How to attract an investor to a small business. How to attract an investor to develop your own business

01.12.2019

Investing has become quite common modern form earnings in our country and abroad. Almost everyone has thought about investing their savings in some kind of project. But the problem of attracting investment is still the key one in Russia.

The definition of "attracting investment" in modern economy has such a meaning: it is an investment of savings from an individual or a company in a project in order to generate income. Investors are called investors.

There are many classifications of attachments based on different criteria. Here are the most important ones.

They can be divided, for example, according to the object to which the investment activity is directed:

real investments - investments in construction, major repairs;
financial - investments in securities, including through investment funds, issued credit funds, as well as leasing;
speculative - trading in non-ferrous metals and securities.

Depending on the form of ownership, certain groups of depositors are formed. Taking this into account is extremely important when attracting investors to your business.

Also, an important criterion for dividing contributions into groups is the form of ownership investment resources... This classification is based on the features of finding and attracting investments in your project. Here they distinguish:

state - issued to ensure strategically important projects and may even fully cover the project costs;
private - investments from private investors;
foreign - investments from persons who are not residents of the Russian Federation. This also includes deposits from foreign companies.

Investment attraction methods

There are several ways to raise funding. The main and common ones include:

investment in the authorized capital of the enterprise;
debt financing;
bank lending with collateral;
bond loans.

By investing in the authorized capital of an enterprise, the investor buys a stake in the business. That is, he has a block of shares in his hands, which confirms his rights as a co-owner (shareholder).

In the case of debt financing, investors are lenders. All funds allocated to the company are registered as debt.

Collateralized bank lending provides for obtaining borrowed money for a certain period. Shares and assets of an enterprise can be used as collateral.

Bond loans are essentially loans that are issued to the borrower who issued the bonds. Such securities confirm the right of the owners to receive the par value from the borrowing company on time.

How to interest and attract an investor?

How to interest an investor and motivate him to make a contribution? In order for a person or company representative to want to invest in any project, he must make sure that this project is profitable for him. This is called investment attractiveness.

It is believed that in order to guarantee the attraction of investors to your business project, you need to go through 4 consecutive steps. If everything is done correctly, the question of how to attract investors will no longer be a headache.

Step one - choosing a partner in whose reliability you can be sure

First of all, in order to find a depositor, you need to imagine how he will react to some circumstances. For example, the behavior of investors often depends on the stage of its development in the proposed business project. At the initial stage of its development, it is not of particular interest to them, so the search for an investor and investment becomes at this time the biggest problem.

Money is invested in a completed project most often, because in this case the risks and revenues that accompany it are already visible.

Step number two - correctly convey information to the target audience

The easiest way is to search for contributors in the same field of activity to which the project belongs, since usually in in this case they will feel more confident and knowledgeable, making it easier to attract investment. But it also happens that one investor invests in completely different areas.

To correctly submit your project, you need to work it out well, arrange it in an attractive form for the investor, with a justification of all its merits. This task can be left to the consulting service. Also, the project must indicate the total amount of investment that is required for it.

The main goal of this stage is to prove to the investor that the project is profitable for him, quite real and profitable.

The success of attracting an investor at this stage depends on how well you presented your project.

The third step is to negotiate confidently

If a business project is well described in the submitted resume, then a potential investor can offer a meeting. First of all, carefully read his proposal, compare whether it matches your needs.

If the investor's offer is not particularly interested, then you can take a little time and wait for responses from other potential investors.

Prepare for the meeting in the most careful way so that there are no hesitations in your answer to investors' questions. Prepare and practice the oral presentation of your proposal, yourself and your team. You should present yourself as brightly and energetically as possible.

Step four - signing the contract

Attracting an investor and all agreements that have been reached between you must be documented. This gives grounds in case of non-compliance with the contract to bring to responsibility the party that violated it. Documentary confirmation is the final stage.

To fix all the conditions for the provision of a deposit, a document is drawn up called "Terms of the transaction". Requirements for its preparation:

designation of all conditions that relate to the relationship between the project owner and the investor;
unambiguity, clarity and unambiguousness of their writing, so that it does not complicate their interpretation in case of disputable situations;
a clear and complete indication of the forms and volumes of investments, as well as the designation of punishment for non-compliance with the terms of the contract.

Be optimistic

Most large projects cannot do without financial injections from outside, and if you decide to attract investment and get support from investors, then you need to pay attention to several important points... First of all, let's talk about the mistakes of investment seekers and how to avoid them.

