{"id":130,"date":"2019-10-03T06:31:00","date_gmt":"2019-10-03T06:31:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bankopen.com\/open-money-blog\/?p=130"},"modified":"2023-07-07T12:46:29","modified_gmt":"2023-07-07T07:16:29","slug":"a-sneak-peek-into-a-vcs-mind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/a-sneak-peek-into-a-vcs-mind\/","title":{"rendered":"A Sneak Peek into a VC&#8217;s\u00a0Mind"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<p>Ask any entrepreneur, and they\u2019d tell you that a <em>major challenge in bringing their startup idea to life is raising funds<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Startup founders sweat it out time &amp; again to create a killer pitch. And some of the thoughts that truly haunt them while they are at it are\u200a\u2014\u200aWhat do investors actually look for in a startup? What are things that I need to keep in mind here?<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>So, we turned the mic on the man behind the fund himself, Pranav Pai, the founding partner at 3one4 Capital\u200a\u2014\u200aone of our amazing investors at Open.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>And we geared up for an amazing <em>OpenUp session &#8211; Reverse Pitch with 3one4 Capital<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>The session saw Pranav spill the beans on what 3one4 Capital looks for in their dream startups. He gave some amazing insights for entrepreneurs to rev up their startup to the next level.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Let\u2019s dive in!<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The question on everyone\u2019s mind<\/strong><\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>If granted a wish, every startup entrepreneur would want a peek into a VC\u2019s mind. Just to know what goes on there during a pitch session<strong>. <\/strong>And that\u2019s what everyone was most curious to know about at our OpenUp session.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"457\" class=\"wp-image-136\" src=\"https:\/\/bankopen.com\/open-money-blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Pranav-Pai-Blog-3.jpeg\" alt=\"Quote by Pranav Pai, 3one4 Capital on things startups need to keep in mind \" srcset=\"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Pranav-Pai-Blog-3.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Pranav-Pai-Blog-3-300x171.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/12\/Pranav-Pai-Blog-3-768x439.jpeg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Pranav Pai says\u00a0, \u201cVCs don\u2019t really expect you to come with 100% answers. They just want your startup idea to be powerful enough to drive a generation\u201d. You have to know the space you\u2019re diving into to a T to make the person across the table believe in you. If you\u2019re able to ace that one question that none of your competitors have, then their money is all yours.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Another key insight that he shared was that, currently <em>late stage venture funding is growing much faster than early stage funding. <\/em>That said, if you\u2019rean early stage startup there\u2019s nothing that should stop you from pitching to VCs. Just reverse engineer your plan before entering a pitch session. You might strike a chord with the investors &amp; get that funding you\u2019ve always wanted.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What could make or break your game?<\/strong><\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Pranav also threw some light on other areas that play a <a href=\"https:\/\/bit.ly\/2ncJxyd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>pivotal role in getting your startup funded<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p><em>Generating an all-powerful business model with a clear motivation for your idea<\/em> is of absolute importance. If you are a growing startup seeking venture funding then you have to be sure about the \u2018return generating capacity\u2019 of your money.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p><em>Building a great team<\/em> &amp; <em>seamless execution<\/em> is another aspect that VC funds look for. As a startup founder, you\u2019ve got to make sure that your teammates are aligned with the bigger picture of your startup.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>One of the least tangible factors is Timing\u200a\u2014\u200a<em>you should be able to convince the investors that this is the right time for your startup to go out in the market.<\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Another game-changer that could get you funded by some amazing VCs is <em>developing a positive feedback loop &amp; winning the trust of your stakeholders<\/em>.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Join the #OpenUp Club<\/strong><\/h4>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>We hold a great OpenUp session every month. Right from reverse pitches, ask me anything sessions, to meetups with startup experts, closed door pitches and more.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Stay tuned to <em><a href=\"https:\/\/bit.ly\/2nbbMNB\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">be the first to know<\/a><\/em> when we announce the #OpenUp for this month.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>Meanwhile, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/groups\/1880485358922761\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">join our OpenUp Club<\/a><\/em> to connect with amazing network of entrepreneurs &amp; have candid conversations about the good, bad, and dark side of building one\u2019s own empire.<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>We\u2019ll be waiting for you hustler! \ud83d\ude4b<\/p>\r\n<!-- \/wp:post-content -->\r\n<p><style type=\"text\/css\">\r\n.simple-subscription-form {\r\n  background: #f2f5f8;\r\n  color: #222;\r\n  padding: 1rem;\r\n  border-radius: 0;\r\n}\r\n.simple-subscription-form .button {\r\n  border-radius: 25px;\r\n  padding: 10px 20px;\r\n  background-color: #663399;\r\n  color: #fefefe;\r\n  border: none;\r\n  font-size   : 100%;\r\n}\r\n.input-group-field{\r\n  padding: 10px;\r\n  margin: 8px;\r\n  border: 3px;\r\n}\r\ninput[type=email], select {\r\n    padding: 12px 20px;\r\n    display: inline-block;\r\n    border-radius: 4px;\r\n    box-sizing: border-box;\r\n    font-size   : 100%;\r\n}\r\n<\/style><\/p>\r\n<div class=\"simple-subscription-form\"><form>\r\n<h5>Subscribe via Email<\/h5>\r\n<p>Liked this article? Subscribe to our monthly newsletter. We don&#8217;t spam. Promise! \ud83d\ude0a<\/p>\r\n<div class=\"input-group\"><input id=\"input-email\" class=\"input-group-field\" required=\"required\" type=\"email\" placeholder=\"Email\" \/><button class=\"button\">Subscribe Now!<\/button><\/div>\r\n<div id=\"thankyoumsg\" hidden=\"\">Thank you for subscribing. \ud83d\ude0a<\/div>\r\n<\/form><script>\r\n  function sendClevertap(e) {\r\n      e.preventDefault();\r\n    var email = document.getElementById('input-email').value;\r\n    console.log(email);\r\n    console.log(clevertap.getCleverTapID())\r\n    document.getElementById('thankyoumsg').hidden = false;\r\n    clevertap.onUserLogin.push({\r\n     \"Site\": {\r\n       \"Email\": email,\r\n       \"blog subscribed\": true\r\n     }\r\n    })\r\n  } \r\n<\/script><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Ask any entrepreneur, and they\u2019d tell you that a major challenge in bringing their startup idea to life&hellip;","protected":false},"author":56,"featured_media":1915,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"csco_singular_sidebar":"","csco_page_header_type":"","csco_page_load_nextpost":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[32,31,34,35],"class_list":{"0":"post-130","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-announcements","8":"tag-3one4-capital","9":"tag-pranav-pai","10":"tag-startup-funding","11":"tag-vc","12":"cs-entry"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/56"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=130"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/130\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=130"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=130"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/open.money\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=130"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}