Investor Connect Podcast

Hall T Martin

Hall T Martin interviews angel and venture capital investors on how they invest and talks with CEOs who discuss their sector and what to look for. Hall T Martin also leads the Startup Funding Espresso series in which you can learn about startup funding and investing in the time it takes to have an espresso. https://investorconnect.org/

  1. 19H AGO

    Startup Funding Espresso – Track Interest, Committed, and Invested

    Track Interest, Committed, and Invested Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In raising a round of funding, most founders focus on the invested funds so far. When asked about the progress, the founder quotes the invested amount and the amount left in the raise. This undersells the traction the founder has. In addition to the invested, also track the interest and committed funds. For each investor who has some interest, ask for their level of interest. Add up all the interested investor amounts. For those who are committed but not yet invested, add up those funds as well. In discussing with prospective investors, quote the interest, commitment, and investment. This shows additional interest from investors in the round. A typical update would be, in our $1M raise, we have $600K invested, $250K committed, and interest at $800K. It's often the case that the interest and committed funds are greater than the remaining amount in the raise. This creates scarcity and generates FOMO with the investors who now see that there's not enough room to cover all potential investors. Use this to help close the fundraising round. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  2. 1D AGO

    Startup Funding Espresso – Prioritize Investor Follow-Up

    Prioritize Investor Follow-Up Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Startup founders raising funding will encounter a range of investors with varying levels of interest. Founders should prioritize their follow-up and focus on the investors with the greatest likelihood of making an investment with the least amount of work. A lead investor can be quite helpful but will require substantial time and effort on the part of the founder. Budget time for the lead investor. Close the easy ones first. These are often angel investors with small checks who typically run a light diligence process. They invest $25K to $50K on average. After that come angel groups that have a process for vetting deals. The application process can be heavy, but once it's done, the angel group process happens on a known timescale. A typical angel group will invest $150K to $300K, if not more. After that come microVCs, who typically write $150K checks on the first round. Their diligence will be more substantial. Finally, the standard venture capital fund will require a full diligence review with an initial investment of $500K. Start with the easy ones and work your way up. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  3. 2D AGO

    Startup Funding Espresso – Investors Want Optionality

    Investors Want Optionality Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Investors follow many startups before investing. They stall in making an investment to be certain it's a good one. They look for additional information about the startup, its product, and market before making a final decision. Investors want optionality. They want to have as many options available as possible. This gives them a better return on their investment. Many investors drop out of a deal without telling the founder. They want the option of coming back in if the deal turns out to gain traction or momentum later. This leads many founders to chase investors who have basically said no to the deal. Founders should ask for the investors' status on the deal. Are you interested? If so, how much are you considering investing? Assuming an investor is interested without confirmation is a dangerous situation. Once the investor decides on a deal to fund, they typically say no to other deals in the running. Gain clarity with prospective investors about investing in your startup. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  4. 3D AGO

    Startup Funding Espresso – One and Done Is Not Going To Work

    One and Done Is Not Going To Work Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. In raising funding, the founder will need to follow up with the investor to close. After the pitch, some founders send one email to follow up. The one-and-done approach to follow up will not work. It takes multiple follow-ups and outreach to close an investor. The investor is searching for more evidence that the startup will be successful. This could be information around the growth of the market, the productivity of the technology, or the strength of the team, to name a few. Continue to give regular updates to the investor with a focus on traction and market adoption. It takes seven touches to close a sale, so it takes seven touches to close an investor. Budget time and resources for the follow-up effort. Set up systems such as a CRM to provide updates to the investors following the deal. Set up follow-up calls and meetings to showcase the results of the business. It takes time to follow up, but that's where the results come in. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  5. 6D AGO

    Investor Connect 864: Revolutionizing MedTech Compliance and Traceability with Enlil, INC.

