This will allow us to segment our customers based on their preferences. Startups are on a quest to find the customers with the most pain. Those customers are the most likely to be our early adopters, at whom we will target our limited resources.

VC firms often come together in a deal by syndicating, meaning having multiple VC firms participate in an investment round.

We have translated ideas into value creation by identifying customer pain points to be addressed by our better/faster/cheaper solution.

founder/industry fit focuses on the business side. Do we have the right team in place to grow this business? What is our secret sauce? How will the competition react? Is this a space where we can grow quickly? Can we stop copycats?

Here’s what not to pitch: With this investment, we will be able to reach profitability this year and never need any more funding. Red flag! This would demonstrate that you don’t have a clue. This is a bank pitch. They’d love for you to hit profitability right away and pay them back. They don’t care if you go to the moon because they will see none

VCs are skilled at creating a narrative to explain their analysis. In this regard, I will argue that VCs are more like journalists and filmmakers than traditional financiers.

1. the need for cash to grow; and 2) the desire to avoid dilution.

with potential customers, getting their feedback and responding quickly to their needs.

Let me emphasize the word empirical, which means, “based on, concerned with, or verifiable by observation or experience rather than theory or pure logic.”[31]