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This is how to get a venture capital introduction for your ...
alexanderjarvis.com
Quoted on this wiki
Every place a page here uses this source, in the order the words come in it.
Click on each profile and check the background of the VC. Is this the partner you want? Check your shared connections. How many do you have? This is the key starting point. Then look at each shared connection and make a judgement call how good you think that relationships is going to be. You know this by their status, work history etc. “Don’t send the template intro email, ask them first “See you know Jim at Blue Shirt Capital. Do you think you are best placed to make an intro for me?” The prospective introducer will let you know (or not) if they are placed to make the intro for you. If so, send them your template email to email to Jim so the prospect has to do as little work as possible
Click on each profile and check the background of the VC. Is this the partner you want? Check your shared connections. How many do you have? This is the key starting point. Then look at each shared connection and make a judgement call how good you think that relationships is going to be. You know this by their status, work history etc. “For each shared connection, reach out to them with a curated and specific message and ask if they are willing to make an introduction.” The prospective introducer will let you know (or not) if they are placed to make the intro for you. If so, send them your template email to email to Jim so the prospect has to do as little work as possible
For each shared connection, reach out to them with a curated and specific message and ask if they are willing to make an introduction. Don’t send the template intro email, ask them first “See you know Jim at Blue Shirt Capital. Do you think you are best placed to make an intro for me? We think Jim is great because he knows about machine learning and invested in 3 companies we respect. We fit his mandate perfectly.” “If so, send them your template email to email to Jim so the prospect has to do as little work as possible” How do I ask for the introductions to the investor? Tell me the process in detail
I write out a template message in Word which summarises why I specifically want an introduction to Martin and enough information for that person to realize that it will not be embarrassing for them to introduce me at all. This is a few lines on why my startup is cool. In fact they may even look good. I know they want to build credibility too. “This basically means adding in their first name and some other personal, social comment, so it doesn’t look like I am just trying to extract value, but that I actually care about them.” This message looks something like:
There are a number of high-profile investors and I don’t want to ask them for an introduction to another investor. That doesn’t make sense right? I see that I know four founders and one investor in another country. I am not necessarily best of friends with all of them I know them well enough to ping them a message. “I write out a template message in Word which summarises why I specifically want an introduction to Martin and enough information for that person to realize that it will not be embarrassing for them to introduce me at all.” I click on each profile and on the message button. I paste in that template message and change that for the 5 people I want to message. This basically means adding in their first name and some other personal, social comment, so it doesn’t look like I am just trying to extract value, but that I actually care about them. It is very important to always so that you care about people.
I don’t know how close you are, so can you kindly let me know if you are best placed to make an introduction for me with a view to them investing? Absolutely no worries if it does not make sense. You need to manage your relationships. “I would be happy to send you an email you can easily forward Martin (I’ll do all the work! Ha).” Alexander
What Charlie is saying in effect, is getting an intro can be ineffectual and time-consuming. So rather than pinging all your shared connections, just ping him and tell him all your shared connections. He’ll figure out if you are insane or not. This assumes you have shared connections and they will vouch for you. Do you have shared connections already? “Is cold emailing an effective use of your time?” The business plan button on VC websites are not loopholes
But Alexander, I know someone who got funded without an intro? “One VC surveyed his friends and reckons the probability of getting a meeting from a cold email is 1/600.” Yes, like everything in life there are exceptions, just few
One VC is ok with cold emails if you share friends… “Before you take that as all the evidence you need, note he expects to be able to check up on you through a shared network.” “A lot of VCs ask to be introduced through someone. If the connection is a strong, trusted one, that helps, but to be honest, there are probably less than 50 people than I would just blindly take a meeting based on an intro alone.
Since you are desperate for disconfirming evidence, I will give you one from an investor. Charlie O’Donnell at Brooklyn Bridge Ventures manages a small fund in NYC. He writes that he does not actually mind cold intros. Before you take that as all the evidence you need, note he expects to be able to check up on you through a shared network. “there are probably less than 50 people than I would just blindly take a meeting based on an intro alone.” Reality is that we’re probably connected in some way anyway through various social networks anyway and I’m very quick to figure out all of those connections to ask about you.
But Alexander, I know someone who got funded without an intro? “That’s a meeting, not invested.” Yes, like everything in life there are exceptions, just few
Click on each profile and check the background of the VC. Is this the partner you want? Check your shared connections. How many do you have? This is the key starting point. Then look at each shared connection and make a judgement call how good you think that relationships is going to be. You know this by their status, work history etc. “For each shared connection, reach out to them with a curated and specific message and ask if they are willing to make an introduction.” The prospective introducer will let you know (or not) if they are placed to make the intro for you. If so, send them your template email to email to Jim so the prospect has to do as little work as possible
Ideally, you want to make it seem like serendipity rather than you purposefully trying to get 6 people to make an intro. It can seem a little weird to get 6 intros in a short period of time, particularly with the same email template you send. I don’t know the best way to manage multiple introductions tbh, but I know I have done it. No one has made a big deal about it and I try to play it down and focus on getting to the point as fast as possible (people are too busy to dwell on this stuff.). “I do think multiple introductions can be used so that you keep getting talked about and heard since it’s social proof.” At one company we were doing really cool stuff and everyone was talking about us. A partner at a fund said “I have never heard so many people mention your startup, so I had to know more.”
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I’m lazy so I write templates. I am however totally anal about curating each email to the recipient. One mistake will blow up in your face. I triple check everything before I press send. In particular check I spell people’s names. That is a cardinal sin. “He could make an intro but there could be better people to do so.” I wait and see what the other 4 people respond. It turns out that 2 more don’t know him at all. They connected on LinkedIn and never chatted. Crap.
The category of the person who makes the intro is not so as important as the nature of the relationship of the person with the VC. It may turn out that pizza boy isn’t tight with the mob but grew up near Sand Hill and his godfather is Ron Conway. He may not be an investor, but he has a close relationship with the targeted investor. “So the best intro is, in fact, people with personal relationships.” Does it always matter how close the relationship is to get an introduction? Not for low level intros
Do not accept any offer to make an introduction! “Always ask if the person knows your target well enough to make a qualified introduction first.” How well placed are you to make an introduction to John? Do you know him well?
Click on each profile and check the background of the VC. Is this the partner you want? Check your shared connections. How many do you have? This is the key starting point. Then look at each shared connection and make a judgement call how good you think that relationships is going to be. You know this by their status, work history etc. “Don’t send the template intro email, ask them first “See you know Jim at Blue Shirt Capital. Do you think you are best placed to make an intro for me?” The prospective introducer will let you know (or not) if they are placed to make the intro for you. If so, send them your template email to email to Jim so the prospect has to do as little work as possible
12. Unfunded founders they accidentally added on Linkedin / everyone else “While these may well be potentially great sources of introductions for you they can also be dangerous.” The reason this may potentially be dangerous to you is that you do not know what a good introduction is and what a bad one is. The better sources from a better network will say upfront that their relationship is not very high-quality (and look elsewhere), but the poor source of introductions don’t know that they are a bad introduction themselves. They think by sending deal flow they can somehow curry influence when this is actually not the case. Understand that venture capital and startup is very sexy to a lot of people. Most people overstate the quality of their relationship with investors.