better non-professional social life if I put some effort in to different outfits for several situations.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#46

Post by sc0rb »

lsc wrote: post #43
sc0rb wrote: post #33

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable? That's not normal and is certainly not required.

>You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable? >That's not normal that's... kindof the point, no? I'm trying to be abnormally recognizable. (I mean, to be clear, I'm not a stinky hipster who goes for months without washing his jeans; I have a whole bunch of these things, and I wash them. They are just all the same.) But yeah, I was joking with someone else I met a bit ago. "Yeah, I wear the same t…

Seriously, buy some different clothes...

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#47

Post by aihui »

Thanks for all the comments and encouragement. Everyone has a different experience and would love to hear other's fundraising experience.

I bootstrapped Love With Food 6 months before being accepted into 500 Startups. I'm a Rails developer and was able to build and market the product all by myself. At 500 Startups, I hired 2 more people to join the team. We've been very scrappy even after raising $650,000. Now we are a team of 8. The funding has definitely helped our business scale to a different level.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#48

Post by [deleted] »

sc0rb wrote: post #46
lsc wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable? >That's not normal that's... kindof the point, no? I'm trying to be abnormally recognizable. (I mean, to be clear, I'm not a stinky hipster who goes for months without washing his jeans; I have a whole bunch of these things, and I wash them. They are just all the same.) But yeah, I was joking with someone else I met a bit ago. "Yeah, I wear the same t…

Seriously, buy some different clothes...

[deleted]

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#49

Post by lsc »

sc0rb wrote: post #46
lsc wrote: post #43

Earlier quoted context omitted.

>You wear the same clothing everyday so you are more recognisable? >That's not normal that's... kindof the point, no? I'm trying to be abnormally recognizable. (I mean, to be clear, I'm not a stinky hipster who goes for months without washing his jeans; I have a whole bunch of these things, and I wash them. They are just all the same.) But yeah, I was joking with someone else I met a bit ago. "Yeah, I wear the same t…

Seriously, buy some different clothes...

so... break it down for me. What social advantages do I gain by varying my clothing day-to-day?

(I mean, I understand the advantages of fitting your clothing to the situation; that's not my question. My question is, if the situation calls for a suit, what's the problem with wearing the same style of suit every time the situation calls for a suit? the same style of T shirt when the situation calls for a T shirt, etc...)

Or, maybe you are just telling me to fit my clothing to the situation. Which I'm not doing right now, mostly as a conservation of effort thing, which is to say, I'm too goddamn lazy to bother. But I understand why, at least.

Re: How I Met 75 Investors and Raised $650,000

#50

Post by sc0rb »

lsc wrote: post #49
sc0rb wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Seriously, buy some different clothes...

so... break it down for me. What social advantages do I gain by varying my clothing day-to-day? (I mean, I understand the advantages of fitting your clothing to the situation; that's not my question. My question is, if the situation calls for a suit, what's the problem with wearing the same style of suit every time the situation calls for a suit? the same style of T shirt when the situation calls for a T shirt, etc..…

If I wore the same clothes everyday (steve jobs style), I'm pretty sure my girlfriend would start to complain and people would start to notice. I don't think it's a good reputation.

You're that uninteresting guy from the office that always wears the same clothes.....

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