New York: is it considered a nice gesture to give a branded t-shirt (of an event) to an investor that I'm meeting?

As Ken suggested, there is a wide breadth of mobile offerings and although there are some great "mobile only" funds, each investor / fund has their own thesis that makes them interested in some but disinterested in others. Also, if your revenue generating, you should seriously consider bootstrapping further. Revenue is treated very strangely in early-stage investing and *might* work against you. AngelList is a great way to research investors but not effective in actually connecting with them. Find investors who you are confident will be passionate about what you're doing based on prior job experience or what you know they are investing in. Happy to talk in a call to help explain this further if you need more clarity.

I think good life partners for entrepreneurs need patience and empathy. Being an entrepreneur is demanding and has its ups and downs, so you need to find someone who is understanding and supportive. Someone with flexible expectations is better able to cope with the lifestyle of an entrepreneur in terms of work life balance. For some people, it's nice to be with other entrepreneurs and startup founders when you can, but this can also be a recipe for disaster if you're both running on high energy all the time. My boyfriend and I are both entrepreneurs (he founded a YC company and I am a consultant for startups). We both value: 1) The ability to brainstorm with each other 2) Having someone who provides useful and genuine feedback about our ideas/products/strategies (even when it has sharp criticisms). 3) Having someone who drives you forward when your motivation is running low. 4) Balance. We both have a lot in common, but we aren't twins. He likes to procrastinate and I finish things early. I'm extroverted and he's introverted. While these are challenges for some, the differences in our personalities and life experiences are what enhances our relationship. About Me: I specialize in copywriting and sales/marketing consulting. I take the approach of an economist and apply that to my work to understand how to create persuasive messaging for target audiences. Check out www.salesfolk.com for more information.

Hey, A few points (and as someone who has sold a digital agency, I have some experience here) 1) "This is the biggest decision of my life"... No it isn't. Not even close. I mean no disrespect but, agencies are easy to start back up. You build a team, build a client base, maybe take investors, scale it, sell it. Sit on your hands for the non-compete period, then start another one. Don;t sweat this too much, you aren't facing a decision that you can't work your way out of in a year or two. So my tip number one: relax! 2) This investor is taking you for a ride Giving yourself a minority ownership in an early-stage company or startup is a very, very bad idea. You need to feel like you have a "big win" ahead of you. A CEO shouldn't own a minority stake in the company she or he founded until you're doing $Millions in revenue 3) This guy is bringing very little to the table He has no background in your area. If he's bringin money, sure. On £30k run rate you aren't hugely investible but hey, a £20k injection of cash at 20% equity might work for you. But seriously, right now you have a very early stage business and it's too early to see how his flower shop expertise would help. 4) It's really, really early for you Taking investments into agencies is usually a bad idea until you have some solid revenue. £30k is very admirable and you should be proud to be more successful than a LOT of small business owners. But honestly, just keep selling and hustling. Hire SLOW and fire fast. Move your sales reps to a basic and give them quotas. Use contractors to scale out delivery without taking on as much risk. It sounds like you have the beginnings of a great agency. but from the information you've provided and from remembering my very early days where I transition from freelancer to agency, an investor right now would be a bad move for you. Happy to jump on a call to discuss my specific experiences and how I scaled out my team and client base and then moved everything to SWEET retainers so we could sell the biz.

Your assumption is not true. They don't care where you come from. Time is money regardless of where in the globe you come from. Ask for advice not money if you are going in cold. Don't send your deck, don't attach anything to that email and make sure the email is max four short sentences. Here is how to get a response: Subject: Seeking advice Body: Line 1. Name.. working on a product in X space that does Y. Line 2. I saw you have experience with X space and Y products. Line 3. I would like your advice on (user acquisition, scaling, blah, blah). Make sure you do your homework on what area the investor is an SME. Line 4. Ask one very specific question. Thank you for your time Name DONE! It works and if you want to talk I can explain further which VCs this has worked with. As the saying goes ask for money you get advice. Ask for advice you get money. In an ideal world you want to have a warm intro. But hey those are not always easy to come by so you do what you have to. What is the worst that can happen investor says no? Or doesn't respond? Who gives a shit you tried.

Generally, the transfer of tangible personal property is the trigger for a sales tax event. In this case, it may be necessary to review the various aspects of a typical transaction to determine if any portion thereof would be subject to sales tax. However, generally speaking, receipts from the sale “Marketing”, "Media Placement Services" and "Web Site Networks" are not subject to State or local sales and compensating use taxes provided your organization does not sell or otherwise transfer any tangible personal property to its clients in conjunction with these activities or perform any services otherwise taxable under Section 1105(c) of the Tax Law in conjunction with these activities. (See, Advertising Agencies, Technical Services Bureau Memorandum, June 10, 1983, TSB-M-83(16)S. For additional guidance, you may also want to refer to Publication 750, A Guide to Sales Tax in New York State http://www.tax.ny.gov/pdf/publications/sales/pub750.pdf. I hope that you find this information useful. Shawn Powell Joseph Reference TSB-A-97(43)s