Forums: Discussions for entrepreneurs and small business.

First off, I just want to say that this is such a great website.  I have yet to find anything like this so far.  Everyone here is so knowledgeable.

My company has been in business for a couple of years now.  We sell cutting edge monuments for the cemetery industry.  Recently, we have decided that we want to be millionaires, and not thousand-aires anymore.  That's when we came up with a streamlined product that everyone is going to want for their deceased pets.  So, we did the natural thing and laid out a killer business plan.  Then we put together a killer one-page-proposal.  Then we put together an elevator pitch in the form of a video.  Then I started sending out the proposal and the pitch.  Everyone I sent it to happened to be the wrong type of investor.

So where to find investors interested in anything other than High Tech Software startups?  I have no idea.  We are willing to do anything it takes to launch this plan.

Where do I go next?  We need about $650k.

Thanks for all your insight guys.  I am here to learn.

DAN

Our product is insanely killer.  And the few locals that we do sell to, they always say, "Where we're you 5 years ago when my so and so died."  When you have something people will want, the next step is awareness.  Awareness takes money, and if you have sunk everything into product development, where do you go next to get the product sold.

.........it's money right?  Of course it's money.  It's always about money.

Then there's companies like mine.  No software high tech.  Just dealing with the reality of death.  Everyone dies. Every Pet Dies too.  Is there money to be made on dying Pets?  Of course.  That's why we developed a new product to deal with dead pets.

I've had a lot of the Sand Hill Dr. Ventures tell me that the idea and proposal was killer, but they dealt only with High Tech Software companies.  That was a kick in the ol'..........

I guess that's how I ended up here.  Looking for money.  Well, not looking for money from you guys, but merely just ideas on where specifically to look for it outside the friends and relatives circle.

Thanks Again.

DAN

www.RoastedStone.com

Dan, I think the biggest obstacle you’ll face with your idea is to overcome the stigma of death. It may provide for a great business opportunity because eventually everybody will die (pets included); however, most people rather stay clear of any death related undertakings (no point intended) J.

 

The second problem I see, is that you probably turned to the wrong type of investor. I don’t know what type of investor you approached, but it’s important to understand the individual makeup of an investor, including investment preferences, risk tolerance, and financial return expectations, to even stand a chance of kindling interest in your offering.

 

Knocking doors on Sandhill Road isn’t going to get you anywhere. Not only because you’re not a high-tech start-up, but also because your capital requirements of “only” $650,000 are simply too low for a traditional private equity deal to make sense.

 

There’s an interesting white paper available on our website that details the entire process of marketing a restricted securities offering to high-net-worth individuals and other qualified investors. The document includes proven research and marketing techniques, a number of reputable resources, and even sample marketing collateral.

 

This white paper is available at http://publications.fastventures.com/reaching-high-net-worth-individuals-with-your-private-placement

 

I think that reviewing this paper will help you develop a better understanding of the process of raising outside financing and hopefully help you avoid some common mistakes and pitfalls along the way.

 

I hope this helps.

 

 

 

Mark

 

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Jackson Steiner
http://www.JacksonSteiner.com

Advanced Document Design for entrepreneurs, intermediaries, and the financial services industry.
http://www.Publications.FastVentures.com

Dan,

From our experience (and that of our clients) we've determined that the "how" is a greater factor in successfully acquiring capital - than the "where".

I say this because

1 Part of the "how" is being prepared (we call it Capital Ready) and part of the preparation is choosing your optimum capital strategy - which to a great degree defines the where.

2. When on follows a proven process (another part of the how) - they are much more likely to arrive at the the right place (where).

As you have said, the "traditional" venture capital community (aka Sand Hill Road) is not likely to be enthused by your product / industry.   Which doesn't necessarily mean that no one will.

 

If you'd like to discuss the specifics of your situation, send me a PM or contact me directly.

-------------------------

Business Growth Masters, LLC -
Capital Catalysts for Entrepreneurs
Home of the Scalable Business Plan and QuikStart Capital Programs
http://www.bizgrowthmasters.com
info@bizgrowthmasters.com

Thanks for all the great advise guys.  As far as approaching my local Chamber of Commerce,...................been  there done that.  I've attended many social networking events in our community and chamber gatherings.  No luck. Everyone's always trying to sell me something in their product line-up.  Thanks guys, but I have all the  Melanluca and nutritional products I can use.  Lot of lip service too at those meetings too.  I'm here because I want to make hundreds of millions of dollars, not hundreds of hundreds of dollars. (Sorry.  I'll stop ripping on our Chamber now.)

But you're right about one thing:  Word of mouth referrals are everything.  At least they are in my business.  If someone comes into my headstone monument shop as a referral, it's an instant sale.  Same thing with our local funeral homes.  A referral from them is a sure sale.

So I just need to find that rich doctor with the 2 Lamborginis and 3 Porsches sitting in his garage to invest in my company, right?  I agree that this is the prime candidate for investments under a million bucks.  But I'm blue collar and don't have a lot of rich doctors on speed-dial.

Off the subject here, but does anyone know where to get business credit cards that only check your business credit?  Just curious.

Thanks.

DAN