Fundraising Techniques For Startups

Founders are chasing VCs while ignoring ₹𝟳𝟳,𝟬𝟴𝟬 𝗖𝗿 of free money. The Indian government is handing out non-dilutive capital like candy in 2025. But most founders don’t even know where to look. I’ve mentored 100s of early-stage teams. Here's what blows my mind: → They’ll spend 3 months tweaking their pitch deck… → But won’t spend 3 hours applying for a ₹50L grant. Let’s break it down: The 2025 Opportunity Map → Deep Tech & Startup Fund: ₹30,000 Cr → MSME Budget Outlay: ₹23,168 Cr → Startup India Fund of Funds: ₹10,000 Cr → PLI (Electronics/Auto/Textiles): ₹13,000+ Cr → Startup India Seed Fund: ₹945 Cr EARLY STAGE? You’re leaving free money on the table. → ₹50L: Startup India Seed Fund → ₹40L: SAMRIDH → ₹15L: Atal Innovation Mission POST-REVENUE? You can scale without VCs. → ₹2 Cr: CGTMSE (Collateral-free loans) → ₹10 Cr: Multiplier Grants → ₹1 Cr: Stand-Up India (for SC/ST/Women founders) IN MANUFACTURING? It’s literally raining subsidies. → PLI across 14+ sectors → Massive push in electronics, auto, textiles What’s the catch? Most founders don’t know where to begin. Here’s your cheat sheet: → Startup India → myScheme → SIDBI → MeitY Startup Hub You’ll need: ✓ DPIIT registration ✓ Clean documentation ✓ Clear business plan ✓ Compliance-ready books ✓ Incubator partnerships (for some) Don’t be the founder who complains about VC rejection… …while ignoring the ₹50L grant sitting in your inbox. 💬 Drop your most burning question in the comments. ♻ Repost to wake up founders who are sleeping on free capital. 🔔 Follow Anshuman Sinha for more Startup insights. #India #Entrepreneurship #AngelInvesting #Startups #Economy

My friend raised $100 million from well-known VCs and is shutting the company down in the next couple of weeks. I met with him to learn what went wrong. He asked me to share his recent startup experience with my LinkedIn community, hoping it could benefit other founders. His biggest regret on his nearly 7-year journey was accepting a significantly overvalued Series A round. He raised a large financing round at a massive valuation from well-known VCs, which generated significant media buzz. This was the kind of moment many founders post about and celebrate. He had many term sheets and took the one with the largest valuation. Turns out, that inflated valuation from his round created immense pressure and set expectations so high that securing crucial follow-on funding became impossible. Then a few product delays hit. A key hire fell through. Normal startup turbulence. Follow-on funding dried up. Morale dropped. The story shifted. He also had many early VCs on his cap table that were chasing markups. Their playbook was simple: inject capital, hype the company, and flip it to the next investor at a higher valuation. The lesson? Valuation is not validation. It’s a bet. And if it’s misaligned with reality, it can sink even the most promising company. A more grounded valuation is the key to sustainable growth and navigating the long, unpredictable startup journey. Raise what you need. From people you trust. Build a good foundation to get through any ups and downs. #founder #funding #investing #vc #venturecapital #entrepreneur #startup

