How to Write a Venture Capital Fundraising Narrative

They got rejected by 30 VCs. 90 days later, they closed their first lead investor. Same team. Same product. Different story. When they came to me, they were exhausted. Burned by a string of VC rejections and stuck in a cycle of pitch → silence → ghosted. What changed? Not their deck. Not their market. But the way they told their story and the clarity of their ask. Here’s what we fixed: ➟ No more “here’s what we built”. We began with, “Here’s the problem.” ➟ Reframed traction to speak investor language (not vanity metrics) ➟ Built a narrative around momentum, not desperation ➟ Positioned the raise as a growth opportunity, not a lifeline ✅ Clarity of the market ✅Proof of demand ✅Founder conviction ✅A crisp use of funds ✅Evidence of velocity ✅Competitive insight ✅Realistic milestones ✅Aligned ask ✅Simple deck ✅Compelling close 10 lessons that helped them go from ignored to in-demand: 1. Investors fund momentum ↳ Rebuild your story around traction and timing 2. Data is the language of belief ↳ Make every claim measurable and credible 3. The first 10 seconds decide the next 10 minutes ↳ Lead with insight, not your origin story 4. Fundraising is sales with a longer sales cycle ↳ Qualify, follow up, close like B2B 5. A vague raise is a red flag ↳ “$1.5M to do what, exactly?” — Answer it before they ask 6. Pressure kills the pitch ↳ Invite the right fit, not approval from everyone 7. Lead with the problem, not the product ↳ Show you get the pain better than anyone 8. Make it easy to say yes ↳ Fewer slides, clearer ask, sharper logic 9. Own your unfair advantage ↳ Don’t whisper the thing that sets you apart 10. One believer opens the door ↳ The first “yes” is the hardest, then the narrative flips Rejection is feedback, but only if you listen, adapt, and level up. VCs said no. Now they’re getting intros from those same firms. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned from rejection? Comment! Repost! ------------------------------------------------------ 💯 Want to qualify for VC funding?   Take your free Fundraising Gap Analysis Scorecard. The link is on my profile page - Leon Eisen, PhD

One of the most common mistakes I see with pitch decks is founders trying to squeeze in too much information at the expense of a cohesive narrative. It’s hard to fight against the impulse to include everything. Even after seeing thousands of decks, I actually still made the same mistake when I was pitching Outside VC to investors. When I finally tightened my narrative, closing investors became so much easier. The takeaway is that in the world of pitch decks: LESS IS MORE. To create the strongest narrative possible: 1) Simplify Make your narrative simple enough that if an investor reads it once, they could then repeat the main points of the story to one of their partners. A general partner at a firm is going to need to be able to sell it to their partners and be a champion for you. Help them look smart to their peers by making the story crystal clear for them.  If the narrative is complicated or too multidimensional, it can be hard for them to tell your story for you. If you are the only one who can effectively tell your story, you’ve already lost. 2) Cut the good to get to the great Ruthlessly edit out anything that doesn’t make someone stop and say “wow”. When people invest they usually invest because of one or maybe two to three really strong pieces of data. eg an investor might think to herself: “revolutionary product, strong technical moat, concentrated market where it will be winner take most. This is a winner.” Or for another company they might think “great margins and capital efficiency, clear PMF, expanding market with strong regulatory tailwinds. We should invest.” I’m simplifying here, but in general when people draft investment memos they don’t normally list out all the reasons they are investing.  They highlight the couple of core points that are really the drivers of their decision. As a founder, I would try to think about those two to three core points. What are they for you? What is resonating when you pitch it to investors? 3) Pressure test it. The same way authors have editors, founders should have editors too. You should have friends ruthlessly go through the deck to figure out which slides are merely good, not great. Cut out slides with too much complexity (investors never read these) and slides that are weakly positive as an individual slide don’t strongly contribute to the greater narrative you are trying to tell. A good way to test whether you have a tight narrative is to come up with your 3 main points you want people to take away from your deck. Then, share your deck with some friendlies and ask them two questions: 1) can you explain to me what our company does and why it’s important. 2) What are your three main takeaways from the deck? If they can’t pitch it back to you or if you ask 5 people and their takeaways are all over the place, then you know you have room to tighten the narrative.

