Fundraising Communication Tips

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💥

Fundraising in India is a beautiful, brutal dance. After 15 years of knocking on doors, writing proposals, and building relationships in the charity space, I've learned that money follows trust, not just need. And trust is earned in whispers, not shouts. Most fundraisers think it's about the pitch. The perfect slide deck. The heart-wrenching story. The immaculate impact metrics. But that's just the costume you wear to the real party. The truth is messier. More human. More honest. First, nobody cares about your organization. They care about the problem you're solving. Stop talking about your NGO's journey and start talking about the journey of the people you serve. Your founder's story matters less than the story of the girl who can now read because of your work. Second, relationships outlast transactions. I've watched fundraisers chase cheques like they're chasing buses – desperate to catch the next one, forgetting that the real journey happens when you're walking together. The donor who gives you ₹10,000 today could give you ₹10 crores in a decade if you treat them like a partner, not an ATM. Third, most Indian donors don't want innovation. They want reliability. They've seen too many NGOs come and go, too many promises evaporate. They're tired of funding pilots that never take flight. Show them consistency before you show them creativity. Fourth, your finance team is your secret weapon. In a country where trust in institutions is fragile, your ability to account for every rupee isn't just good practice – it's your survival strategy. I've seen brilliant programs collapse because someone couldn't explain where the money went. Not because of corruption, but because of chaos. And finally, the hardest truth: fundraising isn't about money. It's about meaning. People don't give to causes; they give to become the person they want to be. The businessman who funds your education program isn't just building schools – he's rewriting his own story, becoming the hero his childhood self needed. I've sat across from millionaires and watched them cry when they talk about their mothers. I've seen corporate leaders who manage thousands of crores struggle to write a personal cheque for ₹5,000. I've witnessed wealthy donors argue over a ₹500 expense while approving ₹50 lakhs in the same meeting. Because money isn't rational. It's emotional. It's cultural. It's complicated. The fundraisers who thrive in India aren't the ones with the fanciest degrees or the most polished English. They're the ones who understand that in this country, giving is deeply personal, profoundly spiritual, and incredibly relational. So stop treating fundraising like a Western import that needs to be implemented. Start treating it like what it is – a conversation about values that's been happening on this soil for thousands of years. Because when you get it right, you're not just raising funds. You're raising hope.

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.

I’ve secured over $1.2M in funding for my company. But the path has not been what you’d expect. After 3 years of building Chezie, here's our actual fundraising journey: - $20K of our own savings - $275K from grants - $160K from friends/family - $110K from pitch competitions - $100K from accelerators - $470K from VCs - $25K from revenue-based financing Two things most founders miss: 1. Revenue unlocks everything     Without paying customers, we wouldn't have qualified for grants, VC, or loans.      Focus on revenue first and all of the other funding options become available to you.      2. Don't limit your options     Only about a third of our funding came from VCs. Another third was completely equity-free.      Be open to whatever funding source you can get to reach your goals. The reality is that there's no 'right way' to fund your startup. Whether working your day job longer, consulting to get some early revenue, taking loans, or raising from friends and family, do whatever works. The best funding source is the one that keeps your company alive. And sometimes that means taking the path others won't. Build your company your way. What untraditional funding paths have you taken to grow your startup? Share them in the comments! 👇🏾

Fundraising is a skill—one of many that founders need to master. When you're just starting out, you often don't have much to show—no solid metrics, perhaps not even a product yet. You might have a compelling thesis, but what truly excites investors? 𝐈𝐭'𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠. In the earliest stages, the story investors walk away with can be the deciding factor between a successful raise and a failed one. It's about how well you articulate what you're doing and why it matters. Many founders struggle with storytelling, and I understand why. But here's the good news: storytelling is a skill you can develop. Like coding or sales, it improves with practice. At the early stages, your story should capture your vision. Investors want to know: - 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘭𝘦𝘮? - 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘺𝘰𝘶? - 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘯𝘰𝘸? Even when you start showing metrics, don't stop telling your story. Weave those numbers into your narrative. Numbers alone can be dull. What investors really want to see is what those numbers reveal: - 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦. - 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦. - 𝘠𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘶𝘯𝘪𝘲𝘶𝘦 𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘪𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘦𝘵. Investors aren't just looking for good numbers. Don't just list them. They seek metrics that suggest a bigger picture—your capacity to scale, adapt, and lead in your niche. As founders, when you can skilfully blend storytelling with robust metrics, you demonstrate that you truly understand your business.