During the preparation of a project, many business owners first of all think about where and how to find an investor, how to convince him to invest money. In order to achieve this goal, you need to focus less on it, and bring to the fore the idea, efficiency and attractiveness of the project itself. Having hit in the search for a source of capital investment, you run the risk of reaching a dead end - to spend all your efforts on this process, abandoning the development of the project itself, because of which it will cease to be of interest to investors. Get involved in business development, make it attractive for investment, and then investors will not keep themselves waiting. Moreover, they will find you themselves.

Another tip is to learn to distinguish between donkey stubbornness and determination. Serious investors have their own requirements for the projects in which they invest. And if your company does not suit them by any parameters, then you should not bang your head against a closed door - it may be better to change the format of your project or adjust the plan for receiving monetary reinforcement. Perhaps, instead of attracting a financial investor to your business, it is better to sell a controlling stake or even the entire enterprise to a strategic investor. Or maybe at this stage it is better to do without funding altogether and grow your project on your own.

Such a shift in intermediate goals can save you from many misses. Think over your tactics, looking at the question from the point of view of investors - would you have invested money in your project if it were presented by an outsider? Ask this question periodically in the course of your work, but remember - finding investors is not an end in itself, but only a means to promote your company.

The first thing to worry about when planning to attract investment is to find out what type of investor is most suitable for your goals.

Yes, they are different, they pursue different goals, and therefore the objects of their attention are significantly different. A financial investor counts on short-term cooperation and aims only at increasing his profits, while a strategic investor wants to establish control over the company by acquiring a controlling stake. The investor can be a private or large financial institution, may be located in your country or abroad. All these nuances will seriously affect their interests, so you need to know for which particular investor your project may be attractive.

How serious is your own financial base? Do you have liquid collateral that qualifies for a loan? What opportunities can you offer a strategic investor? Will you master long-term cooperation with an institutional foreign investor?

Consider the standard requirements of each type of investor and determine which of them is most profitable to cooperate with, whose conditions you yourself will be able to fulfill. And only then start looking for a depositor. When you get to know an investor, the first step is to find out what type he belongs to. If it does not suit you, feel free to refuse and do not waste your and his precious time.

Not knowing what type of investor is right for a particular business often lets applicants down - most often they do not even think about who they need and what goals they are pursuing. Because of this, misunderstandings often occur in communication with investors, to whom applicants unknowingly attribute non-existent properties.

Domestic or foreign?

According to statistics, up to 95 percent of our investment projects are not of interest to foreign financial investors. A start-up and small business, as well as risky and experimental projects, have critically little chances.

For example, startups do not have financial assets, therefore, are not attractive to large foreign investors. They will have to develop on their own or rely on grants, government programs and business angels from their own region.

Business related to technological development and production, too, will not be of interest to foreigners due to the too long distance - they simply will not be able to exercise actual control over the company. In addition, the assets of such enterprises are usually classified as low-liquid, which means that in case of trouble, they cannot be quickly sold at a cost close to market value.

In the business of innovation, the main assets are the intellect and knowledge of developers, licenses, patents, and technology itself. Financial investors who do not delve into the technical and scientific details do not perceive such assets as values \u200b\u200bthat can be quickly put into circulation in the event of a company collapse. But it is precisely the ability to quickly exit the business without losses that is the main condition for cooperation between investors and businessmen.

Imagine a scenario of a technology project being ruined - how to convert its assets into real money to cover the investor's losses? To do this, you will have to hire specialists and experts; it will take a long time to assess and sell assets. Financial experts will not wait that long - they are only interested in companies where you can quickly sell everything in order to get back the money spent. Moreover, to cooperate with a financial investor, it is necessary to go through a rather complicated procedure for concluding an agreement, to compensate for overhead costs. Not all innovative projects can do this.

Such proposals will be more interesting for strategic investors, whose investments are already involved in the same business area. But do not forget that strategists are not inclined to make small infusions - they acquire a controlling stake with subsequent control of enterprises, and you need to be ready for this.

The search for foreign investors for small businesses will also in most cases be unsuccessful - the profit from such investments is too small.

