I am looking to build an android app and I am meeting an investor for this. I want to know how should I prepare for this? And How should I prepare the budget.
Hi. Great you have an opportunity to meet with an interested investor so early in the game.
Your initial meeting will likely not result in a "yes" or "no," so view it as an information sharing session for both you.
Given that, you should:
* present the market need you're addressing
* convey your competence and expertise
* stress the uniqueness of your venture and the product
* offer well-reasoned financial projections on revenues and profits for the next three years--ideally a good pro forma
* explain what $ you need and what you plan to do with that $
* propose what the $ will get the investor (e.g. equity, debt note) and the structure around what that looks like (e.g. share of the company, interest rate, conversion opportunity)
In turn, you should learn the following:
* the investor's sophistication in investing and their understanding of risk
* the investor's skillset and willingness to lend a hand in those areas if needed
* connections that the investor is willing to make
* a sense of why they're interested in investing
If you wish to discuss, send me a PM through Clarity for 15 free minutes.
Thanks,
Kerby
This might be my favorite topic to advise on outside of Leadership.
Meetings with investors can be a nerve-racking experience. In advance of any important meeting, the most important thing is that you mentally prepare yourself so you can be ready to present yourself and your idea confidently and effectively.
Success in any patch is often less about the information and more about persuasion. Many great ideas have not been funded simply because the pitch was terrible. Many awful ideas have been funded simply because the pitch was outstanding. The difference between these comes down to how you approach the meeting and command the attention of your audience.
My first suggestion is that you sit down to read Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff. https://amzn.to/2H4MR6Q
This book will teach you the fundamentals of a concept known as Neuro-finance where you will undertand how the human brain receives and processes information. In short this will help you understand how to command the attention of the investor and be seen as new, novel, and interesting is of utmost importance.
Some key points about the substance of your pitch should include:
What are the market trends in your favor?
-Is now a particularly good time for your app/product because of the economy, changes in peoples behaviors, or new advances in technology?
How is your product different from the alternatives?
How hot is the deal?
-Are others interested in investing?
-Or is this deal otherwise dead if this investor does not put money in?
Investors are more likely to put their money in deals that others see value in. Further if no one else is investing, then the investor has all of the leverage and you have none.
These are all just some things to think about at the outset.
Let me know if you'd like to discuss this further on Clarity.
I have created over 200 mobile apps for Android, so I think I can help on how to prepare a budget and have some thoughts on investors.
First, the investor. I prefer not to use an investor, I took our initial $3,000 which has personally made me over a million dollars in the app space. However, I think the experience for you to meet one will have a lot of good learnings, just be very prepared.
Preparing a budget. So create a spec document, be clear on your app and the vision (this will help or should have been done for an investor). Then reach out to a bunch of outsourcing companies (upwork, PeoplePerHour etc...) and get a good understanding of the cost to develop your android app. You will be shocked to see how the price difference is depending on where you get it developed. This will give you an idea on the cost.
Then once you know the budget and if it is high, go with an investor, if it is not then dont. My first app, I got quotes for $300 and $10,000. I spent $300 by a buy working on the side of his day job plus the work I did myself to create the app and later sold it.
The $3,000 to start was spent on $2400 went to training/mentors and $300 to set up a company. Good mentoring and training matters from experienced professional.
Cheers,
Mukul
If I can help, call me
There are many factors that come into play to guide your business venture to success over the years. For example, your own efforts at planning, your well-developed and thoughtful products, and services, and even the drive and motivation of you and your team members will all play a role in the overall profitability of your venture. However, perhaps the most critical aspect of all is funding. You simply must have adequate funding available for product development, infrastructure, marketing and much more.
Many business owners will seek funding from investors but convincing an investor to give up their hard-earned money is challenging. Proper preparation for investor meetings can help you to feel more confident and increase your chance of reaching a successful outcome.
1. Research the Investor: Some entrepreneurs will reach out to any potential investor they can find. While the adage of leaving no stone unturned can work in your favour in some areas, it actually may waste your valuable time when searching for funding. The reality is that most angel investors or venture capitalists specialize in certain types of ventures or businesses. They may be interested in specific sectors, companies that are in a specific stage of development, those that produce a specific return and more. Avoid spinning your wheels unnecessarily by chasing after investors that likely will not be interested in your request. A smart idea is to thoroughly research the investors using public information, such as on their website, through social media platforms, in news articles and more. Pay attention to their current portfolio, and develop an understanding of their backgrounds, investment preferences, successes, failures, interests and more. It is also helpful to reach out to other entrepreneurs who may have attempted to obtain capital from them in the past. The more information you can learn about them, the better your chances of success. Keep in mind that some investors also bring experience, influence, market awareness and more to the table, and this “smart money” investment can pay off richly for your company over the years.
