Guest writer: Tim McEneny
By: Tim McEneny (Former Chairman and CEO of PurchasingNet, Inc.)
Note: This is the first of a three part series describing how entrepreneurs can get the most out of a meeting with a Venture Capitalist (VC).
Part 1- How to maximize your company’s value before meeting with a Venture Capitalist
Part 2-Understanding Venture Capitalists and other potential investors
Part 3-Making a Presentation to a VC…..Do’s and Don’ts
Months before thinking about meeting with a Venture Capitalist (or any potential investor), you’ll want to focus on ways to increase the value of your business. The greater the value of the business, the more likely you’ll be to draw interest from the VC community.
How do you determine the value of your business today? How do you start to increase its value? To answer these questions, you’ll need to look at it thru the eyes of the VC. Today you may be concentrating on improving customer satisfaction, but this may not be an “A item” for a VC. Let’s examine the “Value Drivers” most important to VC’s.
In the case of our internet software company, the main “Value Drivers” were:… (more…)
Entrepreneur Life 101 