Imagine that you are an investor. Does it make sense for you to finance a small business on the other side of the world for a fraction of the shares? Would you give a loan for starting a small business abroad, knowing that in case of failure, the borrower, most likely, will not be able to return the money to you? To pay for the procedure for the withdrawal and sale of assets, considerable funds are also needed - and with small deposits, this amount may even be more than a loan that has not been returned. Therefore, many investors do not want to be scattered, investing small amounts in various enterprises. It is easier for them to invest large capital in a large campaign, from which the return will be much more tangible and the likelihood of ruin is much lower.

Because of this, foreign investors have a certain lower threshold for amounts less than which there is simply no point in investing. If the applicant for investment needs a smaller amount to develop his business, then his offer will not even be considered, no matter how interesting it may be. Most often, for foreign investors, this lower threshold is $ 10 million - and no less.

Therefore, it is better for Russian small entrepreneurs to apply for loans from local banks and rely on cooperation with business angels.

Investors consider the issue of investing in medium-sized businesses individually in each case. For example, if a company is ready to go to a more serious level and needs investments in order to expand to the scale of a large business, then it has every chance of getting them. The main reason for the refusal is the shortcomings of the project documents - this usually stems from the lack of funds to pay for financial consulting of specialists and the registration of the due diligence procedure.

Most of the proposals of foreign financial investors concern big business in Russia - it is their projects that can claim to receive investments from foreign partners. This happens because large companies have a clear and transparent financial and management structure, the proposed projects really have good perspective development and are able to bring high dividends, and the collateral is highly liquid. Thanks to this, the investor can influence the work of the company even from another country, so distance no longer plays such a significant role.

But there is one "but" - in order to get financial aid, the project must meet all the requirements of the investor. Most often, applicants from the sphere of large business, corresponding to the rest of the parameters, fail precisely at this point - their projects are simply incomplete.

In addition, job seekers often make life difficult for themselves because of their own megalomania and the belief that it is their offer that is most unique. They believe that they are a godsend for the investor and condescend to him, allowing him to invest money in themselves. But they do not take into account the peculiarities of foreign deposits arising from the huge physical distance between the investor and his ward.

Foreign investors cannot be private traders

Most Russian entrepreneurs in search of an investor make the same classic mistake - they believe that a foreign financial investor is a single entity. Therefore, they hope to win his sympathy and, at the expense of the human factor, win the race to obtain the desired investment.

But large investors cooperating with other countries are entire companies, not individuals. Therefore, it is better for our applicants to represent a foreign investor not in the form of a respectable gray-haired man in an expensive suit, but in the form of a set of activities and procedures that must be completed.

Businessmen who trust American films, where far from ideal projects were funded by the personal charisma of the applicant, are doomed to failure. An investor has no emotions, he consists of a large number of people, each of whom performs his function according to a certain set of rules in force in this company. These rules and requirements are the most important criteria that must be followed when looking for an investor.

Investments are aimed at development, not saving the company from bankruptcy

A considerable number of projects come to investors from structures, albeit large ones, but in this moment going through hard times. These applicants think that having received investments they will be able to survive the black streak in their affairs and save the company from bankruptcy. But investors are not rescuers, and they do not intend to engage in charity work.

The loan is given only to those applicants whose enterprises are working perfectly, do not experience any difficulties and are so profitable that it is time to withdraw them to new levelexpanding the business.

A business on the verge of bankruptcy is of no interest to an investor. Let's look at the situation through his eyes again: if the enterprise is on the verge of collapse, then its management has chosen the wrong strategy of work. This means that their credit can be equally wasted. As a result, instead of profit, they will receive a bankrupt company and a bunch of procedures to withdraw their money from a bankrupt business. But successfully operating firms will be able to increase the received funding, so investing in them is more profitable and less risky.

Documenting the project

Before starting the search for an investor, it is necessary to thoroughly think over the project, complete all the documents and provide the investor with an ideally designed package. This is especially true for foreign financial investors - it is very important for them that the project documentation is drawn up at the highest level.

By presenting an unfinished project to the investor, the applicant demonstrates that he himself does not really know according to what scenario his business will develop in the future. But the investor does not have the slightest desire to lend his money to the entrepreneur for unclear purposes. He has a lot of proposals from other applicants, he must compare them and find out which of the projects is the most viable and can bring the greatest profit. If the project is not finalized, it is unlikely to be done, so such proposals will be screened out first.

Often, applicants think like this: "We will provide the investor with a project, and if it is accepted, then we will start developing a business plan." The paradox is that for an investor, a project without a business plan is not complete, in this form it is only a business idea. Until the investor sees all the financial calculations for the project, he will not be able to review and approve it.

