Where can I post an idea with intentions to attract potential investors?

[NewBusinessGuy]

Please let me know - Thanks!!

[akula]

nowhere! ))
people don't finance "ideas"
come back when you have an or "opportunity" or a "business"

[questeds]

Akula makes a valid point - no-one invests in an idea. To go into a little more detail for you, there are two main types of investors - Angel Investors and Venture Capitalists - Angel Investors typically invest with their own money, individually or as part of a consortium. They will invest anywhere upto about 500k. Venture Capitalists work with other investors funds, and will generally look at investing upwards of $5mil.

Angel Investors is likely to be the group you need to research, but make sure you do the research on what it is they expect you to have done before you approach them. Here is a list of key things to consider if you want to approach an angel:


Management team.
Is your team experienced, driven, coachable, and willing to cede some control and decision-making authority to outside investors?

Target customer.
Do you have an identifiable market segment?
Is there a demonstrable and significant demand for your proposed solution?

Market size.
Are the projected revenues in your product category large and growing?
Can this be a several hundred million dollar market?

Competition.
Have you identified potential competitors?
Do you understand your company's differentiation points?
Will true barriers to entry help your company to maintain a competitive advantage?

Technology.
Have you proven the concept behind your product or technology?
Can this be confirmed with data or by objective experts?
Have you built a comprehensive business plan to commercialize the technology?

Protected intellectual property.
Have you protected your intellectual property?
Have you performed an exhaustive search to be sure that you are not infringing on patents or trademarks held by others?

Sales strategy.
Do you have a plan to achieve widespread market penetration for your products and services?
How will you do this as efficiently as possible?
Will you create an internal, direct sales team, or will you rely on external channel partners?

Profit potential.
Can you demonstrate how high margins (+15%) and consistent cash flow growth will be achieved?

Capital needs.
Do you require between $50,000 to $500,000 to finance growth activities, including product development, recruiting key staff, launching sales and marketing activity?

Financial projections.
Have you developed reasonable financial projections - including an income statement, cash flow and balance sheet and supporting spreadsheets - based on logical, realistic assumptions?

Exit strategy.
Do you have a clear exit strategy that will enable angel investors to generate a return of at least ten times their initial investment within five to seven years?

Business plan.
Have you developed a comprehensive business plan that articulates your key business strategies for how you will grow your venture?

[akula]

i can't stand it when founders shop for equity finance
it's a sign of inexperience
there are many other ways to finance a venture
equity finance is the most expensive
at any rate, with seed stage rounds, you've got adverse selection
if the founder is pitching you for money, it's the best sign you can get that you should not buy equity from this person
if they had a good deal, someone else would have picked it up already
if no one's picked it up and you're the sob looking at it - then it must be a shitty deal
a good deal is one where you find a founder who doesn't need your money and you convince them to sell you a bit of their equity

[Machiavelli]

I would have to disagree with your pessimistic view on seed stage funding Mr.Shark.

There are many instances when an individual/group has an "idea"/strategy for a new product/service or even an improvement on a current product/service and has the potential and competency to implement it and make profit, but needs that initial outlay funding that they themselves cannot supply themselves.

For an Angel, some of these are gold mines, as a small outlay can get him/her a large chunk of equity. To put in perspective, it is allot cheaper for an angel to invest in a bush then a full grown tree, although it may be riskier, the rewards can be much larger because of the ease to purchase more equity at an early stage.

I have been to numerous pitching events in the Orange County area of California (shark-tank style), when individuals/groups pitch their idea in front of dozens of angels, and many of them have come out with seed stage funding.

A company I had invested in last month at one of these fast pitches was livecage.com (this is not an advertisement lol), where the owner pitched an idea(with a well developed business plan of course), and received financial backing that same day. His own share in the company went from 100 to 60%, but in the end it is working out for all of us, he had the funding to implement his BP and we got a very nice chunk of the company for a very low IO.


Original poster, check out Fundinguniverse.com (once again, not an advertisement), they may be able to give you dates for such events in your area.

[akula]

I would have to disagree with your pessimistic view on seed stage funding Mr.Shark.

what is my pessimistic position exactly?
seems kinda upbeat to me

[generationy]

Have you check out KickStarter.com? It an awesome way to raise funds for your startup or idea etc. You can also Google other startups or websites that are similar and cater to small investments etc. Good luck!

[Karen S.]

Crowd funding is a great way to get seed funding, even to make an idea a bit more of a reality. I chose to work with IndieGoGo.com because you keep the funds you raise. Kickstarter is all or nothing, meaning you hit your goal or you get $0. Also, IndieGoGo is cheaper if you do hit your target (4%).

[guidemesingapore]

Well be careful before posting your full idea online. You should ideally have a non disclosure agreement and then show your idea/plan to potential investors.