You have decided that you will develop your own business. Alone or in a team of like-minded people, you continuously improve your business idea, study the market, and look at possible competitors. And the moment inevitably comes when you understand what initial investment your project requires. Investments at the start may differ significantly, but in ninety-five percent of cases, a beginning businessman does not have the required amount of available funds. The way out of this situation is to find an investor for the business.

In this article we will talk about:

• what preparation needs to be done before launching your project on the investment market;
• where to find an investor;
• how to interest an investor in your project;

• consider forms of investment cooperation;
• Let's talk about the mandatory clauses of the investment agreement;
• let's be inspired by the experience of successful startups and look at their working ideas

So let's get started.

First, you must clearly understand your business idea and its accompanying business mission. If you yourself cannot formulate how exactly your future product or service differs from those existing on the market, do not expect that an investor will be interested in your idea.

Example of a bad business idea presentation: opening of a private kindergarten in one of the cities of the Moscow region.

An example of a good business idea presentation: opening a private kindergarten for 100 places in the village of Nakhabino, Moscow region, in order to satisfy the increased demand for kindergartens in the absence of supply.

Answer your questions honestly, preferably in writing.:

1. Why do I think that my future product/service is better than what is already on the market?
2. Which target audience might he be interested?
3. How popular will my product/service be?
4. How do I plan to organize the production of goods/services? Here it would be appropriate to briefly describe the technological process.

At the meeting with you, the investor will ask these questions, so you must be 100% sure of the answers. Also, detailed answers to the questions described above will contain a business plan, with which you will go to the investor for a presentation of the project.

Second, you need a well-written, workable business plan. There is a lot of information on writing business plans both on the Internet and in specialized literature. You just need to study this issue and follow the recommended sections when writing. If you do not have the time or skills to write such documents, you can always turn to professionals for help. There is a huge selection of business plan writing services on the Internet. But!

A good business plan is not a beautifully written document or professionally presented information about the market and product. This is, first of all, a detailed description of your idea and evidence that the idea will be profitable. By the way, we talked about how to write a business plan in one of them.

Whether you write it yourself or delegate the writing of a business plan, you must know by heart and be confident in every proposal, and especially in the technological and financial part. Be prepared for the fact that every statement you make will be questioned by the investor.

Investors are primarily interested in:

1. The amount of investment you are applying for, as well as what share the investment will occupy in the total amount of capital investment in the project.
2. Profitable interest rate on investments. The rate on risk-free and low-risk investments (deposits, bonds, reliable shares) tends to 14-15% per annum, so you should offer a higher rate.
3. Payback period is the period in months during which the profits from the business will cover the initially incurred costs.
4. Project risks. The startup is a leader among risky capital investments. Write honestly about all the risks; experienced investors know about them anyway.

Indicators that must be present on title page business plan:

1. Amount of investment.
2. Profitable interest rate.
3. Payback period.

If the investor is not satisfied with the above indicators, he will not look at the rest of the information. Put yourself in his shoes. He gives his money, earned with blood and sweat. What is he waiting for? Innovation? Social significance? ARRIVED. Everything else interests him insofar as. So give him a profit.

The third point in preparing for a meeting with an investor will be creating a presentation of your business project. Whether it will be a full-fledged presentation in Power Point, a printed album, or a set of sheets with key figures, tables, images is up to you. It all depends on the scale of the spartap and the requirements of the investor you contact. The main thing is your ability to convincingly present the project using prepared materials. Remember, the main thing is your prepared speech and charisma, and then a beautifully designed presentation. Get the investor interested, give him something to think about, and “infect” him with your idea.

When the preparation is completed, you can begin the search.

Where to find an investor?

Credit organizations

The most obvious solution for a novice businessman is to contact a bank. Many, many aspiring entrepreneurs took out so-called business development loans or even consumer loans and successfully developed their business. But banks want to invest money only in reliable projects and receive a good interest income.

If you choose this path of searching for investments, we recommend contacting a bank where you have an account and/or have a positive credit history. If there are none, contact large banks with a well-known name, avoid microfinance organizations.

A list of the most interesting business loan offers to date is given in the table.

Table 1. Business loans in Russian banks

Bank	Loan name	Sum	Term	Interest rate	Security
Banca Intesa	"Costs Down"	from 3 million rubles	1 year and 1 month - 10 years	from 12.5%	required
Ural FD	"Business Mortgage"	500 thousand rubles - 14.5 million rubles.	6 months - 10 years	13-13,5%	real estate
Severgazbank	"Modernization"	500 thousand rubles - 5 million rubles.	1-5 years	9,9-13,5%	required
Rosbank	"Commercial mortgage"	1 million rubles - 100 million rubles.	3 months - 7 years	12,22-13,76%	required

A list of interesting consumer loans is given in Table 2.

Table 2. Consumer loans, which can be used as an investment for business.

Bank	Loan name	Sum	Term	Interest rate	Security
Sberbank of Russia	Consumer secured by real estate	up to 10 million rubles	up to 20 years	12,50%	required
VTB Bank of Moscow	Cash	up to 3 million rubles	up to 60 months	from 14.90%	Not required, proof of income required
Housing Finance Bank	Universal	up to 8 million rubles	up to 20 years	12,89%	required
Gazprombank	Secured by real estate	up to 30 million rubles	up to 15 years	12,70%	required

Pros: high probability of receiving funds if all documents and security are provided, transparent and verified scheme for raising funds.

Minuses: high interest rate, security and confirmation of income, guarantees of third parties or organizations are almost always required.

Private investors, business angels, crowdinvesting

If the option of turning to a bank seems too “expensive” to you (and it is), or you do not want to provide the bank with your apartment as collateral, you should take a closer look at private investors and so-called “business angels”. Private investors are most often people who have already earned enough money from their business. And now they invest it in other businesses and receive passive income. In addition to investments, business angels provide expert support to young businesses, can introduce you to certain business circles, advise working business models, and suggest ways to optimize your business.

Type in the search engine the words “ private investor", "business angel" and find more than a million offers from potential investors. Among the proposals there will be investment exchanges, the most famous of which are:

• start2up
• EASTWESTGROUP
• investorov.net
• business-platform
• SBAR (Russian business angel community)

However, do not create vain illusions that by placing an ad describing your project, you will receive hundreds of offers from potential investors. You will have to write letters and call yourself, and more than once. After sending a hundred applications, you may receive only three to five responses. .

Beware of scammers, of which there are a sufficient number on the Internet. Never deposit money for anything, under any pretext. And read the contract carefully.

Register on forums for professional communication of TOP managers, such as E-xecutive and Up-pro. Reputable employees of large companies communicate on them. Available financial resources They have it, but they don’t have the time to develop their own business. Good opportunity for you to express yourself.

Another interesting subtype of private investment is crowdfunding and crowdinvesting projects.

The term " crowdfunding" comes from the English words "crowd" - crowd and "funding" - financing, provision. It is clear that we're talking about about collective fundraising for a project. This can be either a commercial endeavor or a charity event. Crowdinvesting- This is also a collective fundraiser, but Spartapas and commercial ventures are already becoming the object of investment. Investors expect profit from such investments.

Crowdfunding is an interesting option for an interesting idea

Both types are relatively new in the world of investing and dynamically developing. True, to successfully search for a group of unrelated investors on the Internet, your project must be either very bright or very modern and trendy. The proposal should “catch” the eye. High technology, IT, projects with a social impact, with a creative component, etc. are suitable. And you are unlikely to receive large investments (more than 1 million rubles), since mainly young beginning investors with a bit of adventurism, but without large funds, register on such sites.

Take a look at Russian crowdfunding sites:

• Planeta.ru;
• BoomStarter;
• Simex;
• Crowdsourcing.ru.

It is worth noting that your relatives and friends may also turn out to be investors for your project. But you shouldn’t take such investments carelessly. Make preliminary preparations for a meeting with a loved one in the same way as if you were presenting a project to an unfamiliar investor.

Pros: private investors require fewer documents and often provide money without collateral; they can help a business with experience and connections; for small, ambitious projects, investments are found quickly.

Minuses: the target income interest rate is often higher than in banks, the risk of falling for scammers is high.

Video - Attracting investments

In this video, Oleg Karnaukh, founder of the Smart Business project, says:

• at what stage does a small business need investment,
• what arguments to get for a conversation with an investor
• how to remain the owner of your business
• how to scale a business.

Investment venture funds

Let's move on to the most difficult, but also the most interesting ways to attract investment.

First, let’s define what a “venture fund” is.

Venture fund comes from the English word “venture” - an adventure, a bold undertaking, a risky undertaking. Such funds invest money with a high degree of risk, but also with great profit. 80% of venture capital investments depreciate in value, but 20% bring such a profit that it is several times higher than the costs.

If your future business does not relate to:

• high-tech sector,
• IT and telecommunications,
• healthcare,
• Internet and e-commerce,

You can safely skip this paragraph of the article and move on to the next one.

