Put Your Small Business Financing Plan Into The Hands Of Those Who Will Welcome It

It's easy to get rejected when looking for small business financing. In fact, 95% of the proposals put out for funding DON'T GET FINANCED.

Only 5% of businesses looking for small business financing actually get it, whether from angel investors, venture capital or traditional sources.

What do those few know that you don't?

Are their businesses better? Probably not.

Are their financials better? Probably not.

Is their business plan better? Probably not.

Unless you are an experienced entrepreneur, odds are that you are doing what thousands of other entrepreneurs do: you look at "venture capital funding directories" and blindly send out your business plan.

As you have discovered, this just doesn't work.

What the successful companies know better than any others is this: There are very few entities that will finance your company. Put another way:

There are a limited number of ways to fund your company.

Your job is to find the best way.

The truth is that lenders and investors of all kinds NEED YOU. They need new businesses, new ventures, new investment. That is how they make money. Without you, they can't make money.

The catch is that only a few of the thousands of possible lenders/investors want your type of investment.

The trick is to find those few, and as quickly as possible.

You can be part of that pack, or you can distinguish yourself and your company by targeting potential investors that most companies haven't even imagined.

TARGETING VENTURE CAPITAL FOR YOUR SMALL BUSINESS FINANCING

Lots of directories provide general information, and some even provide a type of industry and size of business. But no directory provides the inside scoop on targeting a venture capital or angel investor firm. Here are some of the basics:

Research the dickens out of your potential venture capital firm. YOU choose THEM. Don't wait for Them to choose you -- it won't happen.

Look at other companies in aligning industries. Who is funding them? Start there. If you can get an introduction out of CEOs in the funded firms, great. If not, approach the same investors anyway.

Seriously consider partnering with a large firm. There is a lot more money in large corporations than these corporations would lead you to believe. Go in through a Research or Marketing person -- that stand to win if you company/product comes on board.

Before you ever make contact, make sure you know something about every single person you are likely to talk with. For instance, know what school they went to, or where they sit on boards of directors. Be able to have a real conversation with them.

Anticipate what the investor will specifically want to know about your company ... and deliver it.

All this is something that professional money finders typically do -- and they charge many thousands of dollars to do it.

And it is something that you can do as well.

You will be amazed at how easy it is to construct lists of real potential investors -- investors looking for your kind of business, your size of company, your stage of development, your industry ... investors that want to hear from you.

TARGETING OTHER OPTIONS FOR YOUR SMALL BUSINESS FINANCING

Your investigation could pull up many things that will help you in your search for small business financing. For instance, you may discover that you really aren't looking for venture capital at all. Many, many firms discover exactly that. Be honest with yourself. Is that truly the best option?

Angel investors are increasingly becoming the investors of first choice. They have tremendous flexibility in

what they can offer,
the stage of development, and
terms of investment

The hardest part about angels is that they are simply elusive characters. You may know some and not even know that you know them. When looking for angel investors, check with others in your industry.

And, yes, the SBA is a very viable option for many, many companies looking for small business financing. Funding options range from a few thousand dollars to millions, with all kinds of training and support along the way.

There are a lot of other options for small business financing. Look through the pages of this website for more inspiration. Talk with others. Then take a look around. You will be amazed at what you will discover.

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