Fundraising Archives - Malloy Industries

How to Get Warm Investor Intros (And Where Boardy Fits)

The fastest way to a "yes" from an investor is a warm introduction from someone they trust. Cold outreach can work, but a vouch from a mutual connection moves you to the top of the pile. The hard part is getting those intros reliably. Here's how to engineer them, including a newer AI tool, Boardy, that's surprisingly good at it. Before you ask for the intro, line up your message with the Investor Outreach Email Templates. Why Warm Intros Beat Cold Outreach Investors see far more deals than they can take. A warm intro is a filter: someone they trust

Investor Databases: Where to Find the Right VCs to Pitch

If you're getting ready to raise, these free investor databases save you hours of research and keep you from spraying cold emails at anyone with "partner" in their title. Use them to filter by stage, sector, geography, and check size, and build a targeted list of right-fit investors before you reach out. How to Use Them Start by defining your own parameters: your round size, stage, sector, and the check size you're after, then filter each database to investors who actually match. A targeted list of 30 well-matched investors beats a blast to 300. Track them in an investor CRM

Startup Valuation and Term Sheets, Explained

You've got traction, and you're ready to raise, and then an investor asks, "What valuation are you targeting?" Valuation and term sheets feel like a foreign language until you learn to read the signals. Before you sign anything, our Term Sheet Comparison Checklist lays the key clauses side by side so you know exactly what you are agreeing to. How Early-Stage Valuation Works At the early stage, valuation is closer to a feeling, driven far more by narrative, traction, team, and market size than by financials. Investors ask: does the story make me believe, what have you proven, can this

Venn diagram comparing SAFE notes and convertible notes: what each offers and what they share

Convertible Notes, SAFEs, and Priced Equity Rounds: What to Know Before You Sign

A CEO raises $1M on convertible notes, and two years later realizes they've already given up 25% of the company, because they didn't fully understand what they signed. CEOs are brilliant at building; with funding instruments, too many wing it, and the wrong terms can cost millions. Here are the three most common early-stage instruments, in plain terms, so you raise the right way. 1. Convertible Notes A convertible note is a loan with four variables (valuation cap, discount, interest rate, and maturity date) that converts into equity at your next round. Pros: widely understood, more popular with East Coast

Chalkboard reading: Life lesson, No doesn't always mean never, sometimes it just means not yet

Turn Investor Rejections into Gold

You know what's worse than a "no" from an investor? A slow "maybe." A "no" gives you clarity; a "maybe" drags, stalls momentum, and clutters your calendar. Great CEOs don't fear rejection, they use it as fuel. Every "no" can sharpen your pitch and get you to a faster "yes." Here's what to do when you hear one. (Our full playbook is in Your Guide for Fundraising.) 1. Ask for Specific Feedback "I hate to let a good 'no' go to waste. What's your main concern? What are you afraid might happen?" Then address that concern proactively in your deck

Mike Malloy with the CEO of Under Armour

Your Ultimate Guide to Fundraising

Let me start with why I can guide you through fundraising: I've lived both ends of it. At 25, I quit a high-paying job at Deloitte and moved to the beach to build a social-enterprise sunglasses company. I raised $40K from friends and family that first year, spent a January pitching investors and retailers in California, and the next spring ran a crowdfunding campaign that raised $10K in under 36 hours. From there, I secured a lead investor from Facebook for our next round, sold sunglasses directly to the CEO of Under Armour, signed a Hall of Fame NFL quarterback

The Science Behind Winning Pitch Decks

Most CEOs treat a pitch deck as pure art: tell your story, and hope. But there's a proven structure to the decks that get funded. After DocSend analyzed thousands of fundraising decks, clear patterns emerged in slide order, content, and where investors actually spend their attention. Pair that structure with your story, and you get a deck that works. What the Data Shows DocSend's research found that investors spend an average of about 3.5 minutes on an entire deck, and the most successful decks run roughly 12 sections across about 19 slides, in an order that tells one cohesive story:

Quote over a photo of cupped hands holding a small tree: The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The second best time is now.

Nurture Long-Term Investor Relationships With the 5×7 Rule

Nobody brings an engagement ring to a first date, and no investor brings a checkbook to a first meeting. You can't cold-email 100 investors and expect wires to land in your account. Funding follows trust, and trust takes at least three meetings, sometimes three years. The good news: you can start building it long before you're raising. START EARLY, AND USE THE 5×7 RULE Begin building investor relationships before you need money. When you meet someone new, aim for five interactions in the first seven weeks to establish a lasting connection: a networking chat, a follow-up email, a Zoom coffee,

Reverse testimonials: start with the customer's doubt and end with the result

Why Investor Updates Matter More Than You Think

A monthly investor update is one of the highest-return habits a fundraising CEO has, and most either skip it or do it badly. Done well, it builds trust, keeps supporters engaged, and turns a "no, not yet" into a future "yes." Here's what to send, who to send it to, and why timing matters. (The complete playbook is in Your Guide for Fundraising.) What to Say in Your Update Keep a consistent structure (a tool like Paperstreet.vc makes it easy). Open with a one-sentence reminder of your company name (linked) and what you do; busy supporters back many startups and