    In this episode of Investor Connect, Hall Martin speaks with Nader Fathi, CEO of Enlil Technology, about the innovative strides his company is making in the MedTech industry. Based in Campbell, California, Enlil Technology emerged from the Shifa Fame Innovation Hub. Their AI-powered platform brings compliance, product lifecycle, and regulatory traceability into one unified system for medical device and digital health companies. Designed to reduce complexity and enhance operational efficiency, Enlil's platform streamlines processes from concept to commercialization, empowering MedTech companies to navigate FDA and other regulatory pathways efficiently. Nader delves into the genesis of Enlil, explaining how it spun out from the internal needs of Shifa MedTech's portfolio companies. Initially developed to aid in internal compliance and process management, Enlil was commercialized in early 2022 and has rapidly gained traction, adding over 34 companies to its user base. The platform leverages a proprietary AI called Lilly, which aids in search functionalities, report generation, and even automates critical tasks such as FDA submissions, significantly accelerating product development timelines and reducing costs. The conversation also highlights Enlil's go-to-market strategy, including their expansion efforts on the global stage. Despite focusing primarily on the U.S. market in 2022, Enlil has garnered international interest from countries like India, Singapore, and Japan. Nader emphasizes the necessity for startups to implement robust systems early to avoid scalability issues and successfully navigate the complex regulatory environment. Reach out to at nader@enlil.com ________________________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https:/_/tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    21 min
  6. 6D AGO

    Startup Funding Espresso – Fundraising Takes Time and Focus

    Fundraising Takes Time and Focus Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Fundraising is a full-time job. It takes time and focus to do it properly. For some founders, it's a job within a job. In running a fundraise campaign, the founder should consider it their full-time job. Their startup duties should be handled by someone else for the time it takes to raise the round. Some investors will come in more easily than others. For those investors who want to be in the deal and are ready to join, have them sign the investment documents. This is often done with a convertible note in which the valuation is not set. Most investors will require time and attention to close. The lead investor, in particular, will take time to negotiate the valuation and other deal terms. Be sure to budget time and attention for the lead investor negotiation. These often take up to two months to complete. In engaging investors, identify the type of investor you are talking to and understand how much time it will take to close the investment. Always continue the fundraising process till the money is in the bank. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  7. FEB 12

    Startup Funding Espresso – Why Use Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs)

    Why Use Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Special Purpose Vehicles or SPVs are the use of a legal entity to gather investors into a startup investment, which takes one place on the cap table. This works well when there are many investors with small-dollar investments. SPVs bring many advantages to the founder, the VC fund, and the angel group leader. Here's a list of advantages: For the VC fund, the SPV allows for the investment into a deal outside of its fund. This works well for follow-on rounds, in which case the VC does not want to add more of their fund into it. For example, the fund can only invest in seed deals, but a portfolio company is now at a later stage and needs more funding. This also works for the angel group that wants to bring investors into the deal with check sizes below the minimum amount. Angels often use the SPV to create syndicates for specific deals that fall outside the investment thesis of the group. Founders find SPVs useful to keep their cap table clean of numerous small investors. Founders often use SPVs to bring in additional investors after other groups have finalized their investment. Consider using an SPV in your fundraise. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
  8. FEB 11

    Startup Funding Espresso – Advantages of a Venture Studio Model

    Advantages of a Venture Studio Model Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing. There are several models for running a VC fund. The venture studio model is one of them. It brings additional support to the startup. The venture studio creates a set of startups in a sector with various skills and capabilities. As the startups progress, some raise funding while others do not. Some startups are able to sell their product while others are not. As startups stall or shut down, the team members can move to other startups in the group that are succeeding. Here are the advantages of a venture studio model: The venture studio model brings an advantage to startups in finding talent. The venture studio is able to leverage the skills of the entire cohort into a few successful startups that succeed. The studio is able to share experience from one startup with the others. The venture fund is able to take on earlier-stage deals as it has the ability to test, filter, and build successful ones. Consider the venture studio model for your startup. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let's go startup something today. _________________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.

    2 min
4.9
out of 5
8 Ratings

About

Hall T Martin interviews angel and venture capital investors on how they invest and talks with CEOs who discuss their sector and what to look for. Hall T Martin also leads the Startup Funding Espresso series in which you can learn about startup funding and investing in the time it takes to have an espresso. https://investorconnect.org/