If you're a founder trying to fundraise right now, it probably feels like the entire venture world has gone quiet. The response times are slow, OOOs are on and it’s easy to feel like you’re losing momentum. Don't stress. The summer slowdown is predictable, and it's not a setback, it's a gift of time if you use it well. I see this every year... The founders who scramble to send frantic emails in July/August are the same ones who struggle in the fall with an over-shopped deal and the fatigue of an endless fundraise. But the founders who use this quiet period for deep, focused preparation are the ones who run a crisp, successful process after Labor Day. The fundraising race is won in the prep lap. Here are a few things you can do right now to prep for a big fundraising push this fall: 1. Build a High-Fidelity Investor Pipeline. Go beyond a simple list of names. Create a comprehensive document that tracks every firm and partner, their specific thesis, your history with them (if any), your connections to them and crucially, the feedback they've given you in the past. This turns your outreach into a strategic campaign. 2. Assemble a "Push-Button" Data Room. Don't wait for an investor to ask. Build your data room now so it's ready to go at a moment's notice. This includes your customer contracts, cohort analyses, deck, references and financial model. A well-organized data room signals professionalism and creates momentum. 3. Craft a "Juicy" Forwardable Blurb. The best introductions are easy to forward. Write a tight, compelling, one-paragraph teaser. It must include a unique insight on the market, why your team is going to win and any key metrics. This makes it effortless for people like me to advocate on your behalf. 4. Pressure-Test Your Narrative. Use this time to pitch trusted advisors, mentors, and other founders. This isn't about memorizing a script, it's about finding the weak spots in your story. Ask them to be ruthless. The tough questions you answer now in a friendly setting will save you in a rapid fire partner meeting later. 5. Get Your "Diligence" in Order. This is the one everyone forgets. Talk to your lawyer now. Make sure your corporate governance is tight and your cap table is accurate (and clean). Uncovering a messy problems during late-stage diligence can kill a deal. Solving it now is a massive de-risking event. 6. "Warm Up" Your References. Your best customers are your most powerful asset. Don't wait until an investor asks for a reference call to talk to them. Re-engage with your top 3-5 champions now. Check in, share your progress, and get them excited about your vision. A reference who is prepped and genuinely enthusiastic is infinitely more impactful. The fall fundraising season will be here before you know it. The work you do in the quiet of August will determine the success you have in the chaos of the fall. We are prepping for our next fundraise as well so this is how I'm spending my time💥

After bootstrapping 3 startups, here are my 9 DOs and DON'Ts of building a team with very limited resources: 💸 DON'T: 1. Hire a dev shop to go from 0 to 1. Going from nothing to something requires a significant amount of time for trial and error and iterations. Whether the shop bills on time or milestones, values are misaligned with what you need to accomplish. 2. Hire the convenient person you can afford. It's tempting for bootstrapped startups to make an easy hire who's right there instead of the best person for the task. When you compromise on quality, you end up paying for it in some way by needing to do it again. 3. Expect marketing agencies can save you. Money can't buy product market fit. Most agencies are good at taking you from 1 to 2 when you already have a proven product/market, but paying an expensive retainer to test the market is a waste of time and money. 4. Bring on execs who have only worked in big companies. Big companies have trust, credibility, systems, resources, and support in place. Working for startups without those things require scrappiness and agility that people from corporate just don't have. 5. Paying with equity is more expensive. Equity is like toothpaste, once you squeeze it out of the tube, you won't be able to get it back in. If you think you'll sell your company for $10m, 1% is $100k. Do you the math and think thrice before inviting another shareholder. DO: 6. Have a tech lead on your side. I started eWebinar thinking I didn't need a CTO and that turned out to be the most expensive mistake I made. Not having someone on your side who's constantly thinking about how to build a better, scalable product is like having a restaurant without a chef. 7. Optimize burn with contractors. As a remote team, we let go of the idea that we have to hire locally. Which meant we can hire anywhere in the world based on skills, passion, and attitude. We don't have to fight for talent in the west, and can pay above market in the locations we hire in. 8. Pay people what they demand or more. To make sure people have the highest chance of success, they have to feel like they're not compromising. If you can't afford them, consider going fractional until you can. Working with fractional experts is a great way to test talent, build interest, and recruit them over time. 9. Hire the best person or none at all. The best person for the role will be at least 2x more productive than average while the worst person will make you 2x less productive. The quality of people on your team will exponentially increase your output. On S2E4 of ProfitLed Podcast, I talked about "Building a Founding Team with Limited Resources." Find it on your favorite podcast app. ___ I'm Melissa Kwan, Cofounder of eWebinar and Host of ProfitLed. 3x bootstrapper sharing stories & lessons weekly. Follow me + hit 🔔 to stay tuned.