For the remaining ones, we reveal the work scheme of venture funds. The fund's team consists of experienced financiers who deal mainly with high-risk investments. All applications go through several stages of consideration.

Stage 1. Review of submitted applications. The business plan and other documents are checked for correctness of writing, compliance with the fund’s policies, and profitability. 90% of applications do not pass this stage.

Stage 2. Conducting research in the field of competitiveness of a new product, financial efficiency of a future business, and management competence. 9% of applications do not pass this stage.

Stage 3. Negotiating and concluding a contract. 1% of those who apply become the owners of the required amount for business development.

We recommend applying to venture funds and taking an active interest in new venture projects. Even if your application is rejected at the first stage, this is not a reason to stop, but an opportunity to analyze your mistakes and submit the documents again. In fact, this is a free master class on attracting investments from experienced investors.

Table 3 lists the largest venture funds operating in Russia.

Table 3. Large Russian venture funds

Fund name	Investment area	Average investment amounts	Expected share in the company
Runa Capital	IT, mobile technologies	$3 million	20 - 40%
ABRT	Technological projects, internet	From $1 million	30 - 35%
e.ventures	IT, Internet	Up to $10 million	30 - 35%
RVC (Seed Investment Fund)	Science and technology, precision technologies	Not defined, investments only with a partner	25%
Russian Ventures	Internet, services	$35 – 500 thousand	15-20%

You must understand that if you want to make a profit from your project, then it must at least bring 40-45% profitability, because you will give 30-35% to the vendor. Are you ready for this challenge?

Pros: the ability to find funds at the initial stage, without collateral; The very concept of venture investment implies that the investor may lose money if the project fails.

Minuses: not suitable for all projects, long and complex competition for obtaining funds, high investor share in the company.

Video – Conference of the Foundation for the Development of Innovation and Initiatives

After watching this video, you will learn how to bring an IT startup to the international market venture capital. And also how, where and at what rate to ask for money for innovation

Grants and subsidies

The most desirable type of attracting investment for any beginning businessman is, of course, a grant or subsidy. After all, you don’t have to give them away! Or it is necessary, but after a certain period and without interest. Therefore, those wishing to receive such financial assistance from outside are a dime a dozen. However, in order to qualify for a grant or subsidy, your business project must bring not only profit to you, but also benefit to society. Only projects with a social impact receive the attention of non-profit foundations.

Funds that provide support to new and small businesses are divided into state and non-state.

Target areas subsidized by government grants:

• Agriculture;
• Innovative technologies;
• Education;
• Advertising and Marketing;
• Tourism;
• Healthcare;
• Production of goods for export.

Non-state funds subsidize the following industries:

• Agriculture;
• Innovative production;
• IT and telecommunications;
• Internet trading;
• Healthcare;
• Social business;
• Creation.

Let's look at the most interesting measures of state and non-state support for small and new businesses.

Pros: Grants received do not need to be repaid; subsidies are given either on a non-refundable basis or without interest.

Minuses: This type of financing is not available for all projects; you will need to regularly report for the money received.

The investor has invited you to a meeting. What's next?

Armed with a business plan and project presentation, you rush to negotiations. At this stage, the main task for you is to talk about your business idea as convincingly as possible. And sell it for as much as possible.

Meeting with an investor is the most important step

Yes, yes, that's not a typo. During negotiations, you sell your business idea and your efforts to implement it, and in exchange you receive money at a rate of return that suits both you and the investor.

Negotiations are by no means a friendly meeting, but a kind of battle with an investor for future profits, so remember a few important rules.

1. If possible, carefully study the bank, fund or person you are approaching for money. What businesses does he invest in? How does he feel about risk in investing? What goals does he pursue? Use the information received in negotiations
2. Always focus on the benefit for the investor, not on your financial goals
3. Prepare a rough structure for the meeting and think through answers to possible questions.
4. During negotiations, write down all key points, otherwise important information It may then simply fall out of your attention.
5. Be flexible, consider investor offers
6. At the end of the meeting, write down all agreements reached. Prepare supporting documents together.

One of the important topics of negotiations with an investor will be the choice of investment form. There are two such forms for small businesses: lending and buying out a share in the business. Let us consider in Table 4 the comparative characteristics of the two forms and determine the pros and cons of each of them.

Table 4. Characteristics of various forms of investment

Indicators	Lending	Buying out a share in a business
Return on investment	Need to return	No need to return
Revenue part	Interest on the amount of debt	Percentage of business profit
Own	You remain completely the owner of the business	Part of the business becomes the property of the investor
Making decisions	The lender does not influence your decision-making	The investor influences decision making, the level of influence is determined by the investor’s share in the business
Risks	In case of business insolvency, the creditor bears no or minimal risks	The investor bears the risks together with you in proportion to the share in the business
pros	You remain the owner of your business and can, after repaying the loan, take all the profit earned for yourself	You share responsibility for the success of the business with the investor. No profit - no payments to the investor
Minuses	If a business experiences financial difficulties, the loan will need to be repaid first	Any more or less important decision must be discussed with the investor

The final stage of negotiations with a potential investor will be the conclusion of an investment agreement. Most often, you will be offered an agreement developed by the investor and, accordingly, focused on his interests.

Read all clauses of the contract carefully and ask clarifying questions. Feel free to make corrections. It’s better to show the contract to a lawyer to avoid pitfalls.

Video - Master class on finding investments

Look at the secrets of finding a development investor from Sergei Gribov. At the master class, he talks about the entire practice of receiving investments, based on his fifteen years of experience in creating startups in countries such as Israel, America and Russia.

Who did it?

Yes, attracting investment in a young, developing business is not easy. Yes, in exchange for the funds received, you will have to give away part of the future profit. But who will stop it?

See how inexperienced aspiring businessmen like you achieved success. Do you see any familiar companies among them?

Max Levchin, founder of the company PayPal, attended Champaign College with a degree in communications security. He didn’t even think about creating a world-famous online payment system, but while still in college, he became the creator of three companies in the field information technologies. True, none of them achieved success. Then he had such a bright business idea that he dropped out of school and moved to Silicon Valley to bring it to life in the most suitable place for this.

PayPal is famous payment system, developed thanks to a well-formulated idea

In the summer of 1998, he was living in a friend's apartment in Silicon Valley, without funds, without certain prospects. One day Levchin went to a lecture at Stanford University. Peter Thiel was reading it, and Levchin wanted to take a look at the man about whom he had heard so much. After the speech, Max approached him to tell him about his idea and ask for expert advice. Til listened to the young man with interest and invited him to a business breakfast.

Levchin described his idea to Til, and he offered to implement it by investing some money. It turned out that Peter Thiel ran a hedge fund.

Yahoo! began as a site where two Stanford University graduate students, David Filo and Jerry Yang, collected web links to documents on various topics. Passionate about their idea, the students added new links to the catalog every day, and soon the catalog website became popular. At the end of 1994, Young and Philo decided to create their own website commercial organization and asked Tim Brady to write a business plan. Brady was in his senior year at the time and therefore turned the business plan into Yahoo! graduation project.

At the 1995 San Jose Electronics Show, Yahoo! placed its stand. There was not a single Internet project among the event participants, so the Yahoo! investors noticed. A few weeks after the exhibition, the students found funding for their company and moved into a real office (they had previously worked in a trailer on the institute's campus). The venture fund Sequoia Capital acted as an investor and managed to receive $1 million as an initial investment

But this is America, you say. Such ideas are born there, such capital circulates there, you say. And you will be wrong. Here are examples from Russian reality.

The founders of a large online labor exchange, Denis Kutergin and Alexey Gidirim, worked for a long time without funding, seeking own funds. The breakthrough came in December 2010, when YouDo entered the top ten Internet projects of the Web Ready competition. Within a few months after this, the company was assigned an investment attractiveness index of “A” in the StartupIndex rating. In 2013, she won a competition announced by the Pavel Durov and Yuri Milner Foundation and received $1 million for development.

In 2016, Alexey Moiseenkov, an employee of My.com (a subsidiary of the famous Mail.Ru Group) developed an application for smartphones Prisma, allowing ordinary users to create photographs in the style of Van Gogh, Munch, Marc Chagall and other famous artists. Alexey skillfully found funding for his project. He showed the idea to the Deputy General Director of Mail.Ru Group, who became interested in the project and introduced Alexey to the founders of the Gagarin Capital fund and private investors. Today Moiseenkov is a dollar millionaire. Prisma is not Alexey’s first startup; before becoming a successful startuper, he managed to hit a lot of bad points for himself.

Prisma - an application for creating a picture from a photograph using neural networks

As you can see, it is quite possible to get investment, but it requires persistence. And a little luck.

