5 tips on fundraising from a founder who raised a $12M seed

Have you ever wondered, how founders raise LARGE seed rounds? By large I mean $12M large. I interviewed John Winner from Kizen and he was kind enough to tell me his story. *** Round details 🌐 Company: kizen.com 🤑 Round size: $12,000,000 📍 Stage: Seed 📅 Date: September 2022 *** 1️⃣ Timing It took John over a year to raise this round. 2️⃣ Funnel John contacted over 100 investors. 3️⃣ Biggest challenge "The most challenging portion of fundraising is the number of conversations you have to have and that not everyone believes in your idea. But if you have enough conversations and a good enough idea, you will find enough people who do." 4️⃣ Tip #1 Deeply understand your financial metrics and the path to your next round of funding. This is really important because it is the language that investors speak. I don’t think any founder speaks that language until they start fundraising. 5️⃣ Tip #2 Build relationships. People don’t usually fund your idea the first time they meet you. People fund people they have relationships with because they are trusting you with their money. Seek to build relationships six to twelve months in advance of when you begin fundraising. 6️⃣ Tip #3 Understand what stage a potential investor invests in. Sometimes you might talk to someone who really likes your idea, but your business is not at the stage where they or their fund engage. 7️⃣ Tip #4 Embrace No and listen closely to why smart people are saying no. This will help you refine your business model and pitch. It also helps you understand why this might not be a fit right now, but a potential fit in the future for that investor. 8️⃣ Tip #5 Always maintain your passion and motivation for your idea. Have an idea you are truly committed to. If you believe the world needs it and there is a business to be built around it, don’t let anyone stop you. *** Thanks for reading! For more interviews like this, check out my blog: https://shizune.co/blog/