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How to Secure Seed to Series A Financing

Learn about investor fit and more from Gilt Co-founder Alexandra Wilkis Wilson, Jenny Fielding of Techstars, and Brad Gillespie of IA Ventures.

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By
Karl Alomar
Karl Alomar
By M13 Team
Link copied.
May 17, 2021
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3 min

In the founder journey, the challenge of raising capital is a priority and can seem like a mystery, especially from inception to institutional investment. M13 is all about execution and accelerating outcomes for founders, so I gathered a panel of experts and M13 friends in early-stage investment and on the operating side to unpack a company's journey from Seed to Series A.

Our conversation covered the challenges and opportunities in the cycles that the market and investment community naturally go through all of which have been accelerated by COVID-19.

The M13 constellation includes lots of superstars on the founder and investor side. Participating in our Seed to Series A discussion were:

When it comes to funding, there are practical tips for founders and managers across different sectors. Together we explored what qualifies a company for seed investment, starting the journey with an investor, and knowing when you’re ready.

Alexandra brings expertise from her previous roles as Co-founder/CEO at leading on-demand mobile beauty services company, GLAMSQUAD; and Co-founder/CEO of wardrobe organization service, Fitz; and Co-founder at e-commerce sensation, Gilt. Alexandra is currently SVP of Consumer Strategy and Innovation for pharmaceutical company Allergan.

_Jenny speaks from her experience as Managing Director of Techstars in New York, where she leads the program. She is also the founder and General Partner at The Fund, a first check fund investing exclusively in New York-based companies. Jenny’s insights also stem from her corporate venture and digital innovation role at BBC Worldwide, where she made strategic investments and led business development deals.

_Brad helped start IA Ventures in 2010, having seeded over 100 companies including Datadog, The Trade Desk, Flatiron Health, Transferwise, and DigitalOcean. Spending over 15 years in product, technology, and leadership roles prior to IA, Brad holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Below is a recap of our conversation, followed by the full discussion.

What qualifies a company for seed investment today?

  • Product-market fit with market validation: Many investors are seeking someone who deeply understands their customer’s problems and can deliver against that.
  • Raw potential: Investors are looking to see if there is excitement and raw potential around the concept.
  • A great founder track record: Being a second-time founder and having a track record helps give a better understanding of the potential.
One thing you really want to be able to demonstrate is engagement. Do you have consumers who love your product or service? Are they investing their own time and energy to give you feedback because they really want your business to exist?
Alexandra Wilkis Wilson

What sort of investor should you look for?

Think about the investors you want before you need them. Start building those relationships. A lot of investors do track you and your company's growth for a pretty substantial period of time.

The early stages are not formulaic. Think of unique combinations of qualities you can sell to an investor. Do you have incredible metrics? Are you a second-time founder? Find ways to sell your credibility.

Relate to your investor on a human level. Investors who understand your business on a more personal level will relate better to your vision and could be better positioned to help the company.

The highest value for me in that engagement is actually seeing how you, the founder, are thinking and evolving the business over time.
Brad Gillespie

How do you know when you’re ready?

  • Cash is king. You need to have your eye on your cash constantly. Understand your burn. Are you being as prudent as possible? It's best to raise capital when it's not needed.
  • How are you packaging your company? Ask yourself if you can prove an irrefutable product-market fit.
  • Show that you understand pain points. Investors value a customer domain expert.
Investors come in many flavors, and we just encourage founders to get to know them as much as they can… Don't just think about valuation or reputation really—do I have a connection with this person because they're going to potentially be helping me or not helping me for the next 10 years?
Jenny Fielding

How should investors think about guiding companies to the right lead investors for the next round?

  • Raise off of narrative and raise off of metrics. There is always a balance between narrative, which sells the vision, and metrics that essentially prove the narrative. In the early days narratives must lead but over time, your metrics should eventually tell the story for you.
  • Look ahead to a more profitable mindset. How are we building a company that is sustainable?
  • Why can this be a truly important company? Why will it be truly legendary down the road? The journey validates later-stage investment.
  • Engagement matters. You must have an understanding how your users are using your product or service, and why.

One of the key takeaways here, as Brad says, is that “engagement ultimately ends up being something every investor … views as valuable.” When it comes to growing and acquiring funding, now and in the future, there needs to be engagement and a product-market fit. Watch the full video below for our insightful roundtable conversation.

Looking for more guidance on funding? Subscribe to our newsletter.

In the founder journey, the challenge of raising capital is a priority and can seem like a mystery, especially from inception to institutional investment. M13 is all about execution and accelerating outcomes for founders, so I gathered a panel of experts and M13 friends in early-stage investment and on the operating side to unpack a company's journey from Seed to Series A.