Conclusion

In conclusion, we note that you do not have to concentrate on any one way to attract money to your business. You are a generator of business ideas, so be creative to the end! You can, for example, receive a subsidy for business development from the state, become a resident of one of the business incubators, invest your funds and attract friends, making them business partners, and make up for the lack of funds with a bank loan. And this is just one of the options.

Take action, don't give up and may the force be with you.

No enterprise can operate without investment, and very often budding entrepreneurs have a great idea, but do not have the funds to implement it. In this article we will talk about where to find an investor for a business and look at 14 important things that you should definitely know before you start looking for an investor.

We are looking for entrepreneurs in need of investment!
We are looking for entrepreneurs who want to open their own business and need investment! Our base includes more than 10,000 investors around the world who regularly invest in new projects.

All you need to do is describe your idea and leave your contact information. We will send out a newsletter to our investor base and if someone is interested in your project, we will contact you in 2-3 days.

We have already found more than 800 investors for small businesses and this number continues to grow every day. Send us your ideas, regardless of whether you want to open an ordinary hairdressing salon or a high-tech IT startup.

It doesn't matter what stage your project is at. Even if it is too crude and is only in the planning stage, then write anyway, we will help you create a financial plan and find an investor.

Thank you for submitting your application!

If your idea is of interest to one of the 10,000 investors, we will contact you as soon as possible.

14 Important things that will help you find an investor

First, we want to look at the 14 most important things that you should definitely know about in order to find an investor for your business. Without knowing these basics, any method of finding third-party investments will not work for you, so be sure to familiarize yourself with them.

1. I have a brilliant idea and I won’t tell anyone about it!

A very common mistake that very green entrepreneurs make is hiding their ideas. They think that they have come up with a brilliant idea that will bring in millions of rubles and do not tell it to anyone because they are afraid that someone will steal it and implement it faster.

There are situations that reach the point of absurdity, when at a meeting with an investor, entrepreneurs do not fully talk about their idea, hiding some points and repeating only that it is brilliant and will bring a lot of money. Of course, investors will not work with such people.

Let's figure out where ideas generally come from and why they seem profitable to us.

The business idea itself appears in our head based on life experience. If you are a motorist, love your cars, spend all your free time in the garage, then most likely the idea will arise in your head to open a business related to cars, and not to create a coworking space. The same thing happens on the other side, 90% of people will consider your idea bad because they have a different life experience, your field will be uninteresting to them, and your business plan will seem completely crazy.

The business idea itself is nothing, no matter how brilliant it may be. The implementation of this idea is important, because creating a business is much more difficult than just coming up with it in your head.

Don't hide your business idea and try to share it with everyone because:

• 90% they won't steal it because they won't like it
• 9% they won’t steal it because they won’t be able to sell it
• 1% wants to cooperate with you or invest money in your project

2. Everyone sees your business plan differently.

The problem that haunts almost all enthusiastic entrepreneurs is the wrong vision of their idea.

A simple example, you have an idea, you briefly describe it because you’ve read a lot useful tips, that you need to attract the investor’s attention in 5 minutes, but you don’t have a detailed description of your business. As a result, you attract the attention of an investor, he understands that the idea is too crude, and everything else is in your head.

Understand that in the same idea you can see a potential multimillion-dollar business and, conversely, a project awaiting failure. If you see success in your project, your main task is to make sure that a potential investor sees it too.

That is why during, for example, the presentation of your project, all slides should be aimed at convincing the investor of the success of the business. There is no need to talk about what color the paint on the office walls will be. Roughly speaking, there is no need to focus on things that cannot convince the investor of the profitability of your project.

3. Why do you really need an investor?

Now we will not talk about all entrepreneurs, so you should not take the information received personally.

Some entrepreneurs are looking for a business partner and share with him the amount of initial investment, profit, work and one more very important thing - risks. When you find someone to invest money with you in your business, you are also sharing the risk. In other words, you avoid responsibility and look for someone who will solve your problems.

If you were 100% confident in your business idea, you would be able to find money on your own: sell a car, take out a loan, save up, sell an apartment, etc. But you are looking for an investor, which means that you yourself are not sure that your idea will work. And if you work with a partner who also invests time and money in your business, then you will not only be to blame for the losses.

When entering into the business of a partner, risks are always shared, but it is important that you have the greatest confidence in the project.

4. Investor assistant

There are two options for working with an investor:

• The investor does not understand at all what you are doing and simply invests money in you
• The investor understands the niche better than you

When you yourself do not yet have much experience in business, cooperation with an investor who will simply invest several million in you is more likely to become a failure for both of you. The simplest example, a young businessman decided to open a business on the Internet and his investor was a man who had been involved in car services and car trading all his life; he doesn’t understand anything about the Internet at all and has difficulty recovering the Odnoklassniki password. Of course, such cooperation will not be successful. A novice entrepreneur himself does not yet fully understand what to do and does many things for the first time, while an experienced one simply cannot give any advice, because he understands little about the niche.

5. You need a business plan

Regardless of whether you are looking for an investor for an existing enterprise or a business from scratch, you will need a business plan in any case. Many people are scared by this word and it seems to them that a business plan is some kind of complicated thing that you are not able to do on your own.

In fact, everything is much simpler, a business plan in its idea resembles a regular course work that we wrote at the university, and it should include the following paragraphs:

• Business overview
• Test idea description
• Detailed description of the service or product
• Market analysis
• Production plan
• Sales plan
• Financial plan
• Business sensitivity
• Regulatory information

Nothing else is needed. By drawing up a business plan yourself, you will delve even deeper into the niche and, perhaps, this will lead to some positive consequences.

The most important thing is not to lie even a little, for example, about market volume. Firstly, the investor may notice that you are embellishing everything, and secondly, even in your work, the real numbers will not coincide with reality. Both the first and second situations will not lead to anything good.

6. Your experience

A very important thing that all investors look at is your experience. There are 3 types of experience:

• In life— the likelihood that someone will invest money in a person who has just graduated from school is extremely small. Of course, there are also situations when an 18-year-old guy finds investors and by the age of 25 becomes a millionaire, when others are just taking their first steps. Let's be realistic, this option is extremely rare and if you are 18 years old, we recommend that you continue to get an education and at the same time try to create your own business.
• In a niche — good option will be if you have some experience in the niche in which you want to open a business. For example, you worked as a dance teacher for 10 years and decided to open your own dance school. You have a good understanding of the niche and this is a big advantage.
• In business- if you have already tried to create your own business, then this is very good. Some people hide their previous projects because they were unsuccessful. Should not be doing that. Good investor is well aware that the more failures you have, the more experience you have and the more likely the new project will be successful.

7. Start a business from scratch

It is much easier to find an investor in an existing business than to get someone to invest money in your business plan, so try to start your own business.

It is not necessary to provide a large number of services or products. It is important to ensure that the enterprise does not operate at a loss. Of course, starting from scratch is quite difficult, but if you think about it, you can do it in any niche.

For example, in the case of a hairdresser, you can rent an office for a few hours, hire one employee and share the profit with him, and look for clients via the Internet.

Another advantage will be that by opening a business with minimal investment, in the future you will be able to find ways of development without an investor.

8. Same values

We strongly discourage cooperation with investors whose life values ​​are very different from yours. In the early stages of work, it is quite possible that everything will be fine for you, but in the long run this will lead to trouble.

Since you look at life too differently, you will solve problems in business differently. Problems in business appear every day, and if you constantly argue about how best to solve it, this will lead to a loss in speed, which is very bad for any business. It will be a complete disaster if at the very start you divide everything 50/50 and do not decide who will make the final decision in disputes.

Therefore, to save your time and nerves, we recommend looking for investors who are looking in the same direction as you.

9. 31, 62 or 93 meetings per month

Finding an investor for your business is difficult, and even more difficult is to do it while sitting at home on the couch in front of the TV. This point is perhaps the most important - you must systematize your search for an investor.

Set your goals correctly. Finding an investor is not the right goal. Having 186 meetings in 3 months is the right goal.

You can start with something simple. Conduct 4 meetings with a potential investor per month, and then gradually increase this number.

Understand this: the more meetings you have, the more likely it is that one of them will be successful and you will finally find an investor.

If you think that after 10-30 meetings you will find a partner, then we hasten to upset you with the realities of life. Only after 100-400 meetings you will find an investor, this number can be even higher. Also, do not forget that finding a person who agrees to meet with you and discuss your business idea is also not so easy, but we will talk about where to look for investors a little later.

10. What should the presentation be like?

Presentations are a creative thing. When creating them, there is a concept of “don’t overdo it” and many people don’t understand it at all, so below is a list of things that you don’t need to do at all:

• Animation
• Large blocks of text- this is not a presentation for school work, so there should not be a large amount of text at all.
• Design- if you are not a professional designer, then just forget about design and make the presentation convenient.

The main goal of the presentation is to prove that your business will become successful, so each of its slides should be aimed, first of all, at this. If a slide simply describes some aspect of your business, but does not contribute to a positive investor decision, then we reject it. Everything should be aimed at one goal - receiving money from the investor.

