Investor Connect Podcast

In this episode, Hall welcomes Dr. Suri Ganeriwala Founder and President of Spectra Quest Inc. Spectra Quest, Inc. is a leading developer and manufacturer of complete Turn-key Systems for training and diagnosis in Machine Vibration Analysis, Rotor Balancing, and Shaft/Coupling Alignment. The system includes Machinery Fault Simulators, Interactive Training Program, Data Acquisition Hardware/ Softwa...

Six months to build it and six months to sell it. Today, we'll talk about what to build first in your startup. Some startups suffer from what I call the "Vision Problem". They have a vision in their mind about what the product/service should look like AND they have to have it on the first day they launch their business. Truly great visions take years to put in place. You'll need to go to market wi...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Henry Liu of Yeoman's Growth Capital. YGC is a venture studio focused on driving enterprise adoption of blockchain. They identify enterprise blockchain needs within Fortune 500 companies, then launch, fund, and staff new ventures to pursue those opportunities. Henry was the head of investments for an open-source technology focused family office. He is a sought-after...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Robert Morris of TerrAvion. TerrAvion provides high revisit rate aerial imagery for agriculture. Since 2016 they have been the largest volume provider. Robert founded TerrAvion in 2013. His professional mission is to make robotics work for agriculture. Robert led the first drone platoon in Afghanistan, where he realized that drones are not a scalable, cost-effective...

Show the system behind your goals Today, we'll talk about establishing a growth story for your startup Investors fund deals based on the team, the market, or the technology. While these are popular investment thesis, the investment decision often comes down to what I call "the Growth Story". This is your operational revenue model showing how you acquire customers and how much they pay for your pro...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Jason Hull, Cofounder of Broadtree Partners. Broadtree Partners is a group of entrepreneurial investors focused on acquiring businesses where the owners are looking to transition from their current roles. They specialize in providing opportunities for owners to smoothly exit their companies and seamlessly change leadership, while preserving their legacy. As Jason put...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ronald LeMay CEO of Main Street Data. Main Street Data was formed in 2017 to bring precise data to the agriculture world. While data has improved in many other industries, agriculture remains behind the curve and Main Street Data has set out to change that. Main Street Data enables ag-related organizations to dive deeper than ever before into the data and insights th...

Validation -- the Product Works and People will Pay for It Today, we'll talk about demonstrating product and market validation In talking with startup investors the first two questions that come up are Product validation and Market Validation. The product works and someone will buy it. Investors look for evidence of this before moving into further diligence so it's important to show this in your p...

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Hélène Thibieroz, founder and senior managing partner of We Grow Green Tech. We Grow Green Tech focuses on accelerating growth for green technology innovation and impact by partnering with early to late-stage companies. In a previous episode, Hélène talked about shifting her career three years ago to enter the green technology space, combining her passion for th...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Christian Garces of Texas ColdWorks. Texas ColdWorks is the first state of the art public cold storage complex being developed in Austin, Texas. With over 280,000 SF, it will house food producers, co-packers, and logistic companies. Before Texas ColdWorks, he was the founder and CEO of Tableaux. A manufacturer of architectural products, both for residential and comme...

For family and friends funding -- no one is getting paid back Today, we'll talk about raising funding from family and friends Many startups launch their business with family and friends funding. Some entrepreneurs are often reluctant to take money from their family because -- well Thanksgiving turkey tastes different if things don't work out. On the other hand, investors view funding from family a...

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Will Szczerbiak of Greycroft Partners. Greycroft is a leading venture capital firm focused on investments in the Internet and mobile markets. Greycroft leverages an extensive network of media and technology industry connections to help entrepreneurs gain visibility, build strategic relationships, bring their products to market, and build successful businesses. G...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Bruce Worrall CEO of IntellaSphere. IntellaSphere is the first Brand Affinity Marketing System. They help businesses/#SMBs market more effectively using a socially collaborative approach. Brand Affinity Marketing builds brand awareness and recognition with prospects and strengthens brand loyalty with customers. It's an all-in-one service that's simple, affordable and...

Find customers to pay for the product before you build it Today, we'll talk about product development for startups. In growing your business you must prioritize what products you develop. In developing a new product it's helpful to ask 'who is going to pay for it' before you spend money on it. The goal is to match the costs to sources. For existing product upgrades this could be current customers....

In this episode, Hall welcomes Richard May of Invest in Texas Initiative. The Invest in Texas Initiative is a statewide non-profit industry trade association of economic development officials, attorneys, consultants, developers, business owners, and other related service providers. Their mission is to promote the Texas investment landscape internationally. Before Invest in Texas Initiative Richard...

Look for the right investor to lead your deal, not just the first investor Today, we'll talk about finding a lead investor for your deal. I'm often approached by a startup who has several investors interested in their deal but no one wants to lead it. This is not surprising given how much work goes into leading a deal which includes setting the valuation, selecting the key terms, and performing du...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Kirk Otis of Merger Partners. Hall and Eric talk about how companies can move their marketing function from a startup stage to a growth stage company. Merger Partners, a mid to lower market Investment bank, focuses on connecting entrepreneurs, business leaders, and management teams with the PE Capital market in order to fund acquisitions and growth initiatives. Kirk...

Today, we'll talk about how to value your startup. Since startups don't have significant revenue then how do you value your startup when fundraising? Traditional tools such as discounted cash flow, book value, and other standard accounting techniques don't work for early stage companies. For startup valuations we use the rule of 4. For each value you have built into the business for revenue, team,...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Gale Bowman of IrishAngels. IrishAngels was formed in 2012 as an angel investment network affiliated with the University of Notre Dame. Investors in the network all have ties to the university and they currently have over 230 investors in their active network. IrishAngels focuses on seed-stage investing. They look at companies that are raising rounds of $1 to $3 mill...

Today, we'll talk about the documents you need for your fundraise. The first document is the pitch deck. This is usually ten to fifteen slides introducing your deal to the prospective investor. It should cover the basics of the business including the problem you are solving, the solution and product you are offering, the competitive advantage, your business model, the team, financial projections,...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Ed Pearce of Paragon Digital. Before investing in early-stage companies, Ed was an attorney for many years. He was general counsel of two publicly-traded companies. When both companies sold, he went to work for a venture capital firm in Dallas. Ed has a love for starting companies and coaching people through the process. He's been with different companies that made d...

Today, we'll talk about the different type of investors you will find in the startup world. There are four type of investors for your startup -- Venture Capital, Angel Investors, Family Offices and High Networth Individuals. There are lenders who provide debt financing but that's a topic for another day. Venture Capitalists are professionals with experience in the startup world coming from either...

In this episode, Hall is joined by Eric Bielke with GE Ventures. After working with one of the early firms in Data Science, and a foray as an entrepreneur in the solar energy space, Eric joined the VC space focusing initially on energy investments. More recently, Eric has been focusing on aerospace and space tech. He talks about some of the latest developments in aerospace, as well as provides adv...

Today, we'll talk about the deal structure you should use for your fundraise. There's equity, and then there are convertible notes and SAFE notes. If you want a straight loan, then you should use a promissory note. Equity agreements set the valuation for the company and various terms of governance, preferences, voting rights and more. A convertible note is debt that is intended to convert to equit...

On this episode, Hall welcomes Jeff Canin of E8 Angels and Element 8 Venture Fund. Element 8 Ventures is focused on entrepreneurial ideation, experimentation, research and education. They are investing in entrepreneurs that are tackling grand challenges, pushing the boundaries of innovation, and disrupting age-old practices, whilst creating new industries to drive socio-economic development. After...