2. Write Your Executive Summary and Business Plan: Potential investors want to review your executive summary and business plan to gauge their interest in even holding a meeting with you. This means that your written plan needs to sell the company to the investor in a way that speaks their language. An executive summary will highlight the relevant facts about the company, your products and services, and your target market. Remember to refine your summary based on the specific investor you are trying to target. You absolutely must demonstrate that you have a firm understanding of your market’s size and demographics, and your customer profile. You also must explain your value proposition to this target audience and demonstrate how you are a better option than the competitors. Your business plan should identify key milestones that you want to achieve with the help of investor capital over the next 18 months. While you need to write this information clearly and concisely, you also need to be able to discuss it during an investor presentation in a more in-depth manner. While you want to present your potential return on investment in a positive manner, it should also be realistic. Your potential investor wants to hear about your well-formulated growth strategy rather than just a list of projected numbers. Inexperienced entrepreneurs tend to be overly optimistic. Not meeting your milestones and objectives can be detrimental to your ability to generate future investments. Always back your expectations up with real data.
3. Prepare and Practice Your Presentation and Pitch: An elevator pitch is a well-rehearsed summary of what makes your company an amazing investment opportunity for the investor. This is more detailed and more sales-oriented than the business plan.
Consider using images and chart on a slide show presentation to bring your pitch to life in an exciting, engaging way. In your elevator pitch, delve into the history of the business as well as how it will make the investor money. The total presentation length should be less than 30 minutes long, and you should plan to spend approximately two to three minutes on each slide. Your presentation should not simply be a summary of what is on the slides. Instead, the slides should be used to support your verbal presentation. Some investors may interrupt you frequently to ask questions; do not let this rattle you. You should know your material well enough that you can speak confidently about it without reciting a memorized speech verbatim. Try to keep the meeting structured and professional. Your investors are judging this aspect of the meeting as well as the business opportunity in general.
4. Estimate How Much Money You Will Need and What For: As you might imagine, your potential investors want to know exactly how much money you are trying to raise and what you plan to do with the money. The ideal amount of money to ask for is a sum that will fund your plans for the next 18 months. Avoid asking for less money than is needed simply because you think investors will then less likely refuse your request. Clearly demonstrate how the funds will be used, such as to hire more talent, to expand your warehouse space, and more. More than that, explain what you think a reasonable split is of equity for their investment and how you arrived at that figure. While the split should be fair, do not give away too much of your equity. When your own income potential is limited, you may lose motivation and drive. You should always know what your bottom-line figure is before walking into a meeting so that you can make decisions on the fly.
5. Know Your Passion, Energize Your Story: Investors may view dozens of presentations per week in some cases, so you need to ensure that your passion for your venture stands out. Make your presentation noteworthy during the first few minutes so that you grab their interest. For example, telling a compelling story as an opener is a great idea. Remember that the investor is investing in you and your team as much as they are investing in the company. Therefore, build credibility, and explain your education, background, and overall interest in what you are presenting. They should be able to clearly understand why you feel so passionately about your products or services. Your investment request should make sense from a numerical standpoint, but you also need to develop a relationship with these investors from the start. Focus on selling yourself as well as the opportunity to your investors.
6. Have a Q&A Session with a Hostile Audience: After your sales pitch that lasts approximately 30 minutes, you will next have to go through a rapid-fire series of questions from the investors. Investors will try to catch you off guard to ensure that you know your stuff. Therefore, anticipate their questions, always remain poised and thoroughly prepare for this aspect of the meeting. Everything from your business plan to your credentials will be scrutinized by investors. Consider some of the toughest questions that an investor may ask you and prepare to answer these ahead of time. Some investors may make suggestions, and you should not shy away from these. Instead, accept the advice with open arms, and show the investors that you are receptive to using the knowledge they bring to the table to improve your venture. Your first few investor presentations may not go precisely as planned but remember that they are each learning experiences that can help you to grow. After each meeting, take notes about your experiences, and brainstorm things that you can improve on to prepare for your next meeting. It may take you several attempts, but your knowledge and confidence level will increase with each meeting.
Besides if you do have any questions give me a call: https://clarity.fm/joy-brotonath