₹77,080 Crores allocated by the Government of India for startups and manufacturing in 2025. Yet most founders are still chasing VC money. I work with startups daily, and it surprises me how many don't even know these schemes exist. Here's what's available right now The Big Picture: → Deep Tech & Startup Fund: ₹30,000 Cr → MSME Budget Outlay: ₹23,168 Cr → Startup India Fund of Funds: ₹10,000 Cr → PLI Electronics & IT: ₹9,000 Cr → PLI Auto Components: ₹2,819 Cr → PLI Textiles: ₹1,148 Cr → Startup India Seed Fund: ₹945 Cr This is just the major allocations - there's more buried in smaller schemes. Let me break down what you can actually access based on your stage [1] For Early Stage Startups: 👉🏼 Startup India Seed Fund: Up to ₹50L per startup 👉🏼 SAMRIDH Scheme: Up to ₹40L grants 👉🏼 Atal Innovation Mission: Up to ₹15L for prototypes Most founders think these are too small. But remember, this is non-dilutive capital that can get you to revenue stage. [2] For Revenue Stage Companies: 👉🏼 CGTMSE: Up to ₹2 Cr collateral-free loans 👉🏼 Stand-Up India: ₹10L to ₹1 Cr for SC/ST/Women entrepreneurs 👉🏼 Multiplier Grants: Up to ₹10 Cr for R&D projects This is where it gets interesting. Revenue-stage companies have the best shot at accessing larger amounts. [3] For Manufacturing: 👉🏼 PLI schemes across 14+ sectors 👉🏼 Significant incentives for domestic production 👉🏼 Focus on electronics, auto, textiles If you're in manufacturing, you're literally sitting on a goldmine of incentives. The challenge? Most founders don't know how to navigate the application process. Here's where to start: - Startup India Portal [https://lnkd.in/gBdAH52D] - myScheme Portal [myscheme.gov.in] - SIDBI Portal [sidbi.in] - AIM Portal [aim.gov.in] - MeitY Startup Hub [msh.meity.gov.in] What you actually need: ✓ DPIIT registration for startups ✓ Proper documentation ✓ Clear business plan ✓ Compliance records ✓ Incubator partnerships (for some schemes) I've seen founders spend months preparing pitch decks for VCs, but won't spend a week getting their documentation ready for government schemes. The reality is Government funding is often cheaper, comes with less dilution, and has better terms than VC money. But it requires patience and proper documentation. #startupfunding #manufacturing #debtfunding

₹50 LAKHS GRANT FOR STARTUPS - YET 99% ENTREPRENEURS MISS IT As someone who has built businesses both from scratch and with institutional support, I can tell you one thing: knowing how to raise funds is just as important as having a strong idea. Right now, the Indian government is offering up to ₹50 lakhs to early-stage startups under the Startup India Seed Fund Scheme (SISFS). This is not a loan. This is not equity. This is a pure grant. Yet, most startup founders I meet are either unaware of this or believe it’s too complicated to apply for. Here’s what every serious founder needs to know: 🔹 You don’t need a market-ready product. You can apply even if you're at the idea or MVP stage. 🔹 You must be an Indian citizen with a startup registered in India, under 10 years old, and working on a tech-first or innovation-first model. 🔹 You must not have received prior government funding under any other central scheme. 🔹 To apply, your startup needs DPIIT recognition (which is free and easy to get at startupindia.gov.in) 🔹 Once recognised, go to https://lnkd.in/g66vuPaf, choose three incubators, upload your pitch deck and necessary documents, and submit your application. As an entrepreneur, I’ve often seen amazing ideas collapse due to a lack of funds and access. What I’ve also seen is that those who invest time in understanding government systems and startup policies go a lot further than those who wait for VCs to knock on their door. If you're working on an idea that solves a real problem, don’t let the lack of capital hold you back. 🔹 Pitch clearly. 🔹 Show why your idea is innovative. 🔹 Prove that your team can build it. 🔹 Keep your documents and vision sorted. India has never been more startup-friendly than it is today. But this window will only benefit those who are proactive and informed. If you’re building, I strongly recommend exploring this scheme. Every founder should know this. Every startup should at least try. A good pitch can open a ₹50 lakh door. Sometimes, that’s all you need to go from idea to execution. Watch this space for more such insights. And if you're someone working on a strong idea, now is the time to build. #startupindia #founders #entrepreneurship #startupfunding #SISFS #governmentgrants #businessstrategy