If you're an entrepreneur seeking capital, you'll know the fundraising process is stressful and time consuming. I raised a small pre-seed back in 2021 within a couple of months but decided not to raise again last year. I've found that the fundraising process is usually always the same though, so I've laid out my step-by-step guide to help you in your investment journey: 1. Build relationships with investors years before you start raising. ➡️ I built my network from scratch by engaging without an ask. 2. Decide to build and launch a venture. Engage with investors that you may be approaching soon. ➡️ Gauge enthusiasm for the space and understand investability. 3. Build prototypes from your own funds. ➡️ Entrepreneurs are risk takers. If you don't like risk, don't be an entrepreneur. 4. Get interest from potential customers to validate your venture need. ➡️ The more the better; but one is better than none. 5. Build your deck and model - iterate, refine and design. ➡️ They are the intro to your business and first impressions matter. Don't waste them. You are in control. 6. Reach out to investors with a deck. ➡️ Give context and explain what you've done and are going to do in depth. But remember investors are time poor and have other businesses chasing their attention. 7. Speak to those that want to speak and thank those that don't. ➡️ Be courteous always. You don't know what's going on in the background. A 'no' today might be a 'yes' tomorrow. 8. Follow up with deep answers to any questions they have. ➡️ Show you have given consideration to their questions and are internalising what they have to say. 9. Thank them, whether they choose to invest or not. Ask if they think there's any other way they could support you. ➡️ Some investors may say no, and others may say not now. But they could add value elsewhere, so make them advocates. 10. Have sub agreement, articles and resolutions ready to go. ➡️ Keeping records and getting your paperwork sorted early is essential. It will save time and money in the future. 11. Take money, issue shares and keep building. ➡️ This is a process, not an event. Keep momentum up and tackle the most important things first. 12. Provide regular updates with asks when needed. ➡️ Investors have an interest in your success. Info is key here: the good, bad and ugly. 13. Treat their money as if it were your own and focus on the goal. ➡️ Be conscious that this is other people's money. Spend wisely, look for returns and measure. 14. You may need to raise again, so burning bridges is self defeating. ➡️ Don't think transactionally. Relationships matter. 15. Fundraising is a means, not an end. ➡️ The goal is not a TechCrunch editorial, it's to have the fuel to build something great. What do you think is the most important step in the fundraising process? Would you add anything else? 💭 #tech #startups #finance #venturecapital #fundraising

There are many funding options beyond raising equity capital (my career actually started in helping companies access non-dilutive funding). When I’m building the funding strategy for founders from scratch, we map out all their liquidity options (not just the obvious ones). Here’s what I’ve seen work for private companies at different stages: 1 - Periodic liquidity mechanisms. There are a few emerging platforms I’m excited about here, which are changing the game for private companies. They offer intermittent trading windows that let early investors and employees access liquidity without forcing an IPO or acquisition. This is massive for retention and cap table management. 2 - Revenue-based financing. For companies with strong recurring revenue, RBF provides capital without equity dilution. Repayments can also adjust to your sales topline, making cash flow management far less painful. 3 - Asset-based lending. If you’ve got inventory, receivables, or equipment on your balance sheet, you can unlock capital against those assets. I’ve seen a lot of founders use it for bridging funding rounds. 4 - Non-dilutive grants. Government programs (such as Innovate UK) and corporate innovation funds provide capital that doesn’t ask for any equity stake. Underutilised,and incredibly valuable for R&D-heavy businesses. Most popular at Pre Seed. 5 - Strategic debt/ venture debt. For companies that have already raised equity and need working capital without further dilution, venture debt can be a tactical bridge to the next milestone. Most often used at Series A & above. Mixing all of the above in addition to raising equity capital can build your solid funding journey from Pre Seed all the way to an IPO. #capitalraising #startupfunding #fundingoptions