"This looks great, send over your deck." is investor speak for "I'm not interested or excited about your company or you but I'm not going to tell you that and this is easier so I can ghost you or reject you later." If someone is excited about your company they're talking about getting you funded and next steps on that call. How do I know this? ✅ Because I've been in sales my whole life. ✅ I had 93 investor meetings after our YC demo day. ✅ Of those 93 meetings, 90/93 asked to fund and next steps in the same meeting. And the most important part that folks don't talk about enough is: ✨ you should be picky about who you let in ✨ Raising capital is akin to finding a spouse. And it's even more important than picking a cofounder in a way. You're bound to each other for the long haul so you better have shared values, mutual respect, and admiration. Here is what helped me raise $21 million and allowed me to work with the best investors in the game! - Tell a Story, Not a Presentation: Swap dense bullet points for a narrative that captures the heart and soul of your business. Weave together data, anecdotes, and personal experiences to create an emotional connection with investors. Make them not just understand but feel the problem you're solving and the impact you'll make. - Focus on the WHY, Not the WHAT: Investors aren't just funding ideas; they're backing passionate founders. Clearly articulate your purpose, your driving force. What unique perspective do you bring to the table? How does your venture solve a problem beyond a market need? Let your passion shine through and inspire belief that you have the passion to solve it. - Build Relationships, Not Transactions: Remember, investors are humans too. Ditch the robotic pitch and engage in genuine conversation. Listen actively and understand their interests and concerns. Ask yourself if you can gain value from their expertise and guidance. Because you better want more than just their capital. Money goes fast, but the wisdom you will glean is a gift for life. - Embrace Creative Formats: Think beyond PowerPoint. Consider captivating video pitches that showcase your team, your product, or the positive impact you're making. Infographics, interactive prototypes, or even live demos can bring your story to life in a memorable way. - Authenticity is Key: Don't try to be someone you're not. Investors are the best in the business about sniffing out BS and can sniff out artificiality from a mile away. Be yourself, flaws and all. Share your story authentically, your struggles and triumphs. Vulnerability can be your greatest strength, fostering trust and a genuine connection. Good luck! And remember, you never fail if you don't give up. ✨

I blew 20 VC meetings before I realized I didn’t need a perfect pitch; I needed to show investors how I'd make them money. Here’s how I did it by focusing on milestones 👇🏾 REGULAR PITCH: I thought my pitch was smooth: "Our product is in market and we’ve gotten 7 customers and $100K in ARR. We’re raising $750K to hire engineers to move off of no-code" Sounds solid, right? Nope. 20 meetings and 0 checks in, I realized I was making a big mistake. I was telling investors how I'd use their money, not how they'd make money. MILESTONE-FOCUSED PITCH: Once I understood venture math, everything changed. My new pitch: "We're at $100K ARR with seven customers, and our product is a no-code MVP. With $750K, we'll grow to $1M ARR in 15 months - which will allow us to raise our seed round at 2-3x our current valuation." WHY THIS WORKS: Pre-seed investors aren’t investing in today’s version of your company. They’re investing in what your company can become. They need to believe that in 12-18 months, you can raise another round at a 2-3x valuation. That means if you’re raising at a $6M valuation today, your job is to convince investors that you’ll be able to raise at (at least) a $12M valuation down the road. Why do you have to double your valuation? Because VCs need to show their LPs (limited partners; the people who give them money to invest) that they're picking good companies. Happy LPs = more money for the next fund. TAKEAWAY: When fundraising, your job as a founder isn't to show investors your great company. Your only job is to convince them you'll hit the milestones to raise your next round at a higher valuation. The other parts of your pitch (team, product, GTM, etc.) are just there to support the story. What’s your biggest challenge with fundraising? Drop a comment and I’ll try to help! Save and repost this to help a first-time founder 🤝🏾