When collecting documentation for your project, be as honest with yourself and the investor as possible. Of course, he needs to present the most advantageous details of your proposal, but you cannot exaggerate them and paint impossible prospects. Since you will have to document any of your promises, such "exaggerations" can cost you investment - no partner wants to cooperate with a person who is unable to take responsibility for his words.

Be optimistic

Investors are extremely sensitive to the mood of the applicant. If he is optimistic, believes in the success of his event and is eager to develop, he is more likely to receive financial assistance. This speeds up the process considerably.

Investors are not evil guys who want to "fill up" your project. They should only objectively consider it, find positive and negative points in order to correct the latter for further advancement towards the applicant. Or refuse investment if there are too many shortcomings.

If the applicant treats the procedure for attracting investment as a military action, where the trophy is money, and investors are enemies who need to be defeated, then such cooperation will begin to flow at the first stormy wind.

Take an investor's perspective

Forget that you are always right, you cannot make a mistake. You may be doing everything right from your point of view, but the investor may think differently. Overcome selfishness and look at your project from the perspective of a contributor. When communicating with all participants in the upcoming cooperation, try to understand their logic and the reasons for certain decisions. Constantly put yourself in the shoes of an investor or consultants, think about how you would act if you were in their place. This approach will help you to be more flexible - and this quality is always of great importance for business people.

If you have come to the conclusion that your project will be of interest to investors, and the money they have invested will help achieve the goals set, feel free to take up cooperation. But keep in mind that investors operate on strict algorithms and do not deviate from their protocols. You will not be able to force them to do what suits you - it is impossible to reverse the strategies that have developed over the centuries of the investment business. The only tactic available to you is to understand all the laws and rules of this complex game and learn how to comply with them. If you understand that this game is still too tough for you, just postpone your plans to a later time, engage in independent business development and prepare for the difficult process of attracting investment.

If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.

Large-scale plans require investment cash injections. What do you need to get a business investment? Where to look for investors and how can they be attracted?

You will learn:

Why do they attract business investments.
What types of investments are there.
How to write a business plan for an investor.
How to interest a private investor.

For every startup there is necessary condition, without which nothing will come of it. This is the start-up capital. To get the required amount of money, you can limit yourself only on your own. For example, sell everything that you have, or save for a long time. However, there is an easier way to find money - business investment. But how do you get them and where can you find investors?

Why you need to attract business investment

Any business needs money to develop. Otherwise, you will be stuck in a dead end, not even having time to start active actions. It often happens that a good idea "burns out" even during planning, since everything depends on the lack of funds.

You must always remember that besides you, there are many more people in the world who may come up with a similar idea. Therefore, you should not hesitate in its implementation. Most likely you will be outstripped by competitors who managed to find investments in a similar project, while you were trying to make money on your own.

According to statistics, the majority large companies started from scratch with almost no start-up capital, and used investments and loans.

Nowadays, it has become much easier to find investments in a business project. For this purpose, various investment funds are specially created to help novice businessmen.

However, you need to understand that not everyone will be able to receive money from funds. You should try to convince investors that your project is better than others, describe all its advantages and prospects, and be sure to prepare a business plan to attract investment.

Many investors easily identify exactly those projects that will become the most profitable. They do this based on their experience.

Ultimately, you will not be able to get money from investors if you do not first convince them that your project will bring a good and quick profit. There is also the possibility of obtaining a grant, but this method is complex and highly competitive.

Dmitry Potapenko: "Close your business if you consider yourself a king, not a servant"

Most of our entrepreneurs have a crown on their heads. They see themselves as creators and believe that they have some kind of personal freedom. However, most of the companies led by these managers do not correspond to the changes that have occurred in the market over the past eight years. The work processes are not built, the service is not established, the employees work anyhow.

Why is this happening, Dmitry told the editorial board of the magazine "Commercial Director".

Types of business investments

All investments have the same essence, however, they are classified into several types, about each of which you must know the basic information.

Classification occurs according to certain featured:

Depending on the ownership:

Investing in your own business

This type is considered by investors as one of the best. If an investor is experienced, has start-up capital and all the knowledge, then if he wishes, he can start his own business by investing his money in it.

The main advantages of this type of investment are:

Self-realization and achievement of goals.
Huge profit.

However, it will not do without drawbacks:

You risk a lot, because business is sometimes unpredictable.
You must have basic business skills.
In addition to money, you will spend a lot of time and effort.
Quite a substantial initial investment.