As a founder, I have made a ton of mistakes, but fundraising I (mostly) got right. This includes securing $400 million for my own startups over the years, but also helping fellow founders successfully with their investment rounds. At the same time, I have seen founders run disastrous and failed funding processes. The big difference is a proper process. Running a proper process enabled us to select the best investors to help us most at each stage. I never chased the highest valuation. I focused on finding the investor who could solve our biggest challenges for the next two to three years of growth. That only worked because I ran a proper process. So, what does a proper process look like? Every founder will have a view, but in my experience it includes eight golden rules: 1. Nail the story - Most important, but hardest part. Define a maximum of two to three key messages. Repeat them everywhere, in calls, emails, and on every slide of your deck. 2. Build a tight deck - Every slide reinforces those two to three key messages. Slide titles should summarise the key point, not just say “Market” or “Product”. 3. Raise the minimum - Ask for as little as you need. Far better to oversubscribe than face a never-ending process or failure to hit the target. I much prefer raising to hit the next milestones, prove progress, then raise bigger later at a higher valuation. 4. Do not obsess over valuation - Too often, founders chase the highest valuation, which then bites hard later with a painful down round. Valuation is driven by timing, traction, and demand. Focus instead on your ideal investor, the one(s) who can help solve your biggest challenges over the next two to three years. 5. Kiss a lot of frogs - Build a wide funnel of at least 50 targets for an early-stage raise. Prioritise your ideal investors, but keep optionality until the very end. Use warm intros where possible, ideally at partner level. Do not contact anyone until 100% ready. 6. Craft a killer intro - Short email, four to five bullets on the key pain points and “why now?”. Keep it short and punchy so a warm contact can forward it without rewriting a word. 7. Run a tight process - Hit everyone at the same time to create momentum. Keep competitive tension throughout by trying to move everyone at the same speed. Assume at least six to nine months. Make sure you have cash runway for longer. Show traction and results throughout. It is a big commitment, half of a founder’s time. 8. Prep your data room early - Financials, cap table, corporate structure, FAQs, all ready before serious conversations begin. I will cover how much to raise, capital strategy, investor mix, and specifically what is different for climate tech founders next week. But the foundation is this: fundraising is a process. Run it like one. This is part of a weekly series on scaling lessons from building PropertyGuru to NYSE and backing climate ventures at Wavemaker Impact and Planet Rise. Follow along if useful.

