Money is the bloodline of any business. Statistics says, almost 90% of business fail due to lack of funding. Hence, the business owners are always worried about how they can raise funds for their startup.
We are here trying to show you some way by which you can raise your funds. Before starting out, you have to identify where your business stands and what it needs. Have a look at these business series and find out where your business belongs:
Series A
Is all about traction, whether it’s number of users, revenue, views, or any other key performance indicator (KPI) you ready to raise a Series A round.
Series B
Startup has found their product/market fit and needs help expanding.
Series C
Startups doing well and are ready to expand to new markets, acquire other businesses, or develop new products.
Series D
Series D is a little more complicated than the previous funding rounds, Mainly Expansion.
Series E
Even more complicated – Series D requirements/ needs to stay private longer / failed to meet expectations etc.
After finding out where your business stand, you can now evaluate the following options that can support your business funding:
1. Bootstrapping
Bootstrapping is an amazing way to kick-start your business when you don’t have a good fund in your business. Often times, when a company is in its initial period, people use internal funding instead of taking loans for starting their business. This money may come from their savings, sale of assets, financial help from friends and family etc. This is called bootstrapping. Obtaining finance from friends and family is extremely beneficial for a business when it is trying to raise its KPI, commonly known as series A round business.
2. Consider crowd-sourcing
Crowd-sourcing is another gift of modern technology for the new startup owners. In crow-sourcing, the founders pitch their idea or business model in front of the investors or community who are willing to support them with funding. This gives an incredible opportunity to the business owners who lack finances in their business. Crowdfunding also helps the business to gain more publicity along with the funding. It also opens a potential for the businesses to attract the venture-capital investors as well. So, if you have a business that needs to gain more KPI or have found a market-fit product but need to help expanding it, Crowd-sourcing can be a good idea to start with.
3. Seek Angel investors
The word ‘Angel’ pretty much defines the idea of angel investors. They are basically people who seek for potential businesses/startups to invest in. This can also be a great opportunity for the business owners to raise fund for their business. Angel investors usually scrutinize every business proposal to select the perfect candidate that they can invest in. Another important benefit of angel investing is, the investors may also offer great mentorship for the betterment of business. This way of raising fund is also beneficial for series A and series B businesses.
4. Participate in Incubator and accelerator programs
These programs are also great options for the business owners to look for while raising funds. The incubator programs are basically for the A and B series business that are looking for ways to hold up with their businesses. Whereas, the accelerator programs are more for the businesses that are already established. The accelerator program helps the established businesses to boom. These programs create great opportunity for the business owners to fast-track their business. It also helps the business owners to build newer connectivity. So, if you are someone worrying about raising funds, don’t forget to consider this option!
5. Win contests/competitions
Another amazing way to raise fund is winning contests! Participating in a competition also lets you to evaluate your business plan, short-comings etc. The road to win competitions is challenging and highly exciting as well. This also helps to raise confidence. So, if you are someone who loves to take challenge and want to show the world your potential, participate in contests as much as possible. With the course of time, you’ll get the learn so many things and start winning these competition programs with glory! This will help your business to raise funds. Similarly, winning contests can be a great way of marketing your business.
6. Don’t ignore Bank Loan
Lastly, no matter how you raise your funds, taking bank loans when you have the ability to pay them off, is never a bad idea. If you have solid business plan, any bank will provide you loans with which you can raise some fund for your business. Taking loans can also help to fast-track your business income.
Lastly, there are actually many options to raise funds for your business. If you have a solid business idea and have passion to work, don’t sit home idly worrying about money. Take some time to understand where your business stands and evaluate which funding source can give you the best benefit. Just, never give up!