11. What questions do all investors ask?

Coming to a meeting unprepared can be equated to not showing up to the meeting at all. Therefore, we recommend that you prepare for questions so that in the unexpected this moment don't get stuck.

The most frequently asked questions from investors at the meeting:

• Who believes in your success?
• Who inspires you?
• What tools do you use to track the market?
• Tell us the history of using your product?
• Is it possible to reduce costs?
• What are the main characteristics of your target audience?
• What will the market look like in 5 years?
• What failures have you had and what did you learn from them?
• Have you ever been fired?

We sorted out the issues, great! But an investor can issue the following phrases:

• I forgot what you do— some people are offended by this phrase; the investor came to the meeting unprepared and, as a result, the dialogue goes in the wrong direction. Take this calmly, such people have a huge number of meetings, letters, messages, etc. every day. He really might have forgotten what you do.
• I don't understand what the idea is— try to chew and explain the idea as simply as possible. At the first stages, you shouldn’t overload a person with some unnecessary terms, which you should learn about a little later.
• You are not solving the real problems of the population- the investor considers your project unsuccessful, you need to convince him by describing the large volume of the market, the number of potential buyers and approximate revenue.
• Not sure you can handle this— convince that you have experience, a team and are 100% likely to cope with the assigned tasks.
• I doubt I can afford it- investors say this phrase with a degree of regret. He likes your project, but at the moment he or his money is busy working on something else.

12. Think about the terms of cooperation in advance

You need money for business - this is understandable, but do not forget that you will receive it under certain conditions. Think in advance about what conditions will be categorically unacceptable, satisfactory and best for you.

Below are options for cooperation with a partner.

Cooperation format	Investments	Profit
Equal contribution to business work	50/50	50/50
The first partner has more experience or works harder	40/60 or 50/50	50/50 or 60/40
The first one works more and has more experience	35/65 or 50/50	50/50 or 65/35
Same experience, but the first one works more than the second one	70/30	70/30
The first one has less experience, but works more	70/30	60/40
The first one has little experience, but works a lot. The second one has a lot of experience	80/20	60/40

In addition, you need to think about the moment of exiting the business. For example, some niches are simply unworkable without a partner, so if one goes out of business, they sell the entire enterprise and split the profits. There can be many situations, but the moment of exit must be thought through.

13. Who will an investor never cooperate with?

There is a list of people with whom a potential investor would never want to cooperate, and it does not include people with an old suit that has seen more than one meeting. It's more about your qualities than your appearance.

What investors don't like:

• Unsure- if you yourself are not 100% confident in your idea, then this will definitely lead to failure.
• Slow- speed in business is a very important thing, if you are slow, stop being so.
• Inexperienced- this point is not the most important, but still, the more experience you have, the better.
• Irresponsible— there’s nothing even to describe here. If you want to open a business, you must be prepared for enormous responsibility.
• Satisfied- we are talking about people who do not strive for a good life, but are content with what they have.
• whining- if you talk about problems every five minutes, about how bad everything is in his life, in the country, in the world, then they are unlikely to want to work with you.

14. The investor does not invest money in the business!

This moment is one of the most important. Understand that an investor does not invest his money in a business, he invests it in people. If he sees you as an accepted interlocutor, close in spirit, with whom he would like to have a common cause, then he will be more likely to invest in your startup.

Even if they come to him with a brilliant idea for investment and in the future it will bring millions of dollars, the investor still will not work with a person he does not like.

Therefore, if you want to find an investor, then in addition to working on your business idea, you also need to work on the art of communicating with people.

18 ways to find investors

Finally, we have come to the most interesting part and will analyze 18 ideas on where to find an investor for a business. When using these methods, do not forget about the 14 things that were discussed earlier.

Method 1: igotmoney service

The first thing we want to recommend to you is that it will help you find an investor for your small business. We have at our disposal a database of more than 10,000 investors from Russia and many foreign countries. All you need to do is describe your business idea and leave your contact information. Then we will send out a mailing to our database and connect you with investors who are interested in your project.

At the moment, we have already managed to find more than 800 investors for beginning entrepreneurs and this number continues to grow rapidly.

The service is absolutely free!

Method 2: Incubators

Business incubators are government organizations that support small businesses in Russia. The advantage is that you can get large investments, large discounts on office rent, but the disadvantage is high taxes, which pay for the work of such incubators.

After you choose a particular incubator, you must send your application there and then prove the viability of your idea using a business plan.

Method 3: Crowdfunding

Crowdfunding platforms will help you find an investor for your startup, especially if it is unusual and interesting.

The point here is that you describe your idea in detail, record a video and announce the required amount. If people like you, they will send you money, and in return you can give them some small favor.

Such platforms allow you to raise millions of rubles in a matter of days, but you should understand that you won’t raise a penny to open a cafe here. It’s another matter if your project is original, for example a video game about the life of ants.

Method 4: Friends and relatives

The most popular way of investing among businessmen is through friends and relatives. Working with a close circle of people has a huge advantage. You don’t have to enter into any agreements, think through the division of shares, etc. Just borrow the money.

Of course, not everyone has Bill Gates as a friend, from whom you can borrow a couple of million to start your own business, but you can go further and find distant relatives or acquaintances. Even if they don’t want to lend you money for free, you can work with them as full-fledged investors.

Method 5: Credit

Some entrepreneurs are afraid of loans and are not ready to take them even for business. Of course, you will have to pay in the future interest rates and in the end you will give back more than you took, but do not forget that when working with an investor you will give back more more money and you will give them away until you close or sell the business.

Therefore, in financially It is much more profitable to take out a loan than to work with an investor. Another thing is that it is possible that without experience or the help of an investor you will not be able to achieve success in business at all.

Therefore, if you are confident in your abilities, then take out a loan. If you need more than just financial help, then find an investor.

Method 6: Social Networks

In the digital era, we can connect with anyone on the planet using social networks. Investors are people too, so it’s quite possible to find them, for example on VKontakte, and just write to them.

The problem is that often investors do not write on their pages on social networks that they are investing money in a business, so it is very difficult to identify them from the stream of other people.

In other words, first you must understand who has the funds to invest, and only then you should look for them on social networks. For example, you want to open a car service, find at least the names of car service owners using the Internet, and then find and write to them on social networks.

Method 7: Communities of Entrepreneurs and Investors

Many entrepreneurs and investors are divided into different communities. Some have paid access, and some simply have an open chat, for example on Telegram, that anyone can join.

You should find such a community and ideally join it. If access to it is paid, then you need to find at least one person from this community, tell him about your idea, and perhaps he will help you find an investor.

Such communities regularly organize meetings or events where they discuss various problems and, most importantly, help you find a real investor in your project.

Method 8: Notice boards

The easiest and laziest way to find an investor for your business in Russia is through bulletin boards. For example Avito. You simply place an ad in the business category stating that you are looking for an investor for your project and wait for some investor to be interested in you.

The labor costs in this method are minimal, it’s definitely worth a try, but you don’t need to have any high hopes. There are a huge number of people like you, so your ad may get lost among thousands of others, especially if the business niche is not very original.

Method 9: Events

Think about where investors go and go there. Very often they attend various events and there you can easily find an investor without any deception. For example, investment conferences. Come to them, meet investors, briefly talk about your idea and exchange phone numbers.

It is important not to make a mistake with the event. The conference “Tips on how to start a business from scratch” can be very interesting, but there will be very few potential investors who are able to invest money in your idea. But the conference “What niches are relevant this year” will attract many more investors, because they need to constantly refresh their knowledge to understand where to invest money and where not to.

Method 10: Existing Business

Many entrepreneurs dream of their business working without them, developing and making a profit. Typically, such a desire arises closer to 30-40 years, when you want to devote more time to rest and family.

Your task is to find such businessmen and invite them to invest in your business. It’s extremely easy to search for them; look through successful businesses in your city, meet their owner and suggest your idea.

Be prepared for rejection and don't take it personally, because on your way to finding the right person, you may encounter hundreds of people who will tell you “NO!”

Method 11: Western investors

As we all know in Western economy there is much more money circulating and for foreign investors the size of Russian investments seems insignificant, so they may want to invest their funds in your business.

The important point here is perspective. If you need 3,000,000 rubles to open a business and the maximum you will earn is 300,000 rubles, then you are unlikely to lure Western financiers with such prospects.

It’s another matter if you make a presentation as follows: “In the future, you can earn 3,000,000 rubles a month, for this you need to open 30 restaurants; to open one you need only 3,000,000 rubles. You can start with one and if the indicators are good, then gradually open new ones.” This approach will be of much greater interest to Western investors.

