You have an important project and are short of money? This is how you attract investors

The fundraising stage is one of the most important initial stages in the life of corporate projects (Shutterstock)

There is a project idea that has been circulating in your head for years, and you are sure that it will succeed, but the obstacle preventing it from implementing it is money... you lack funding.

When starting a business, finding an idea is half the battle, and the other half is financing it. But if you have a business idea and do not have the capital to start the project, this does not mean that your path to entrepreneurship is over. There are many ways to start a business, Even if you don't have money.

Before you can obtain financing, you must follow several steps to ensure that your idea is strong and marketable. In this report, we present the best ways to convince investors and venture capitalists of your idea, invest in your project, and provide you with the necessary money and support, according to what a number of sites mentioned. And specialized platforms such as Faster Capital, Shopify, Business, Bplans and others.

A clear idea for investors

The first step is to clearly define the idea of ​​your project and business, and what product or service you sell or manufacture. If you cannot explain your project and the product you will sell, and why it is a new and truly valuable product, investors will not care.

Here you have to discover and know the needs of investors, and what they want from investing their money, and there are some crucial questions that they need your answer to and that you must know, including: Is it possible for this idea to be profitable in the future?

Does the company offer a unique product or service that is difficult for competitors to imitate?

Is the project owner able to implement the idea and move it to the second level, and if you have a small company?

Does your company have a future and is growing?

These and other questions will be asked by any investor before he decides to give you money and invest in your project. Therefore, you must be fully prepared for them, and the idea of ​​your project or company’s product must be completely clear to you and to the investors.

 Name and brand

A project is like a new baby that needs a specific and well-known name, and for this you must choose a commercial name suitable for your project. This name must be attractive and innovative, and remember that the name you choose will remain with you throughout the life of the project.

After choosing the name, register it with the official authorities to become its actual, documented owner. Also, choose an attractive and appropriate trademark, and an innovative logo that gives a clear idea about your product or service that you provide.

An attractive name and an innovative and documented brand will attract investors, confirm to them how serious and enthusiastic you are about the project, and help you succeed in attracting funds for your project.

 Digital presence

Building a website does not cost a lot of money. The young Jordanian entrepreneur Abdullah Munir Hayajneh, founder and owner of Zajil, a company for delivering flowers and gifts, says that he learned to design a website in two weeks through specialized free online programs through which he learned to design a website for his startup company via... WordPress program.

There are websites that rely on artificial intelligence, and you can purchase their services for a small amount not exceeding $3 per month to design a website for your company.

And remember, your digital presence must be taken care of as a priority, so that potential investors can easily find you and interact with your brand. The last thing you want is to make a successful presentation to a potential investor, who then spends entire hours wandering the Internet looking for even the slightest glimpse of your brand.

Your company's website is an important element in defining your business identity, and your website is usually the first place potential investors go to obtain additional information about you and your project or company.

Make sure your website is clear, straightforward and easy on the eye, and it should also explain the nature of the business you are in, and what your product or service is.

Your digital presence must also include the presence of pages for your company across various social media platforms, the most important of which is LinkedIn, which has many investors in the world, and the Facebook and Instagram platforms. This is another essential marketing element that will make your brand closer to potential investors. .

A plan targeting investors

Now that you have explained your project, chosen an attractive business name for your idea, and built your digital presence, you must create a business plan that includes the details of your organization, why your company is a good investment, the type of investment you are looking for, and determining the investment amounts you need to start or develop your project.

Design a presentation using PowerPoint that contains basic information about your project and product, and why it is a profitable investment for investors, then write and practice the promotional presentation that you will present to potential investors.

While presenting your presentation, you must appear confident in yourself, your project, the future of this project, and its certain success in front of investors.

All of your marketing materials should be well written and designed to look professional and attractive, and portray your business in the best possible light.

You must create a business plan that includes the details of your organization (social networking sites).

Potential investors

The next step is to find the ideal investors, and this process is similar to advertising your project. There are two basic ways to find investors and interact with them: online investment platforms, and economic events such as conferences, exhibitions, seminars, and specialized forums that are related to your project.

• Online investment platforms

  : There are many specialized platforms for investors, and these platforms aim to connect entrepreneurs and startup companies with investors, and among the most important of these platforms are: SeedInvest, StartEngine, CircleUp, and Wefunder, as many investors and venture capitalists search for... Pioneering ideas and projects to invest in.

Whether you get investment money from these platforms or not, be sure that you have attracted attention and awareness of your project and company, and become on the radar of investors.

• Economic events

  : Various economic events and exhibitions (whether real or virtual) allow entrepreneurs to showcase the opportunities available to investors, and your participation and active presence within these events helps in promoting your company and project, as well as your person as a young and ambitious entrepreneur, and contributes to building personal relationships with investors. And venture capitalists, there are many entrepreneurs who have succeeded in obtaining investment funds through these economic events.

Identify investors

One of the biggest mistakes that budding entrepreneurs make is asking for money from any investor who cares to listen, and this is not true at all. There are different types of investors, including, for example, investors who are only interested in digital and technological projects, investors who are interested in the real estate sector, others in the financial sector, and so on.

You should approach investors who are interested in investing in the sector in which you operate.

After determining the specifications of the ideal investor, you can begin to provide your marketing plan with relevant information (Shutterstock)

Before marketing your business to potential investors, identify your ideal investor, and what areas do they invest in?

Where do they invest?

What are their investment capabilities?

If you're planning to pitch to venture capital and private equity firms, get to know their decision makers. Some investors, for example, care about the social impact of companies, while others care only about the finances.

Find out if potential investors have any history or interest in your industry, product or niche.

After determining the specifications of the ideal investor, you can begin to provide your marketing plan with relevant information, address investors in the language they understand, and present to them an attractive offer that identifies the strengths of your project and the gains that will accrue to investors in the future.

You may present your project to a number of investors and they hesitate or refuse to invest in your company. Here you must be steadfast and not give up when you fail. One of the most important qualities of a successful entrepreneur is steadfastness and not giving up, having determination and perseverance, and the ability to learn from mistakes, and try again and again until success is achieved. .

Source: Al Jazeera