VC Minute – quick advice to help startup founders fundraise better.
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Rich Maloy
This has been a great week and I’ve really enjoyed listening to Kat and hearing her fundraising advice.
For today’s episode, we’ll finish up with two final thoughts that are incredibly powerful, but just weren’t long enough to be their own episodes. Here they are.
Kat Weaver
For female founders, 2% of women ever get venture capital and 2% of women ever reach a million dollars.
The way that women and underrepresented founders position themselves has to be different and a lot stronger in terms of the facts and traction versus this big vision. And that’s actually been proven in Harvard case studies when underrepresented founder, female founders, are pitching for venture capital.
There was this one woman, her quote was, and I can’t think of who it was to credit her appropriately but, “men get funded on potential and women get funded on proof.”
Rich Maloy
I hadn’t heard that quote before, but it moved me so deeply. It bears repeating. Here it is again.
Kat Weaver
Men get funded on potential and women get funded on proof.
To wrap things up for, for any founder struggling out there during the fundraising process, we advise that you actually go after grants at the same time that you’re fundraising. No matter your stage and journey there are actually so many grants available right now.
Shout out to the Guilty Grape girls because we just helped them win an $85,000 grant in a weekend at the same time that they were fundraising. By Googling based on your stage, industry, there are so many out there to take advantage of, and it might only take you an hour or so to apply.
And funds range anywhere from a thousand dollars to $50,000 even a hundred thousand dollars. If you’re struggling, there’s a whole nother avenue of getting even non-dilutive cash, which is great for any founder at any stage.
Rich Maloy
I absolutely agree with that point. And I’m a huge fan of SBIR and STTR, America’s Seed Fund. They put more than $4 billion of capital to work per year. You can find more at sbir.gov. And like Kat said, there are other grants that are available, you just have to search for them.
Thank you so much for being on the show. Where can people find you?
Kat Weaver
People can reach me either on LinkedIn at Kat Weaver, k a t w e a v e r, or you can apply for our program at Powertopitch.com. And thanks so much Rich again for having me.
Rich Maloy
That was amazing. What did you think about our first guest on VC Minute? Hit me up on LinkedIn and let me know. Thanks, and have a great weekend.
About Power To Pitch
Power To Pitch offers a virtual Course & Community, to help pre-seed to seed stage founders go from confused & frustrated about pitching to confident & prepared so they can concisely talk about what they do in order to take advantage of funding opportunities. We help founders create a winning pitch, deck, and fundraising strategy and directly match them with investors in their industry. Apply here: https://www.powertopitch.com/apply
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