Method 12: Expanding someone else's business

The essence of this method is much easier to demonstrate with an example. Let's say you want to open a production of countertops made of artificial stone. Find construction companies involved in apartment renovations that constantly purchase countertops from third-party companies and invite their owners to create a joint business. The benefit for the owner of a construction company will be in the following things: he really needs countertops and if they are produced at his enterprise, it will be much more profitable, it will be profitable for him to invest money in some kind of business.

It is important that the business you want to open is profitable for a potential investor, as in the example above.

Method 13: Marketing

One of the most controversial methods on which you will have to spend some money.

First, you will need a beautiful website that describes your idea in detail.
Secondly, you must buy advertising to attract visitors to your site.

Another thing is that in any case you will need money to attract investors through marketing and this method is more suitable for existing businesses.

Method 14: Public Figure

Become a public figure! By this phrase we do not mean millions of views on Youtube and a huge number of subscribers on Instagram, but something else. Become a public figure in your field.

For example, you do yoga, you understand it and want to open a small yoga studio. Start a blog in Yandex Zen, on Youtube, or just make an interesting website. Then people will know you, you will have feedback, tell your subscribers that you want to open your own studio. Many people will want to help you, someone may invest money. Well, if the blog itself does not attract an investor, then in any case it will be an excellent portfolio for your future business.

Method 15: Your employees

If you can’t find real investors, then you can take absolutely crazy measures - make your employees investors. This method has proven itself well in the West and has not yet taken root very well in Russia (and is unlikely to take root in the near future). Its essence is that you recruit a team of employees and inform them that everyone must invest some amount in the project, and in the future the profit will be divided into shares.

This option, in our opinion, is not at all realistic in Russia. in simple form, but there is an exception. It can only work when everyone in your business wants to be businessmen rather than employees. They invest money in your project, will work and perform the functions of an employee, and when the project reaches a good profit, then simply at the expense of their share they hire an employee to take their place.

Method 16: Networking

Networking in simple words is the creation of trusting relationships with people who can bring some benefit in the future. This is a whole science and you should study it if you want to learn how to find investors for your projects.

There are a huge number of books that will help you find the right events, find the right people at them and convince them.

An important rule of networking to learn is that when a potential investor tells you “No,” try to convince him to give you the contacts of someone who might eventually say “Yes.”

Method 17: State

Don't forget about the country in which we live. The government can help small businesses. It especially supports agricultural businesses.

Winning a tender can be a great start for the development of your business. The only question is that the competition here is too great and the number of people who want to receive help or investment from the state is simply huge.

Method 18: Forums

The last method will be quite simple - these are forums. Look for forums somehow related to business, investments, money, and so on.

You should not burst into a forum with the only message that you are looking for money for your business. First, talk to people for a while, get remembered by them, try to communicate with potential investors in private messages, and only then declare to the entire forum that you need money for your brilliant idea.

We wish you to quickly find an investor for your business and really hope that you liked our article! We remind you that we will send it to 10,000 potential investors in our database and notify you if anyone is interested in your project.

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Payback.

One of the most famous ways to invest money is investing in business. A variety of business areas allows potential investors to choose the most appropriate and promising investment option, focusing on their preferences and expert opinion. It is worth noting that not in all cases you need to have a lot of money to make a profit. Even modest contributions can bring significant income if the project is successful.

Basics and types of business investments

There are several types of business investment, which are distinguished by:

• stages of investment - in a business that has just started or in an already established company;
• volume of contributions - equity participation or full financing of the project;
• by right of ownership - investments in one’s own or someone else’s business;
• by forms of profit - income of an active or passive nature.

The type of investment is also important, which can be direct or portfolio. In the first case, the investor invests in only one company, and in the second, he distributes his funds among several organizations, forming a kind of portfolio.

Information diagram of the main business investment strategies

Why you need to invest money in business

If a potential investor has a certain amount at his disposal, then the most rational decision would be to invest in business projects. Such actions will ensure a comfortable existence for both the riskiest investor and his entire family, if everything is done correctly.

The mentality of the majority of our citizens, “Soviet-trained,” is limited by various prejudices. They do not believe that it is possible to make a profit without investing enormous amounts of money and without having special talents in the economic sphere. But these postulates are erroneous and have long been untrue. Even a small amount of money can “work” for the benefit of its owner. To understand and accept this, you need to change your thinking and stop working “for someone else”, opening your own horizons in the field of entrepreneurship. If you invest money in a business created independently and from scratch (your own business), you can get the desired feeling of stability and confidence in the future.

Investing money in business: pros and cons

Of course, any investment process goes hand in hand with risk (as do all existing types of investments). But, as you know, those who don’t take risks don’t become investors, don’t get a chance to improve their lives, and continue to work “from paycheck to advance payment.”

Investing money in a business has several advantages:

1. The ability to choose any direction from those that are most interesting and familiar.
2. There are no income restrictions. In other words, you can expect to receive a profit of 100% or more exceeding the initial deposits. The faster the company develops, the higher the level of financial returns.
3. There is no need to have a large initial capital. Even a little money can help you make good money.
4. The depositor has the right to provide direct influence on the activities of the company in which the funds were invested (if the type of deposits is not bonds). In some cases, the investor takes control of the organization into his own hands, increasing the income line.
5. Visible result of investment. The company's assets reflect the results of investment activities.
6. Simplicity and accessibility of obtaining passive income through investing in business projects.
   At the same time, it is not at all necessary to have special knowledge and skills in the field of investments. This kind of activity is a great way of self-realization. You can create your own business from scratch and subsequently be proud of your “brainchild”.

Disadvantages of investing in business:

1. High risks of financial losses. If a business is not organized correctly, then there is a high probability that part of the funds (and sometimes all capital) will be lost.
2. Corruption in the country and a large number of legislative restrictions can cause slow business progress. Restrictive acts, inspections by regulatory authorities and fiscal services sometimes cause the collapse of even the most successful business.
3. For active investors, having some knowledge of economics is essential to maximizing your income.
4. Unstable return on investment in business projects. The profit margin is influenced by many factors. Having absolutely identical initial conditions, you can get different income in the end. Therefore, it is so important to actively study the market and adapt in time to its changing direction.
5. Discord between partners. In some cases, when the conflict between investors reaches its climax, one of them leaves the case, withdrawing his funds. Such actions negatively affect the profitability of the entire enterprise.
6. The need to be patient. You should not count on immediate enrichment, because it will take some time to get more or less significant profits.

Various force majeure circumstances may also arise. In addition, very often business projects require regular cash injections. If you do not do this, you may get a decrease in the profitability of project investments. However, do not be afraid of such an impressive list of disadvantages, because these are more warnings than a pattern.

Ways to reduce investment risks

Two interested parties - the business owner and the investor - want to receive income and minimize all kinds of risks as much as possible. The owner of the company wants to attract more investors and retain them, and the investor wants to save his money and increase it. There are several main investment risks:

• Organizational - not a properly organized business;
• Legal - lack of legal confirmation of the fact of investment on the part of the investor;
• Financial - ignorance of the basic rules in the field of economics that resulted in losses;
• Economic - unstable state of the economy.

If you use the services of lawyers at the initial stage and protect your investments with documents, you can avoid the influence of the legal aspect. It is also worth adequately assessing the economic efficiency of a current project. It is recommended to carefully study the area of ​​activity in which a particular company operates. If a person is completely ignorant in a certain area, then he should refuse to invest in such a project. To increase the chances of success when investing in an existing business, it is worth visiting the office of this company, talking with the employees, and assessing the general situation.

Top 9 ways to invest in business

1. Creating your own business. This method is suitable for those who have basic knowledge of the rules of doing business and understand economics, at least at an initial level. The presence of the notorious “entrepreneurial spirit” is also welcome. In this case, you have to invest not only your money, but time and mental strength. It is difficult to call this method passive - it is an active type of activity. In addition, you should not count on quick returns. However, one of the clear advantages of investing money in your own business is undivided ownership of all profits. Having your own business is a dream for many, but not everyone can achieve it. You will have to invest finances, time, soul, experience, knowledge before resting on your laurels.
2. Become a franchisee. Buying a franchise business allows you to save several years, which would have to be spent on promoting the company. In the case of a franchise, an entrepreneur receives a ready-made business with a recognizable name. What are the advantages of this method of investing in business:
   1. Advertising costs are kept to a minimum;
   2. There are few expenses;
   3. Availability of professional support and advice from the franchise owner;
   4. Payback comes very quickly.

   In some cases, the franchise owner helps with staff training, registration of trade or production premises, provides ready-made equipment.