𝙃𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙮𝙤𝙪 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙙 𝙤𝙛 𝙁𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧/𝙁𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙁𝙞𝙩? 👇🏽 I spent the weekend reflecting on my own experience, first working with investors as a founder and now engaging with founders as an investor. Hopefully, these thoughts will help you do due diligence on your potential investors. Choosing investors is as important as choosing your co-founders. In the early stages, you’ll be spending a lot of time with them, so you need an ally. Founder–funder disputes are common, but divorce is painful in startups. Never prioritise money; always aim for partnership, conviction, and alignment. Here’s a framework I follow when we invest: 𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙋𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙤𝙥𝙝𝙮 Understand how the investor defines success and where your company fits within their strategy. This shows whether they’re patient capital or chasing quick returns, and how much conviction they’ll have when things get tough. It’s about seeing if your long-term view aligns with theirs. 𝘿𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣-𝙈𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙋𝙧𝙤𝙘𝙚𝙨𝙨 You need clarity on how decisions are made, by whom, and how fast. Some funds have deep investment committees, others move on instinct. Knowing this helps you plan your fundraising timeline and avoid surprises. 𝙋𝙤𝙨𝙩-𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙫𝙚𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 Money is easy; partnership isn’t. You need to know whether they’ll be active mentors, passive supporters, or micromanagers. Their level of involvement should match what you actually want, not what they assume you need. 𝙁𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙍𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨𝙝𝙞𝙥𝙨 How investors behave during hard times matters more than when things go well. Ask questions that reveal how they handle conflict, underperformance, or pivots. It shows whether they treat founders as partners or portfolio assets. 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙎𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜 Follow-on strategy and signalling risk can make or break future rounds. Understand how much they can or will support you if things go sideways or skyrocket, and how they behave when they choose not to reinvest. 𝘼𝙡𝙞𝙜𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙑𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 You’re not looking for validation; you’re checking whether they truly understand what you’re building and why it matters. Alignment ensures they’ll have conviction through market cycles and won’t push you towards short-term outcomes. 𝙏𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙨𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝘾𝙪𝙡𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 Strong relationships rely on clear communication. Learn their preferred style, whether structured updates or informal check-ins, and how they react to bad news. Set expectations early for honesty on both sides. 𝙍𝙚𝙥𝙪𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙁𝙞𝙩 Every investor has a reputation among founders and other VCs. Do your backchannel checks. How they handle board tension, layoffs, or exits reveals their true character. You’re assessing fit as much as credibility. I hope this is helpful. If you have any questions or clarifications, comment below. #gew #investors #founders

Do Accelerators improve Success Rates? Leading Venture Capital Accelerators do a great job of getting into the news, and you will regularly see impressive events hosted by Techstars, Y-Combinator, and 500startups for example. In the USA alone there are 160 accelerator programs active today and globally more than 2000. Yet do they actually improve success rates? A new study published by Wharton professors Valentina Assenova and Raphael Amit examined 8580 startup companies in 408 accelerators spread throughout 176 countries between 2013 and 2019. The answer? Yes! "Accelerated startups were 3.4% more likely to raise #venturecapital and raised $1.8 Million more in the first year after graduation from these programs" according to Assenova who elaborated "They also planned to raise $2.64 million more capital, on average, over the next year. Accelerated startups also generated more revenue, hired more full-time employees, and paid for in wages to their employees, on average- indicating they were scaling faster than their peers." Interestingly enough, while most studies to date have focused on Silicon Valley or Boston in the USA for example, this study was global and notes: "This suggests that accelerators aren’t just beneficial for high-tech startups in well-established tech hubs in the United States, but also for other types of ventures in emerging startup ecosystems found in regions such as Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin America, and the Caribbean,” Assenova said. Program Design deeply influences success rates The factors which contributed to success include: Depth or Breadth of knowledge within cohorts Knowledge-Building programs offered by the accelerator Characteristics of the founders The study confirmed: "accelerators that include more training activities, pitching competitions, advice to certain industries, and structured learning sessions tend to improve startup business success rates." Link to the article from Knowledge at Wharton detailing the study published in the Strategic Management Journal here: https://lnkd.in/d8CK9PM3 What is your experience with Accelerator programs? #strategy #leadership

Startup founders: you don't want your funding strategy to "aim for the biggest cheque." Instead, you want it to be a strategic chess move, positioning your company for sustainable growth. In other words: • It should align with your company's stage and needs • It should consider the current economic climate • It should factor in sector-specific trends Or you risk overvaluation and unrealistic expectations that could hinder future growth. Here are 4 steps to craft a funding strategy that sets you up for success: • Understand the current VC landscape in your sector • Consider the benefits of seed or late-stage funding based on your growth phase • Explore corporate venture capital opportunities in your industry • Align your pitch with emerging trends like AI or industry-specific solutions A well-thought-out funding strategy doesn't just secure capital - it lays the foundation for long-term success.