Duncan Knight 

You can see an opportunity to grow, but you don’t have the money to pursue it at the pace you want. Perhaps you have raised a seed round and are considering Series A. Perhaps you have built through revenue and are wondering whether outside investment would help. Before starting a fundraising process, it is worth asking two questions: is the business ready for venture capital, and is venture capital right for the business you want to build? Those questions deserve separate ans

Preparing for venture capital funding raises questions about your growth plans, the evidence behind them and what the next stage will demand of you. I made this video with The Accelerator Network to help founders prepare for scaling their businesses and raising a Series A round. Questions to consider as you prepare As you watch, think about your own business: What would the investment enable you to achieve? What evidence supports your growth plans? Which assumptions still nee

You have raised a seed round, built the product and started winning customers. Now you are considering Series A. It can be tempting to approach it as a larger version of the same fundraising exercise. Update the deck, increase the forecast and reconnect with investors. But the business has moved on. Your preparation needs to show what you have learned, what the evidence supports and how the next investment will help you build from here. The distinction between seed and Series

When sales slow down, it is tempting to push harder. More outreach, more marketing activity, more pressure on the team. Before increasing the effort, step back and examine what has changed. Your customers’ priorities may have shifted. Your message may no longer reflect the problem they most want to solve. Or the approach that won your first customers may be difficult for anyone else to repeat. A sales strategy review helps you decide where to focus. These seven questions give

A founder once asked me to expand on why meeting people matters when you’re looking for customers, employees, investors and advisers. For me, meeting face to face offers something valuable. You have space to get to know someone beyond their job title, hear about their experiences and discover whether you would like to continue the conversation. Online conversations have their place too. But getting out of your usual environment can introduce you to people and perspectives you

You explain your business. The other person nods politely, then asks: “So what does it actually do?” It is a useful signal! You may know your product so well that you have skipped the explanation someone else needs. This happens in early-stage businesses, but it can also happen as a company grows. The product develops, the customer base changes and the original description no longer fits. A clear value proposition helps the right people understand why your business might matt

You have built something you believe in. You can explain how it works, why you created it and what you hope it will become. Then comes the moment to contact a potential customer. Suddenly, improving the website feels urgent. There is another feature to finish, another market report to read or another version of the pitch to prepare. If that sounds familiar, it is worth asking what you are putting off. Selling can feel personal when the business is yours. You are asking someon

I once met someone who had spent more than £10,000 developing their idea without speaking to a prospective customer. Two friends had said it sounded good. It is easy to see how that happens. Building feels like progress. You can see a website taking shape, demonstrate a feature and imagine people using it. Speaking to customers introduces uncertainty. They might tell you the problem is unimportant, that their existing approach works well enough or that someone else controls t

If you are a non-technical founder with an idea for a product, hiring a developer can feel like the obvious first step. Sometimes it is the right move. But before committing to a permanent hire, get clear about what you need to learn, what needs building and who will make the technical decisions. A prototype, a short development project and a product serving paying customers create different demands. They may need different kinds of support. Start with the work and the respon

Over the years, I’ve spent a lot of time helping founders develop investment decks. One thing comes up repeatedly: deciding what goes on the slides is often easier than answering the questions behind them. Who needs what you’re building? What evidence shows they will pay for it? Why is this the right team to build the business? And what would investment allow you to achieve? Your deck needs to help an investor understand those answers. Good design makes the story easier to fo