3. Online business projects. Today, investing money in a business using this method is a very popular investment option among modern investors. A webmaster creates his own website, fills it with unique content, and monetizes it by selling advertising. This is a very effective method of selling information online. If an investor is an expert in any field and can offer site visitors original content, then the success of his site is guaranteed. Topics for articles can be very different - from legal advice to problems with acne on the face. Organizing and conducting online seminars using web programs is also very relevant. You can buy a ready-made website and keep it afloat, periodically adding new publications, while simultaneously selling contextual advertising.
4. Startups? Why not! Finding a promising project is not so difficult. Many startups have only a good idea in their arsenal, but do not have the money to implement it. In this case, investors take on all the risks of implementing the project and invest their money in it. The author gets about 10-15% of the income. This type of investment can equally well make an investor rich or ruin him.
5. Buying shares. Successful and not so successful companies sell their shares through the stock exchange. A share is a title-bearing security that gives the investor a right to some portion of the company. How to make money on stocks? You can buy securities at a low price and sell at a higher price. However, before purchasing, you should carefully study the financial condition and statements of the company, because not every organization’s security can bring profit.
   
   
6. Investments in manufacturing business projects. An investor invests his finances in a factory or plant for the production of any goods. First, you should study the income side of the enterprise, its competitiveness and compare the likelihood of return on the funds spent. If a company occupies a stable position in the market, then profit from investment is more than likely. It is best for a novice investor to invest money in factories that produce mass market goods and produce essential products.
7. Investing money in small business. Small industries and companies that are not part of any corporations or associations can be a good investment. You can invest in a ready-made enterprise and expand it, or you can invest money in a business from scratch. These methods will be effective if you choose the direction wisely.
8. Purchase of bonds. These securities are a kind of documented evidence that the investor, by purchasing them, lends money to the company. This is one of the ways entrepreneurs borrow funds. The level of risk in this case is much lower than when investing in shares. This type of investment is debt and is considered a more reliable way to generate income. Bond coupons are paid regularly. Sometimes low-trust companies offer very high coupons to attract more investors.
9. Mutual funds. This type of deposit is classified as direct. An investor buys a share in a fund. He, in turn, invests the received funds at his own discretion, taking into account diversification risks. But this way of investing money is highly dependent on stock market crashes. The investor does not participate in any way in the activities of the mutual fund, shifting all responsibility for the success of investments to its managers. It is worth noting that you do not need to pay commissions to anyone. The difference in the price of the share constitutes profit or loss.

— subscription to underwear. If you are also thinking about developing your startup or launching something from scratch, then our experience will certainly be useful to you.

We spent some of our own money on the project to test the viability of the idea, but there were no longer enough funds to grow and test serious marketing hypotheses. Then we started looking for investment and found it.

“Trusbox” is not a pure technology service, but it definitely has the potential for development in the direction of IT, so this is exactly what we were looking for for investments. Technological projects often require lengthy and complex development, and the result is measured not only by the kind of metrics that we are accustomed to based on university economics lessons 10 years ago. So if you want to open a beauty salon or a car repair shop, then my advice, unfortunately, will not work for you. But if you come up with a program that makes the work of a car repair shop easier, you can find investments in the project, following our experience.

Anna Gorodetskaya

My documents: what needs to be prepared

At the first stage of a project, it is often recommended to draw up a lot of documents: a description of the concept, mission, necessary regulations - that is, materials without which new team members will have difficulty understanding what your project is about. It’s not a fact that you will definitely need all the files later in your work, but they will definitely come in handy when you draw up key documents for investors.

• Detailed presentation of the project
  You must have a ready document from which a person who has no idea about the scope of your project will understand what you are doing, for whom and how. The document answers the usual questions: what we do, for whom we do it, how we do it, who we are, what are our plans, who are our competitors. If you, like me, are put into a work stupor by open empty files, then use the presentation template on canva.com - they already have structured templates with a minimal design and icons that you can use to visualize processes and numbers.
• Project business plan
  Even if you haven't made a single sale yet, you should still have an idea of ​​where the money is in your project, even if it's small and not soon. But if your project, in principle, does not involve making money, then perhaps it belongs to the social or art sphere, and sponsors, rather than investors, will help you better.
• Road map
  A document that will describe what, when and with what forces you plan to achieve. It should consist of several milestones and describe the processes and resources that will help you get there.

LinkedIn Sales Navigator/Unsplash

Where am I: determine the stage of the project

To choose the right potential investor and project presentation strategy, you first need to decide what you have. There is a simple classification for projects in the first stages of development.

• Pre-seed— you have an idea, a team, a working prototype, hypotheses about the audience and sales channels, confirmed by small numbers. That is, you have a project in which there are some people, and the project is working confidently, albeit at low speed.
• Seed- you bypassed all the pitfalls of the previous stage, did not go crazy, did not leave for Nepal, and are now ready to grow sharply and strongly.

Your strategy for finding an investor will depend on what stage your project is at: some funds may specialize in projects at different stages. When you apply to a specific fund, you will need to indicate what your current project status is.

If your stage is a confident pre-seed and you have not yet released, in fact, anything, this does not mean that you will not be able to find an investor. The first option of finding an investor will not require you to have a finished product.

About the benefits of hackathons

If you have a team of developers, even a small one, then be sure to participate in thematic or corporate hackathons. A hackathon is a short-term event (most often held over a weekend) in which teams or individual developers solve one problem voiced by the organizer. In addition to possibly winning an impressive prize that can be used to develop the project, you will meet serious people in your industry.

Companies that hold hackathons are obviously interested in additional products; if they like your project, you have a serious chance of attracting hackathon organizers as investors, as was the case with three teams at once at the “Build a University” hackathon. You can view a list of upcoming hackathons.

If a hackathon is not suitable for you, then nothing prevents you from contacting the investor directly, because thanks to the documents that you have already prepared, you know how much investment you need (although this point will be discussed).

QIWI Universe/facebook

Where to look

1. Follow the trail
If your product can definitely be classified as “something tech” (medical technology, financial technology, etc.) and it solves some clear problem, then pay attention to large companies in your sector, many of them have their own investment decisions. For example, QIWI has a separate platform through which you can contact the company with a request for investment.

2. Spying on our neighbors
If you carefully and carefully prepared the presentation of your project, then you probably know all the competitive startups in your industry. Information about transactions is a major information feed that is very rarely hidden. You can check online to see if your competitors have received investments in the last year, and if so, from whom. Feel free to contact funds that have invested in projects similar to yours: this means that the fund is already working with your topic, understands something about it and will be able to evaluate your project for subsequent investment.

3. Contact directly
The simplest and most obvious advice, which for some reason no one uses: just write to investment funds. The Firrma website has a ranking of the most active (that is, those who conducted the most transactions) venture funds for the year. There are both seed and new funds. The algorithm in this case is as follows: you need to go to the investment fund’s website, try to find a project presentation template there, fill it out and send it, along with a covering letter, to the address indicated on the website. Investment funds actually read the letters they receive. They make money from investments and, of course, do not want to miss out on interesting options.

I highly recommend finding a fund-specific presentation template and working with it, because you will be asked to provide information in any case. standard form, and you will simply lose time and some credibility if you do not use a document that is in the public domain.

cartierawards/instagram

One of the formats for reaching investments is startup competitions. Most often, an investment fund and a large company are combined to organize them, and the winners receive prizes from both: in the form of investments, in the form of the company’s services, or both. For example, the “First Height” competition is held jointly by the consulting giant McKinsey & Company and the large investment fund Winter Capital. But the most famous startup competition in Russia is GenerationS. In addition to the main competition, every year there are different nominations, the process of application and expert verification in them can be simpler, so check if there is a special nomination this year on the topic of your project, and if there is, then feel free to apply on the website (list of special nominations located at the bottom of the main page of the site).

Pay special attention to competitions that stimulate the development of women's entrepreneurship. Thus, the famous jewelry house Cartier has a competition program for women business leaders from all over the world.

By the way, it’s not just Cartier that has separate women’s acceleration and investment projects. Read more about the special opportunities in IT for Pink women.

Investor's choice

An important and responsible matter. Because an investor gives you not only money - he gives you connections and the opportunity to make this money even more money.

In addition, investment money is not given for nothing - you can only receive it in exchange for a share in the company. That is, having allowed another participant into your project, whose interests will definitely be exclusively commercial, you must be prepared for the fact that your actions as a project manager must also take into account the possible benefits for the investor.

This is the main difference between investment and lending: the loan can simply be returned and forgotten, and the investor will remain with you until he leaves the project (sells his share). So if your project involves a relatively simple development cycle and does not require a lot of funds, then it will probably be easier and faster for you to take out a loan for business development, and only then attract larger investments to scale the project.

Whichever option you choose, I wish you good luck and courage: no matter the outcome of your investment hunt, the experience of communicating with funds and making presentations will remain with you forever.

01Mar

Why do you need an investor?

We all understand perfectly well that creating a business at the initial stage is very expensive.

Moreover, regardless of the field of activity, for the most part the costs will be:

• To a suitable premises;
• For the necessary equipment;
• Looking for employees.

Then, depending on the specifics of the business, there will be other costs:

• Additional software;
• Repair of premises;
• Purchase of consumables;
• Etc.

And in most cases, the initial costs are so high that it becomes very difficult to pay them alone, or even as a team.

