The 2009 Get Funded Challenge!!!

Get your company funded in 2009! Show investors that you are ready for the business challenges facing all businesses in the coming months. Does your team have the right stuff?

There is no doubt that getting funding in 2009 is going to be more difficult than in previous years. The VC's have decreased their investment outlook and individual investors are tightening their belts. This environment increases the competition for funding. Entrepreneurs need to work harder to get their companies funded.

To assist in helping aspiring startup companies to get funding in 2009 I am running a challenge through the month of February. The objectives of this challenge are as follows:

1.) Conduct A Company Self Assessment - Is your company ready for the funding expedition? There are a number of items that are critical for success in getting funding. The challenge will help you to determine if you are ready to go or if more work is required before you go out into the market.

2.) Organization - The challenge will force you to think objectively about how best to structure your company and pitch to improve your chances of getting funding. The discipline of organizing your information and asking yourself key questions well be good preparation for the inevitable investor pitch.

3.) Presentation - Appearance, articulation, command of the facts and the ability to captivate an audience matter. You may have the best idea and company imaginable but without an excellent presentation it could easily be overlooked or misunderstood.

4.) Exposure - My blog receives traffic from 47 countries. This traffic includes many investors looking to fund the next big opportunity and entrepreneurs looking for funds. When I publish the results of the competition investors will see your company and will reach out to you if they are interested.

All plans must be submitted to me by February 28. I will post the top plans on my blog on March 15^th.

I will select no less than 1 and no more than 3 companies.

All plan information will be confidential . If you want to be covered by an Advisor and Confidentiality Agreement I have posted a web version for your review.

What do I need from you? Please read my previous blog "The 10 Best Ways To Improve Your Chances Of Securing Venture Funding" to understand what it really takes to get funded. Translate those requirements into the following items.

1.) A PowerPoint presentation of no more then 10 slides that demonstrates your ability to concisely and quickly convince investors that your company can be a winner.

2.) Link to your company web site, prototype, product alpa/beta version, etc.

3.) Main contact and e-mail address.

4.) Details about your business including the following items.

a.) Company name and business organization. Is it a corporation, LC, LTD, etc?

b.) Age of the company.

c.) The country/region/state/province where your company is domiciled.

d.) What round of funding is this? Seed, A, B, etc. How much institutional or angel money has been invested in the business to date?

e.) Leadership team member details.

f.) A description of your product or service.

g.) Target customer profile.

h.) Competitors and where you line-up in relation to the competition.

i.) How much money are you asking for and how are you going to use the money.

j.) When will you be profitable?

k.) A two year operating budget that includes marketing, development, equipment, personnel and revenue projections. Please provide this in spreadsheet format.

l..) What is the cost of acquiring a customer and what is the lifetime value of a customer.

m.) What wave are you riding?

n.) What waves have you created?

o.) What makes your company different?

p.) If you have been out raising money what are investors telling you?

Please submit this information and the Advisor Confidentiality Agreements to my email address at kflood6@gmail.com.

I will review as many plans as possible during the month. I may have questions which will require your contact details. Please limit all your questions to essentials and submit them to my e-mail address only.

Good Luck!!!