This document provides tips for preparing an angel funding pitch. It recommends thoroughly preparing your team, product, market fit, and supporting documents. The pitch should include a concise one-line pitch, business summary, management team, problem description, solution, target market, sales strategy, business model, competitors, and competitive advantage. It also recommends having a prototype, intellectual property, production timeline, conservative and aggressive financial projections, investor slides, use of funds plan, and exit strategy. The tips emphasize keeping the pitch visual, quantifying claims, practicing delivery, and being prepared to answer questions professionally.

1. April 12, 2013 Karen Linder
PREPARATION TIPS
FOR AN ANGEL FUNDING ASK

2. Karen Linder,
Angel Investor

3. TIP: PREPARE, DON’T RUSH
Team, Product/Service, Market
SupportingDocuments
You, yourself
Pitch Quality and Clarity

4. Angel.co
Gust.com

6. Investor Search Engine
Share Your Profile with Multiple Groups
Track Investor Interest

7. 1. One Line Pitch
“This is what we do / make.”
(and why we’re great)

8. One Line Pitch
“A time saving tool Moms love”

10. “We capitalize on the return of mass market
manufacturing to the US and competition that is
bound to rising costs of imported product.”
“Helps small business owners grow and
retain their customer base.”

11. “Organic agriculture company seeks $25K seed
capital at $3m valuation to complete $6.5m
Series A at $10m valuation.”
“Food / Drink”

12. “X” is a development stage biotechnology
company based on licensed technology
focused on providing gene technology for
developing high-performance cell lines used in the
bioproduction of fuel ethanol, industrial enzymes,
and pharmaceutical products; and for creating
transgenic plants that are resistant to a broad
spectrum of diseases and environmental stresses.”
One Line Pitch

13. “”X” is a development stage biotechnology
company based on licensed technology
focused on providesing gene technology for
developing high-performance cell lines used in the
bioproduction of fuel ethanol, industyrial enzymes,
and pharmaceutical products; and for creating
transgenic plants that are resistant to a broad
spectrum of diseases and environmental stresses
agriculture.”
One Line Pitch – Edit!

14. PROFILE, CONT…
2. Business Summary
3. Management Team
4. The Problem
5. Your Solution to the Problem

15. TIP: HAVE A BETA / PROTOTYPE
Nebraska Pre-seed Fund (Prototype fund)
neded.com
TIP: EVEN
BETTER,
HAVE SOME
IP

16. PROFILE, CONT…
6. Target Market
7. Current Customers
8. Sales / Marketing Strategy

17. TIP: PRODUCTION & SALES TIMELINE
Nitride Solutions, 2010

18. PROFILE, CONT…
9. Business Model
10. Competitors
11. Competitive Advantage

20. PROFILE, CONT...
12. Executive Summary
13. Current Cap Table
TIP: Founders should have “skin” in the
game to share the risk with the investor.

21. If you ask investors to
assume all the risk,
they need to be
rewarded with a higher
amount of equity.

22. 14. Business Plan
15. Financials
PROFILE, CONT…

23. TIP: FINANCIAL HISTORY > PROJECTIONS

24. Tip:
Conservative
AND
Wild
Projection
Visual Projections

25. ADDITIONAL PIECES TO APPLICATION
16. Investor Slides
17. The $ Ask
18. Company Valuation
19. Use of Funds

26. IF MULTIPLE FUNDING SOURCES
• Current Term Sheet
• Permission to Share Due Diligence

27. 20. Exit Plan
Acquisition?
IPO?
Share repurchase?

29. PITCH TIPS:
Handout
Samples
Demonstration and Visuals

30. SkyVu Biz Plan 2008

32. 2013
“A picture is worth a
thousand words.
A video is worth a million.”

37. Tip: Have Well-Designed Company Website
and Pitch Deck

38. LIGHTENING ROUND
PITCH TIPS
Visual over text
Less techo-babble, more numbers
Practice and time your pitch
Consider suggestions, recommendations

39. LIGHTENING ROUND
PITCH TIPS
Think BIG
Prepare Answers for all Possible Questions
Prepare to Quit other Jobs
Don’t Exaggerate (Lie)

41. LIGHTENING ROUND TIPS
Be Nice. Act professionally.
Unethical behavior = No 2nd chance.

42. THANK YOU AND GOOD LUCK!
karenlinder@mac.com
@karenlinder
@kalinder
linseedcapital.com