But in addition to the initial costs, many companies feel a lack of funds for full and harmonious development. There are often cases when a young team has enormous prospects - their goods or services become truly in demand on the market, but due to lack of finance they miss out on the lion's share of profits.

For example, they cannot hire additional employees, or purchase more equipment, or expand the premises, and so on. That's when they will need an investor in the existing business.

We draw a conclusion: companies need to search for investors at the initial stage of their development in order to cover the lion's share of the costs of implementing their business. This is the main and most important reason why many aspiring entrepreneurs are looking for free funds.

The second reason is the search for funds for the development, expansion and implementation of any new ideas. This is typical for those companies that found free funds to start, but for some reason do not have sufficient funds for development.

How to find an investor for a business from scratch

Before moving on to the practical part of finding an investor, you should decide on a couple of theoretical points. Knowing the investor’s desires, you can understand how to look for him and what you need to give him.

When looking for an investor, it is important to remember one detail:

Investing involves making a profit. Every businessman who wants to interest a potential investor in his business should keep this rule in mind. No one will be interested in an “innovative breakthrough,” “an original idea,” or “new technologies” if they do not promise tangible profits. All investors need to be spoken in the language of money and risk. Only then can they really be interested.

Based on this rule, the following can be distinguished:

• To receive a cash investment, you need to convince the investor that his investment will be profitable;
• You need to prove why your project is more interesting than that of your direct competitors;
• Show what prospects you have for further development in the market.

Investors who do this professionally can literally determine in 10 minutes whether a project will be profitable or not. And when they invest money in business, they are not doing charity. The only motivation for investing is to get a quick profit, which should be higher not only than the average bank deposit, but also the lion's share of competitors.

It follows from this that the main task is not to find a private investor, but to interest him, convincing him to invest money in your project.

What information may be of interest to investors?

Now, based on an understanding of why people invest in the first place, you can begin to answer questions about what might be of interest to a potential investor.

But before that you need to understand one simple thing:

There is no need to perceive an investor for a business as a lender. He voluntarily invests his funds, and if he fails, they will not be returned to him in any way. That is why for beginning entrepreneurs, an experienced investor will be a partner who can help in case of minor failures and share success.

That is why you need to work not only for the benefit of yourself, but also of your business partner. You invest your ideas, effort, time, money (to a lesser extent), while the investor invests his money and participates in making important decisions for the company.

This is a kind of shareholder who has the right to vote, to whom they are obliged to listen, but do not always follow their lead. Maintaining a balance between the interests of the company and investors is very important.

So, you have found someone who is interested in investing in your company.

What you need to tell him about the business:

• The main idea of ​​the business;
• Required amount of investment;
• Estimated profitability;
• Risks.

This is all that an investor will need to know at the beginning of your cooperation. When he evaluates the volume of the proposed investment, compares profitability and risks, and if he likes your idea, then the second stage will begin - a detailed survey about the business.

This is when you will have to reveal all the details: why your idea is better than your competitors; how are you going to spend the money and on what; when will the business expand, and to what extent; what guarantees can you give and other questions.

It should be understood that laying out all the trump cards at the beginning is not the best idea. It is quite possible that a person will not be interested in business in this area, or he may implement this idea himself.

Return for the investor

Russia has an excellent rate of return on bank deposits - key rate Central Bank. By adding 2-3% to it, depending on the region, you can reach the average for deposits for individuals and legal entities with large amounts of money.

For an investor, this is the minimum rate of return that he can receive by simply depositing his money in a bank account. Consequently, a businessman must show a return at a distance higher than a bank deposit by 1.5-2 times. This is typical for small and medium-sized businesses. For a large one – income in the amount bank deposit possible due to the scale and prospects for rapid expansion.

Let's summarize: The investor is primarily interested in the return on his own investments.

That is why the following parameters are analyzed before investing money:

• Prospects of the idea;
• Required amount of investment;
• Risks and profitability.

If both parties are satisfied with these points, then the further stage of negotiations proceeds, in which the investor tries to obtain the most detailed information about the business and assess its future prospects. A competent business plan can answer all the questions that may arise during negotiations, so its preparation is mandatory.

Where to look for an investor for a business or startup

We've sorted out the basic information about what you can tell an investor. Now about where you can find an investor.

Close people, friends, acquaintances

One of the most controversial ways to raise funds. Suitable for creating a small business by promising people you know a return on their investment when the business begins to generate income.

At the same time, among friends and acquaintances you can actually find like-minded people who may be interested in the idea, and create a whole team that will be able to share all financial losses and compensate for each other’s shortcomings.

You can borrow money from relatives to open your own business if you need a small amount and there are some guarantees of its return.

Funds

There are two types of funds that can help you find investment for your business: small business funds and . Regardless of the type, obtaining funds from such funds will be extremely difficult.

You need to get managers interested in your business. And if in other cases an innovative idea, an advantage over competitors and a quick payback can beat average or even low profitability, then in this case the return on investment comes first.

Investment funds are only interested in one thing – profitability. They are ready to invest their money at great risk in enterprises that will bring them great income. But if a businessman talks about a long-term investment without guaranteeing profit in the first few years, such a business is unlikely to be financed.

In order to evaluate the prospects of its own investments, the fund will need time and as much information as you can provide. A group of analysts will analyze it, so the more information, the higher the chances of receiving funds.

Investment funds - an association of many investors who invest free funds in order to make a profit.

Moreover, often these investment funds There is less money at our disposal than several private investors who are also ready to invest their money in interesting ideas if only someone interests them. But you should understand that applying for investments in an investment fund is much easier than applying to a private investor, because for the first you just need to contact the company, and in the second case, you need to somehow find contact with a very famous and rich person.

State funds are one of the profitable options receiving funds if the idea is truly innovative. Competitions are held periodically, the winners of which can receive a grant, for which entrepreneurs can realize all their ideas. Enlisting government support, if possible, is the best option.

Successful businessmen

One of the best and profitable ways searching for investments - working with successful businessmen of the city or region. Regardless of the scale, in the region you can find many successful businessmen who have already followed this path, have profitable enterprises and free cash. It will be enough to interest them in your idea and your personality, and then they will invest their money in an interesting project.

At the same time, one of the clear advantages of working with successful businessmen is that they can teach and explain some of the moments that they themselves went through. Many entrepreneurs are happy to take beginners under their wing and explain to them how to cope with difficulties, minimize costs, and make a profit. Especially if the cooperation can bring benefits to both parties in the long run.

Cooperation usually takes place under two conditions:

• In the form of a loan;
• In the form of purchasing a share in a business.

The second option is preferable for both parties. It involves the participation of the investor in the development of the company, this makes it possible to avoid most mistakes and take advantage of the connections and relationships of a more influential person in order to establish your own.

If a businessman cannot help with finances, it is recommended to ask him which of the people he knows can help and be interested in the idea. Such a small psychological trick will allow you to learn about other businessmen, and with a recommendation from one of your colleagues you can count on something more.

A method that is suitable only for, and not in all areas. – financing of interesting projects by individuals. Often this is for some kind of reward. Leading companies that are developing some interesting new products for retail and wholesale are looking for free funds.

Banks

If all of the above methods of attracting investors do not work, you need to apply for loans from banks. Different credit organizations have different requirements for potential borrowers, but their essence is as follows:

Banks do not need maximum profitability. They are interested in stable receipt of funds and loan repayment. That is why credit institutions will study your business plan for stable income generation and, accordingly, return of funds. They are more interested in guarantees than profitability.

It is dangerous for an inexperienced entrepreneur to take out a loan from a bank, especially if it is quite risky. If the idea does not work out, the bank will make every effort to demand the return of funds, up to the sale of the borrower’s property.

That is why it is worth taking out loans for a small business, which will pay off in 4-5 months and can then generate income. And if it doesn’t work out, then the financial blow will not be as strong as the loss of money for the implementation of a medium or large project.

Venture investments

One of the most popular and effective ways raising funds for business in innovation areas. Venture investments are investments of funds (associations of investors).

The nature of venture investments is their high risk. They provide funds to many companies that can change the world with their innovative ideas.

Venture funds can also finance ordinary entrepreneurs. But the main condition will be dynamic development and constant expansion.

Venture funds are a kind of motivation for the constant expansion of business, spheres of influence and products. The most striking example of a company that existed at the expense of venture funds is Apple.

Finding an investor: step-by-step instructions

Now we are publishing a detailed and step-by-step plan on how to find an investor to start a business:

Step 1. Drawing up a business plan.

As mentioned earlier, a good business plan for an investor will always bring several advantages to a businessman’s piggy bank.

What should be in a business plan:

• Description of the idea;
• Economic calculations;
• Project payback period;
• Development prospects;
• Competitor analysis;
• Other information.

During and subsequent presentation, you need to carefully concentrate on all the little details. You need to pay attention not only to all the information inside, but also to your appearance, presentation of material, confidence, etc.

