April 3, 2024

209. Send the Update!

209. Send the Update!
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Season 4

Text your thoughts directly to Rich.

Consistently sending investor updates maintains awareness, opens opportunities for serendipitous introductions, and demonstrates transparency about the company's progress and challenges.

Follow more of Allyson's writing on the VC Minute Substack: https://vcminute.substack.com/

About AVL Growth Partners
AVL Growth Partners, founded in 2009, is the leading fractional Finance and Accounting firm supporting organizations in pivoting from growth to scale. AVL brings an experienced team of CFOs, Controllers, and Accountants to your organization, delivering transparent, strategic actions for short and long-term success. Transform your financial approach affordably with AVL, supporting companies coast to coast - get to know AVL Growth Partners at avlgrowth.com. (Sponsored)

About SpringTime Ventures
SpringTime Ventures seeds high-growth startups in healthcare, fintech & insurtech, and logistics & supply chain. We look for founders with domain expertise, forging a path with a truly transformative technology. We only invest in software-based businesses in the USA. We bring a people-focused approach, work quickly, and reach conviction independently. Our initial check size is $600k. You can learn more about us and our approach.     

Transcript
WEBVTT

00:00:01.000 --> 00:00:05.950
Over the last several months, I've talked to dozens of companies that are interesting, but too early for SpringTime.

00:00:06.610 --> 00:00:11.710
I always ask to be added to any investor updates, but I'm always shocked how few founders actually send them.

00:00:12.439 --> 00:00:20.149
As discussed in episode 1 74, recency bias is real, especially for investors who see in talk to dozens of companies weekly.

00:00:21.019 --> 00:00:25.879
Updates help founders stay top of mind and increase the chances of serendipitous intros.

00:00:26.550 --> 00:00:34.039
In episode 1 74, an update from a founder prompted Rich to connect the dots and introduce the founder to an investor he thought would be a great fit.

00:00:34.429 --> 00:00:38.090
Without the founder sending an update, it's unlikely that connection would have happened.

00:00:39.109 --> 00:00:42.740
Beyond staying top of mind, routinely sending updates shows investors.

00:00:42.740 --> 00:00:45.679
You can communicate, a highly valued trade and founders.

00:00:46.130 --> 00:00:49.100
Early stage investors know things don't usually go as planned.

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That doesn't bother them.

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Not communicating or waiting too long to communicate about the twist and turns does.

00:00:55.969 --> 00:01:05.609
As episode 1 74 points out the thoroughness of an update is less important than consistency, but the following are some basic tenants of a great update: 1.

00:01:05.629 --> 00:01:09.439
The very first item in your update should be a one-liner on what your company does.

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As we've already mentioned, investors meet with hundreds of companies a year and no matter how much they want to, it's impossible for them to remember what each one does.

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Help orient your readers by providing some quick context.

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2.

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In addition to what your company does, it can be helpful to outline your north star into our key metrics.

00:01:28.370 --> 00:01:31.819
There's not only helps to start establishing a trend line, but also shows investors.

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You understand what's critical for the business.

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3.

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Include an ask section.

00:01:37.400 --> 00:01:41.959
You never know who is reading your updates and who might be able to help with a very specific request.

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Increase the odds of serendipity by outlining, where you could use support.

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4.

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Keep it succinct.

00:01:48.950 --> 00:01:57.439
There will be times when you should write extensive briefs to your current investors, but for more general updates to folks who haven't invested my recommendation is to keep it short and sweet.

00:01:57.829 --> 00:02:04.280
Unless it's a portfolio company, seeing an update with a wall of text is overwhelming and I'm likely not going to read through it all.

00:02:04.609 --> 00:02:08.030
Ideally, it should not take readers more than a couple of minutes to get the gist.

00:02:08.520 --> 00:02:13.620
Consistently sending investor updates is crucial to staying relevant and building trust with investors.

00:02:13.860 --> 00:02:18.030
Keep them simple and focus to engage readers and hopefully get support along the way.