Investing in someone else's business

This method is much easier to implement. You only need to invest money, and knowledgeable people will already be engaged in how to make them work. All organizational issues will also not lie with you.

Depending on the volume of investments:
- Full financing of activities.The bottom line is that there is only one investor here. Most often you can find it in starting your own business.
- Partial funding.This so called share, with investors' money making up the bulk of the capital.
Depending on the stage of investment:
- Investing in startups.This type of investment consists in the fact that money is invested directly into the idea itself, in order to bring it to life.
- Investments in an existing business.

Sometimes existing projects need additional funds, in order to develop further. In this case, the company already has clients, a certain field of activity that makes a profit.

Depending on the form of the profit received:
- Active income -in this case, the investor is the head of the company.
- Passive income -in this case, the manager is a hired third party.

By type:
- Straight -funds are invested directly in the assets of a particular firm.
- Portfolio -all the investor's funds are distributed among the assets of various companies.

Expert opinion

Direct investments are risky investments with business involvement

Ivan Rodionov,

director of the Direct Investment Fund AIG-Brunswick Millennium Fund, Moscow

Many young but rapidly growing companies are often faced with a situation where they need to significantly increase capital. Therefore, they have two options: to grow at a rate that allows their current income, or to attract direct investment in business development. Direct investments are investments with high risks and direct investment of funds into the company's capital. In this case, the direct investor will be involved in the affairs of this firm as a partner with its own interests. In indirect investments, the investment objects are chosen by third parties, not the owner of the capital.

Dealing with Investors: 4 Easy Ways to Lose a Business

Who is ready to invest in small business

There are several types of financing. So how do you determine the source to go to? It depends on several factors: the stage of business development, its state, type of activity (service sector or production sector).

Friends and acquaintances.

Close friends, acquaintances, or relatives can be passionate and interested in even a simple outline of your future business. Only good friends will invest in your project, guided by one faith in you. Using this method, you run the risk of ruining relationships with those people who have invested in you. For example, if your project fails, then they will start demanding a refund from you, which you will not be able to implement in the near future, and if you succeed, then someone will not like the interest you paid them.

Investment funds.

These are associations of various legal and individualsconnected by the main goal - getting money.

There are a huge number of types of investment funds, which are determined by the area of \u200b\u200btheir investments. However, they all have one feature: they invest only in time-tested business areas and do not cooperate with innovative projects.

Banks.

The most popular and easiest way to find money is to contact a bank. However, this method has two big drawbacks. The first is the collateral. Moreover, the loan that you take cannot exceed 70% of the collateral value. The second is interest, which not everyone can pay.

Venture organizations.

The capital of such organizations consists of investments from individuals. They often invest in the development of innovative and knowledge-intensive technologies and industries.

The nuances of this method:

Big risk, but big profit if successful.
You receive investment for a reason, but sell a share in the enterprise, which can be redeemed if desired.
The investor has every right to interfere in the business implementation process.

Business angels.

This term refers to investors who invest their money in a firm that is only at the idea stage. Therefore, if your project has not reached the level at which it is too early to apply to various funds or a bank, then you can use the services of business angels. In most cases, "angels" are people who have already managed to raise their business and earn good money on it, which they are going to start-up entrepreneurs.

Originally, "angels" appeared in Silicon Valley, so one of the most popular areas of investment is the technology industry.

The advantages of this type of investment:

You do not need to leave a deposit and look for guarantors.
Investors are eager to invest in small businesses.
The investor in this case is an experienced entrepreneur, which means that he can give you advice and help you with development.
It is much easier for an investor-businessman to understand the essence of your idea.

Business incubators.

These are organizations that help novice businessmen to implement their project, while greatly reducing their costs. Most often they are located in empty areas of industrial facilities.

If you want to get into a business incubator, you must apply. In the future, it will be considered by the administration. If the application passes, you will receive a substantial starting bonus.

The benefits of business incubators:

When renting space and equipment for organizing production, you receive benefits for five years.
If you need help finding an investor and running a business, you will be consulted for free.
The scope of your activity does not affect the consideration of the application.

State.

The state promotes the idea of \u200b\u200bcreating private companies, therefore it is engaged in

Sources of investment in your business project:

Territorial (city, region) funds that support private business.
Corporations that combine regional investments with private investors.

There are a large number of different grants and subsidies from the state.

