

Raising $1,000,000 With No Business Plan + No Financial Projections - thiele
http://coconutheadsets.com/2010/03/02/what-i-learned-raising-a-million-dollars-for-a-startup-with-no-business-plan-and-no-financial-projections-while-drinking-a-beer/comment-page-1/#comment-8393

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jasonwilk
I couldn't agree more with this post. Get comfortable with a VC that knows
your space. You will know quickly that they aren't interested. Also, he makes
a valid point to go out and _$%_ %*^ Show something that is getting traction.
VC's are number crunchers, they can't predict the future (i.e they won't
invest in something you say is going to be huge, especially in today's funding
env.)

Ask yourself something: Would you risk your business idea on your own credit
cards? If not, neither will they. Go risk your own cash and make it work. It
shouldn't take much to know if it's going to work or totally bellyflop. Saves
everyone a bunch of time. There is enough web knowhow these days to push a
simple version of your product out for free. Just do it (it applies to
everything, $thatswhatshesaid

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pxlpshr
What a great post. This is a similar story as mine except it was for a lot
smaller (seed) amount to churn out a prototype. For 6 months almost every
meeting was at a bar until we closed, and just last month we finally put
together a financial model and deck.

We hope to launch this month after working on it for 3, and now starting to
look for a bigger round. I fully agree with finding investors that fit and not
just taking on money to take it. On top of seeding us, our investor turned
over a trademark and preliminary patent to the company. I think it's crucial
to find a good match if you want to continue loving your company while working
with shareholders.

Good luck Backupify!

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sandGorgon
It is hard to think straight when one is out of a job and running on fumes for
a couple of months - I do believe that most people will not think in terms of
"hey this VC is not good, cos he does'nt get it".

Most will think in terms of "how should I rehearse in front of the mirror, so
that I knock the VC's socks off".

But yes, the article is good reality check - maybe it is much more relevant on
your second startup when, usually, money is relatively easier to come by.

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thiele
whoops, here's the link to the main article and not my comment, haha:

[http://coconutheadsets.com/2010/03/02/what-i-learned-
raising...](http://coconutheadsets.com/2010/03/02/what-i-learned-raising-a-
million-dollars-for-a-startup-with-no-business-plan-and-no-financial-
projections-while-drinking-a-beer/)

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andyjenn
Interesting post, thanks. However if, like me, you'd never heard that phrase
before - [http://detavio.wordpress.com/2009/05/21/did-you-move-the-
nee...](http://detavio.wordpress.com/2009/05/21/did-you-move-the-needle/)

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jayphelps
Certainly some great advice here.

