It’s Not What You Do And How You Do It

Written on September 23, 2010 – 10:18 pm | by Michael Harris

I’ve just spent a few minutes reading a very interesting piece about the start-up scene and funding events from Ben Colclough in which he raises an interesting point – there more start-up events then you could shake a stick at. Virtually every day and evening of the week could be spent rubbing shoulders with people in the same boat as you. But whilst you’re trying to stop your business idea from sinking you could actually getting further from securing funding.

One of the topics that many people raise when talking about our SpeedFunding events is that there is a cost. It’s a financial one. But what’s the alternative? Crawling through countless start-up events, not being able to get away from other entrepreneurs talking about how great THEIR idea is, trying to squeeze through impossible gaps because you’ve caught sight of someone with “Angel Investor” or “Venture Capitalist” on their badges – that’s if they do have badges – how can you spot an Angel Investor in a crowded room anyway?

We pitched to eight Angels which resulted in follow up with four of the groups. We are currently in discussions with two. We also found the event to be a highly effective networking opportunity, both prior and after the pitch event we had the opportunity to meet with both entrepreneurs and investors – Simon Cholmeley

How many events do you have to go to anyway to pin down an Angel Investor for 5 minutes let alone be able to hear what they’ve got to say? Is it 3 events, 4, 5, more? What are you going to do when there’s a queue of 20, 30, 40 other entrepreneurs hovering around that entrepreneur? Surely there’s a better way? Well we wouldn’t be describing the problem if we didn’t have a solution.

Yes there’s a not inconsiderable cost to attending our events. The cost may be £799+vat. But how many evenings spent with your family or refining your business idea does it save? How much is your time worth? Perhaps more importantly, how much is the Angel Investor’s time worth? For that price you have one-on-one time with ten to fifteen Angel Investors within a SpeedFunding setting which allows you to decide if you can work with that Angel Investor, and vice-versa. You can then spend an hour or more on the evening talking with those Angel Investors with a maximum of fourteen other start-ups. No shoulder-barging to remove your competitor, no fumbling for business cards in the dark, no “sorry, I can’t hear you for this damned techno whatchya call it?”, and no getting interupted by other start-ups.

Having now used Angels Den myself, I was able to get done in a little under 2 hours what would have taken me months, which is get in front of multiple investors and pitch my idea. – David Coleman

But that’s not all you get. Our goal is to increase the chances of start-ups getting funding. It’s in our best interest. We don’t want any entrepreneur to get to the SpeedFunding stage and not be prepared. The Angel Investors that attend have probably seen hundreds of business plans, if not thousands. We know that, and we know that we have to get those paying entrepreneurs funded. That’s why we encourage entrepreneurs to attend our free funding clinics were we will be blunt with people. We’ll tell entrepreneurs that don’t have much chance of getting funding up front – and we’re sure that start-ups would rather we told them over a nice coffee than after they’ve spent £799+vat on joining Angels Den.

Our experience was very positive and constructive. The event was well primed and managed …leading to several interested investors already. We have found the team helpful, professional and approachable and we look forward to close continued engagement as our business takes off. – Sophie Jones, Green Energy Fuels

Between the funding clinics and SpeedFunding events we have a number of Regional Managers whose job it is to help you along the way. They’ll be there to answer your questions, look at your business plans, sanity check your ideas, support you in the decisions you make. Basically they’re there to maximise your chances of getting funding.

Angels Den has been a great resource: helping us to create a professional Executive Summary and Plan; develop a three minute pitch; and present live to ten investors in an evening. Result so far: two hot prospects. All at a totally affordable price. Brilliant! – Michael Wolff, CEO, ki-work.com

Tell me where you get that kind of opportunity?

But don’t take our word for it. See what people have actually said about the events and then cross-reference that with your memories of events you’ve attended in the past:

“The SpeedFunding event was the first day of the rest of my life. A life changing event that I would recommend to anybody. It is probably the best money I have spent in my whole life. Words can’t convey how much I thank you for all Angels Den has done for me. You and all the team at Angels Den are stars”. – Matthew Horbury, Founder of Dice Room Games

Upcoming Events

Why not visit some of our FREE Funding Clinics in your region and see if you can take advantage of the opportunities waiting:

Free Funding Clinics in London
Free Funding Clinics in Scotland
Free Funding Clinics in Leeds
Free Funding Clinics in Singapore

Or if you’re ready to meet Angel Investors:

Thursday 30th September – Scotland
Tuesday 5th October – London
Thursday 7th October – Leeds
Thursday 28th October – Scotland
See here for SpeedFunding events in November and December

Perfect Business!