Our conversation covered the challenges and opportunities in the cycles that the market and investment community naturally go through all of which have been accelerated by COVID-19.

The M13 constellation includes lots of superstars on the founder and investor side. Participating in our Seed to Series A discussion were:

When it comes to funding, there are practical tips for founders and managers across different sectors. Together we explored what qualifies a company for seed investment, starting the journey with an investor, and knowing when you’re ready.

Alexandra brings expertise from her previous roles as Co-founder/CEO at leading on-demand mobile beauty services company, GLAMSQUAD; and Co-founder/CEO of wardrobe organization service, Fitz; and Co-founder at e-commerce sensation, Gilt. Alexandra is currently SVP of Consumer Strategy and Innovation for pharmaceutical company Allergan.

_Jenny speaks from her experience as Managing Director of Techstars in New York, where she leads the program. She is also the founder and General Partner at The Fund, a first check fund investing exclusively in New York-based companies. Jenny’s insights also stem from her corporate venture and digital innovation role at BBC Worldwide, where she made strategic investments and led business development deals.

_Brad helped start IA Ventures in 2010, having seeded over 100 companies including Datadog, The Trade Desk, Flatiron Health, Transferwise, and DigitalOcean. Spending over 15 years in product, technology, and leadership roles prior to IA, Brad holds a Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering.

Below is a recap of our conversation, followed by the full discussion.

What qualifies a company for seed investment today?

  • Product-market fit with market validation: Many investors are seeking someone who deeply understands their customer’s problems and can deliver against that.
  • Raw potential: Investors are looking to see if there is excitement and raw potential around the concept.
  • A great founder track record: Being a second-time founder and having a track record helps give a better understanding of the potential.
One thing you really want to be able to demonstrate is engagement. Do you have consumers who love your product or service? Are they investing their own time and energy to give you feedback because they really want your business to exist?
Alexandra Wilkis Wilson

What sort of investor should you look for?

Think about the investors you want before you need them. Start building those relationships. A lot of investors do track you and your company's growth for a pretty substantial period of time.

The early stages are not formulaic. Think of unique combinations of qualities you can sell to an investor. Do you have incredible metrics? Are you a second-time founder? Find ways to sell your credibility.

Relate to your investor on a human level. Investors who understand your business on a more personal level will relate better to your vision and could be better positioned to help the company.

The highest value for me in that engagement is actually seeing how you, the founder, are thinking and evolving the business over time.
Brad Gillespie

How do you know when you’re ready?

  • Cash is king. You need to have your eye on your cash constantly. Understand your burn. Are you being as prudent as possible? It's best to raise capital when it's not needed.
  • How are you packaging your company? Ask yourself if you can prove an irrefutable product-market fit.
  • Show that you understand pain points. Investors value a customer domain expert.
Investors come in many flavors, and we just encourage founders to get to know them as much as they can… Don't just think about valuation or reputation really—do I have a connection with this person because they're going to potentially be helping me or not helping me for the next 10 years?
Jenny Fielding

How should investors think about guiding companies to the right lead investors for the next round?

  • Raise off of narrative and raise off of metrics. There is always a balance between narrative, which sells the vision, and metrics that essentially prove the narrative. In the early days narratives must lead but over time, your metrics should eventually tell the story for you.
  • Look ahead to a more profitable mindset. How are we building a company that is sustainable?
  • Why can this be a truly important company? Why will it be truly legendary down the road? The journey validates later-stage investment.
  • Engagement matters. You must have an understanding how your users are using your product or service, and why.

One of the key takeaways here, as Brad says, is that “engagement ultimately ends up being something every investor … views as valuable.” When it comes to growing and acquiring funding, now and in the future, there needs to be engagement and a product-market fit. Watch the full video below for our insightful roundtable conversation.

Looking for more guidance on funding? Subscribe to our newsletter.

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The views expressed here are those of the individual M13 personnel quoted and are not the views of M13 Holdings Company, LLC (“M13”) or its affiliates. This content is for general informational purposes only and does not and is not intended to constitute legal, business, investment, tax or other advice. You should consult your own advisers as to those matters and should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of this content. This content is not directed to any investors or potential investors, is not an offer or solicitation and may not be used or relied upon in connection with any offer or solicitation with respect to any current or future M13 investment partnership. Past performance is not indicative of future results. Unless otherwise noted, this content is intended to be current only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others. Any investments or portfolio companies mentioned, referred to, or described are not representative of all investments in funds managed by M13, and there can be no assurance that the investments will be profitable or that other investments made in the future will have similar characteristics or results. A list of investments made by funds managed by M13 is available at m13.co/portfolio.