The big advantage is that there are now a lot of different technoparks and technopolises, as well as special economic zones.

Even though receiving public investment in business projects is not a particularly effective and very time-consuming method, do not forget about it. Yes, you will have to deal with collecting documents, communicating with officials and, quite possibly, face frequent refusals. However, if you find an experienced consultant or you have acquaintances through whom you can pass through the pull, then you will get good funding without any problems.

State aid to business in 2017: with whom the state will share the money

Attracting business investment: five basic steps

To search for investors is carried out faster and more efficiently, it is important to act consistently and in accordance with the recommendations developed by professionals.

When making investments, investors are guided primarily by their own commercial interests. It is important to understand this, and therefore in the process of searching for sources of investment, the interests of the owner of financial resources must be taken into account.

Potential investors are concerned about the safety and growth of their financial capital, so they are not interested in how much profit the business will bring to its owner and how disruptive and innovative it will be.

Some investors don't care about business ideas, they are looking for passive incometired of active business development. Such depositors have accumulated initial capital, which they got with great difficulty, and the only desire of such investors is to make a profit on their investment without much effort.

When looking for an investor, you need to convince him that he will receive the desired income. The instructions below are essential. Its step-by-step compliance will help increase the chances of a quick and high-quality search for the necessary funds.

To get an investment in a business from scratch, you need to go through five consecutive steps:

Step 1. We draw up a business plan to attract investment

First of all, when choosing an investment object, investors pay attention to the business plan. It should be correctly drawn up and executed, otherwise there is an opportunity not to receive funds.

IN mandatory a well-written business plan should contain the following information:

project description;
calculation of the required amount of money;
analysis of the commercial benefits that the investor will receive;
payback period of the project: after what period of time the first income will be received;
what are the prospects for the further development of the organization.

When drawing up business plan professionals recommend paying attention to every little thing.

A person reading a business plan should be trusted by literally everything: the quality of the paper on which the document is written, the appearance of the folder in which it is nested, even the use of professional graphic editors in the design.

We will describe in more detail how to draw up a business plan below.

Step 2. Choosing a suitable form of cooperation

Cooperation between a business owner and an investor takes various forms. It is important to analyze in advance which one will be most effective for the company looking for investment.

Investors agree to provide funds by earning income in the following ways:

as a percentage of the invested amount;
as a percentage of profit during the entire duration of the project;
as a share in the business.

The business owner, having previously decided on the option, must definitely indicate it in the business plan. Nevertheless, it often happens that it is difficult for a novice businessman to find the necessary investments.

If a potential investor strongly disagrees with the provided model and wants to use another option for cooperation, this option should be evaluated. As practice shows, it is better to agree to its terms than to be left without money.

Step 3. We resort to the help of experienced businessmen

Aspiring entrepreneurs can be sure that no one will understand them better than experienced businessmen who have been successfully working in this area for a long time. Most of them willingly help beginners with advice. Especially when these councils acquire a mutually beneficial form of cooperation.

Experienced businessmen often take beginners under their tutelage: they can give investments for a business project to novice entrepreneurs or recommend a project for investment to other businessmen. Even if this does not happen, it is quite possible that the professionals will give valuable advice and recommendations to help in the future.

Step 4. We conduct negotiations

Very often, a positive decision of investors to invest in a project is determined by competent negotiations. You should carefully prepare for them, even if you easily find a common language with people and have good public speaking skills.

It is necessary to competently answer the questions that a potential investor has and convince him of the prospects of the project. It would be most prudent to think over all the topics for the conversation in advance and prepare clearly formulated answers.

From the first meeting, investors usually expect a competent presentation of the project, as well as a business plan.

Successful negotiations can also be facilitated by inviting a specialist who participated in the development of the project. It will help you to more thoroughly and better cover all its nuances and answer the most tricky questions of investors.

Step 5. We conclude an agreement

In case of a positive result, the last stage of negotiations is the signing of an agreement on cooperation or investment. It is important to carefully study all the terms of the contract. It is even better if you have a professional lawyer nearby.

The agreement must contain:

term of cooperation;
amount of investments;
rights, as well as obligations that are assigned to the parties.

The funds are transferred to the businessman on certain conditions, in accordance with the agreement being concluded. Their essence lies in the fact that finances should be invested precisely in the implementation of the project.

The signed agreement must exclude the possibility of misuse of funds. Even part of the money invested should not be spent on needs that do not relate to the implementation of the project.