The Power of Storytelling in Fundraising Last week, I highlighted a common mistake many founders make when pitching investors: focusing too much on 'what' they are building and 'how' they plan to do it, without effectively communicating the 'why' behind their vision—the essential reason their business truly matters. After years of hearing pitches, one thing stands out: the founders who raise capital most effectively are the ones who can tell a compelling story. When I first met Jack Ma, founder of Alibaba, he painted a clear vision for an e-commerce juggernaut in China—a super-app combining the best aspects of eBay, Amazon, and PayPal. His story made the scale of the opportunity feel real, and his conviction about how to win was infectious. On behalf of Yahoo shareholders, we ended up investing $1 billion for a 40% stake, which ultimately returned $80 billion back to shareholders. A strong story doesn't just grab attention—it explains why you're going after a particular market, and why now is the right time to do it. Investors want to understand what makes this moment different. Whether you're going after a massive existing market or creating something entirely new, your story should make the opportunity feel urgent and inevitable. We're especially excited by founders building new markets in applied AI—particularly when they help customers to hire low-cost “AI workers" in roles where employing humans was previously economically unfeasible It’s also important to explain what pain you're solving and why it matters. Why is this problem big, and why haven’t others solved it? If you can make that case well, it signals that you know your customer deeply and understand how to stand out. Just as important is showing your wedge—how you’re going to break into the market and start winning customers. It’s one thing to have a big vision; it’s another to show how you’ll get there. The most investable stories make that leap feel believable. Especially in applied AI, where product barriers have dropped, having a clear go-to-market plan is critical. Execution now matters more than ever. Too often, founders also miss the chance to explain why now is the right moment to build their company. The best pitches point to real-world shifts—new technology, customer behaviour, regulation, or distribution changes—that open up the opportunity today. A strong “why now” creates urgency. It gives us a reason to act. When a founder can tell a great story, investors don’t just remember the pitch—we remember the problem, the ambition, and the person behind it. A good narrative makes it easier for us to back you, talk about you, and bring others on board. Ultimately, the founders who clearly communicate a compelling 'why' don’t just raise capital—they inspire confidence, attract talent, and build meaningful, lasting companies.

I see data and bullet points in 90% of startup pitches. But the founders who actually get funded? They tell stories. I've found that the difference between good ideas and funded ideas often comes down to storytelling. Here's what the science says about why storytelling matters: 1. Stories activate more of your brain When we hear bullet points and data: • Only language processing areas activate   • We struggle to create meaning • We each interpret differently When we hear stories: → Multiple brain regions light up → We mentally simulate the experience → We connect emotionally to the message As Leo Widrich, a renowned writer explains: "When we hear a story, not only are the language processing parts in our brain activated, but any other area in our brain that we would use when experiencing the events of the story are, too." 2. Stories trigger powerful brain chemistry The research is clear: → Cortisol helps form memories → Dopamine keeps us engaged → Oxytocin builds empathy and connection This cocktail of chemicals means stories don't just engage - they stick. 3. Stories let us practice before we perform According to Lisa Cron, author of *Wired for Story*: "Stories allow us to experience the world before we actually have to experience it." For startups, this means: • Customers can imagine using your product • Teams can visualise success • Investors can see the future you're building 4. Stories create shared understanding Princeton neuroscientist Uri Hasson found that "a story is the only way to activate parts in the brain so that a listener turns the story into their own idea and experience." This is the holy grail for startups - getting others to see your vision as their own. The real magic happens when you build storytelling into your company culture: → Sales pitches that resonate → Onboarding that inspires → Customer testimonials that convert As Lani Peterson, psychologist and professional storyteller puts it: "By sharing and listening to each other's stories, we all get a little bit closer to what's true." The most successful founders I work with don't just have great data. They have great stories. What story is your startup telling? Share below 👇 Inspiration from HBR: The Science Behind the Art of Story Telling ♻️ Found this helpful? Repost to share with your network. ⚡ Want more content like this? Hit follow Maya Moufarek.

Stop pitching, start listening. I lost a $250K gift because I walked into a meeting ready to close. The donor was ready to talk. I was ready to perform. Deck loaded. Budget tight. Impact projections color-coded. I thought this was professionalism. It was just... transactional. Fifteen minutes in I could feel it. The shift. They went polite but distant. "We'll think about it." Never heard from them again. What I figured out: you're not here to convince anyone. You're here to find out what they already care about, then show them how your work connects to that. That donor didn't need a pitch deck. They needed someone to listen. So I rebuilt my whole approach. First meeting? I ask questions and listen. That's it. Second meeting? I share stories, not spreadsheets. Third meeting? I invite them to experience the work firsthand. Fourth meeting? They tell me what they want to fund. The ask becomes a formality. You're already partners by then. My close rate went from 40% to 85%. Not because I got better at selling... but because I stopped trying to sell. People don't fund organizations. They fund visions they co-created with you. What's a mistake that completely rewired how you approach your work? Photo:  Having a deep conversation with Reggie Love, Obama's right-hand man. #DonorRelations #FundraisingStrategy #NonprofitLeadership #ListeningFirst #PhilanthropyTips