The use of tables, graphs and other graphic materials is encouraged. They help to better perceive information and focus attention on the right points.

It would be a good idea to rehearse presenting your home business plan several times. Also be prepared for additional questions.

Step 2. Selecting a form of cooperation.

Before you start looking for an investor, you need to decide on the proposed model of cooperation. Of course, you can completely rely on an experienced businessman who himself will offer an interesting way of interacting with business, but then you lose your dominant position. We must not forget that it is not the investor who dictates the terms, but the businessman.

In total, there are 3 ways of cooperation:

• Receiving a percentage of the amount invested in the business;
• Receiving a percentage of profits for the duration of the entire business;
• Obtaining a share in the business.

Having chosen the method of cooperation that interests him, the aspiring businessman must indicate this method of cooperation in his business plan.

There are times when investors do not agree with the chosen cooperation model. You should analyze this situation and understand whether it is worth following the lead of a more experienced businessman, or whether it is better to insist on your own.

Sometimes it is better to give up your principles and receive funds for the implementation of the project, and sometimes to refuse the offer and find another interested party.

Step 3. Finding an investor.

After all the preliminary work has been completed, it is necessary to begin the process of searching for an investor. You need to work in several directions at once, making contacts both in the field of entrepreneurs and investors, and asking your friends.

Working according to the list presented above, you can try various options for attracting investments, and if nothing works, then you should contact the bank.

Step 4. Negotiations with potential investors.

It is advisable to find several interested parties who would be willing to invest free money in the development of your idea. Then you will be able to negotiate from a position of strength and dictate terms. But newcomers rarely find more than 1-2 interested people, which is why you should approach the negotiation process very carefully.

Convincing the investor that he will make a profit is the main task of these negotiations. At the same time, it is worth remembering that they will look not only at the prospects of your project, but also at you, so you should watch your speech, appearance and manners.

It is advisable to answer all questions that potential investors may have. This will ensure that you are really working on your business idea, and there will be no stupid mistakes during the implementation stage.

Negotiations are the most important part when searching for an investor.

Step 5. Conclusion of an agreement.

After the negotiations have been successful, you will need to enter into an agreement with the investor. It is advisable that you take care of creating the agreement yourself and in advance. You should contact an experienced lawyer who can draw up a contract that is beneficial for both parties.

Important points that should be in the contract:

• Term;
• Investment amount;
• Form of cooperation;
• Rights and obligations.

Portals for finding an investor

Now there are various portal sites that act as intermediaries between investors and budding businessmen.

We present to you a list of 5 sites where you can find investments:

1. Ventureclub– a real treasure for investors and startupers. Anyone who wants to find investment in their project can go to the site and, after a thorough interview, submit a project. Investors who are interested in the proposal will be able to evaluate the idea, financial prospects, and discuss details. It is attractive to businessmen because there are many investors on the portal and the company is directing all its efforts to attract additional people to the ranks of investors.

2. Start2up– a platform that brings together investors, startupers and people who want to do joint business. The service is more suitable for finding potential partners to start a business. The site also contains information about the sale of various commercial assets, which will also be useful for a novice entrepreneur.

3. Napartner– a platform for finding investors in projects in various fields. If you take a closer look, you will notice that many startups have questionable ideas and ways to implement them. Accordingly, good projects here are worth their weight in gold and find investment in a short time. At the same time, the number of investors in relation to the number of startups does not cause optimism - there are 10 times fewer people willing to invest money than there are projects. Suitable as one of the ways to attract a potential investor.

4. Starttrack is the best service for serious companies. Despite the fact that the number of companies that received investment in this system is small - only 36, nevertheless they are still functioning, generating income. Starttrack is an investor community that promotes the idea of ​​investing as a type of income. At the same time, we can safely say that any community of investors is an excellent search for a partner to create a business. It should be understood that you can use this service only if the project is serious and the idea is attractive.

5. Boomstarter– the most popular crowdfunding platform in Russia and the CIS. For a startup in the IT, gaming or original fields, this is an ideal opportunity to seek initial investment. In most cases, the main idea is presented as a product/service. Users making a contribution should receive a reward that would interest them.

9 rules to follow when looking for an investor

Rule #1.

You need to start looking for an investor as early as possible.

In order to find an investor who agrees to invest his money in the project, it will take a lot of time. You need to look for new business contacts and talk with interested people at the stage of developing a business plan. This will significantly reduce time costs and simple ideas.

It should also be understood that many investors need time to assess the real development prospects of a particular company. And when interacting with banks or investment funds, the time required to analyze all aspects of a potential client’s business activity will be quite large.

Rule #2.

Collect as much information as possible about the investor.

• Collecting as much information as possible can help in two ways at once: screening out candidates and conducting better negotiations.
• For the first one you will need to know:
• What areas is the investor interested in?
• Where does one usually invest money?

It is important to understand that applying for a small a sum of money to a person who usually invests millions in a project is not worth it. He simply won't be interested in your offer.

To conduct negotiations, you may need everything you can find out about a potential investor. After all, in essence, this will be the process of selling some share in the business (to one degree or another). And for sales, it is always important to find the client’s pain points and put pressure on them, pushing them to the fact that it is you and the investment in your business that can allow him to solve all his problems.

Rule #3.

Plan your investments.

You need to name the specific amount that will be required from a potential investor. You cannot operate with ranges, only in extreme cases, when you are not sure of price stability in a certain period of time.

You also need to understand that you should not ask for more or less money. This will mark you as someone who hasn't thought through their business plan enough.

Rule #4. Voicing real goals. You may have the most ambitious goals, but they will be of no use to an investor. Setting the goal of “entering the global market” for a company that hasn’t even existed for a month is at least very optimistic. It will be much more interesting for an investor to hear “exit

regional market

and getting a 20-30% share in such and such an area.” But meanwhile, you will always have to justify the adoption of this or that goal.

Rule #5: Don't be shy about your idea.

It's hard to imagine Henry Ford being afraid to tell others about his ideas. On the contrary, he openly declared that he would create a device in which he could sit and drive down the street without additional traction. You need to do the same with your business ideas in negotiations.

Feel free to express your ideas, even if someone thinks that they are far from ideal and difficult to implement. Remember the presentation! The more confident you are, the better you are perceived.

Rule #6: Assembling a team is the best idea.

All promising projects began in the head of one person. But it can be difficult to realize all your ideas alone, and this is a generally accepted fact. It is best for aspiring businessmen to find a team of 3-5 people who, at the initial stage, would deal with various matters of the company, solving each of their own issues, and becoming professionals in their field.

Speak to the investor in his language. Promise him profit, then offer him prospects for growth and expansion. You should think carefully, even at the business planning stage, about the question “What will my project be good at?” Having answered it for yourself, ask the same question, but from the investor’s point of view.

Rule #8: Try to be as close to investors as possible.

Attend various meetings of potential investors - business forums, conferences, and other events on a nationwide scale. At one such conference you can talk to hundreds of different people who will be interested in investing in your business to one degree or another.

A little psychological trick: don't say you came looking for investment. Try to look like one of the investors - a person with money. Then you will be able to be one of everyone and they will begin to treat you with greater trust and sympathy.

Rule No. 9: Honesty is the best weapon.

When looking for a potential investor, you need to understand that you will be mutually beneficial partners. That is why you should always provide the most complete and honest information about the company’s affairs, its prospects and your plans.

Most often, it is better to hear a realistic “I would like to sell the company in a year for several million dollars” than “I will concentrate on fulfilling the company’s goals and expanding it, and reaching the global level.” In the first case there is honesty and transparency, in the second there is nothing but floridity and avoidance of answer.

Following these tips is quite simple, but following them will help you gain an advantage in negotiations over other similar seekers of free finance and interested investors.

Conclusion

In Russia, the culture of investing your own money is just beginning to take shape. This is confirmed by numerous surveys among ordinary citizens. Many people still prefer to invest their money in low-yield and illiquid real estate rather than buy shares of some young and developing company. But investors are of enormous importance for business development within the country.

What we have in Russia now: a large amount of free cash among large businessmen, the desire of banks to finance only stable companies, and the development of investment funds that are interested in interesting and profitable ideas.

What does it mean: in Russia there is a large amount of free cash that investors would like to use to invest in some interesting projects. Also, the new policy of the Central Bank, which directly states that banks should also switch to the investment model of the economy, inspires confidence and optimism among investors.

Finding an investor is one of the key stages when creating a business from scratch. Raising funds will not only allow you to create a business, but also develop it, reaching a new level.

Investors can act as individuals with sufficient capital, as well as companies interested in making a profit. In order to interest an investor, you must always talk about money and income. Only after this comes the prospects of the idea, risks and other factors.

Drawing up a competent business plan and planning negotiations with an 80% probability will tip the scales in your favor. That is why you should not only understand your own idea, but also be able to present yourself competently.