An entrepreneur should follow the step-by-step recommendation described above. In attracting investors' funds, it is important to follow the sequence, only in this case the investment will be as effective as possible.

8 tips for getting money if you really need it

Expert opinion

You are a seller and an investor is a choosy buyer

Anatoly Saklakov,

president of the group of companies "Kaskad", Perm

During the first meeting, the investor expects to hear from you an oral story about the investment project and the company. Keep your presentation energetic and short. When you represent your team, the contributor evaluates you as a person, as an entrepreneur. Activity, honesty, ability to achieve results, intelligence, your leadership qualities are the most valuable personality traits for investors. The stronger these traits are manifested in you, the higher the chances of establishing cooperation between you and the investors.

Light humor and optimism will be a good help for you, learn to always set yourself up for a positive wave. Contrary to popular beliefs, most investors do not like professional slide presentations; it is better to use diagrams, drawings on paper instead. The best option will provide investors with photographs of manufactured products.

How to write a business plan for investment

The investor's business plan is economic and technical justification of the need for capital investment. It is mandatory to analyze the effectiveness of a set of measures, assess the reality and need for investment, and solve problems that will arise during the implementation of the project. A business plan is a logical and structured rationale for the need and feasibility of injecting investor funds into a particular business.

At the enterprise level, relatively small (local) projects are often used. The business plan in this case acts as a document representing the results of the complete investment project.

Thus, a business plan can be included in the investment package as an integral part of it, replace it, or include several projects.

The business plan of the investment project is being developed to justify:

the degree of viability and sustainability of the project;
the possibility of obtaining investment and credit resources, as well as the return of borrowed funds;
proposals for the establishment of joint and foreign enterprises;
expediency of providing state support measures;
directions in which the project should develop.

The business plan of the project for attracting investment provides for an accurate, competent and structured presentation of all the material that would characterize the business model offered to investors from all sides. The content of the text in the business plan should be easy with understandable and reliable information for contributors.

An important condition is logical structuredness the whole plan.

When drawing up a plan, you must be guided by the following principles:

The information must be true and accurate.
The wording should be short and correct so that there is no misunderstanding.
Calculations and arguments are needed to explain each stage of the project's development.
No need to use unnecessary information.
It is not necessary to describe only the advantages of the project, while not mentioning its disadvantages.

Only a brief well-reasoned position that is fixed in your project can attract prospective investors. If your business plan contains incorrect information, a lot of unnecessary details, as well as complex professional terms, then it will be problematic for you to get an investment in your project.

Structurea business plan has two parts. The first is the introduction, in which you briefly describe the whole essence of your project. The second is the main part, which includes the following sub-clauses:

General definition and description of a business development plan.
Information about the goods and services provided. Here the situation of this or that product / service in the common market is subject to consideration. Comparison with competitors and description of prospects are made.
Consideration of the scheme for promoting your goods or services. All methods of obtaining maximum income and selling your product to the masses are being studied.
Preparation of a production and organization plan. Study of the technical base and the formation of order at the enterprise.
Discussion of how your business plan will be implemented based on the required funding.
Investment plan.
Forecasting your company's future performance.
Indicators economic efficiencybased on calculations. In other words, you must prove to the future investor that your project is indeed profitable for investment.
Consideration of all kinds of risks that may arise during production and sale. Risk assessment.
Legal activity plan.
Information about the author of the business project.

Similarly, the steps for implementing the project for investments within the specified structure are subject to consideration. Simply put, your business plan should contain not only information about your idea, but also information about its implementation.

It is necessary to consider the implementation of a business project for investment within the framework of your project business plan, which is official documentation and is carried out taking into account the wishes of your investors.

To determine efficiency business ideas, there is a scorecard. It includes:

A financial performance indicator that takes into account all outcomes for each party.
A budget performance indicator that indicates how the investment will affect the republican or local budget.
An indicator of efficiency in terms of the economy, which takes into account the ratio of costs and results obtained for each of the parties.

In addition, it is necessary to assess how this project will affect society and the environment.

Commercial efficiency is the main indicator for a business, the purpose of which is to strengthen its position in the market and maximize profit.

The main indicators for obtaining an objective assessment of a project are:

payback rate;
business profitability index;
net income from doing business;
internal indicators of the rate of return.

The ratio of the resulting net profit and the amount of capital that is invested in the organization of the enterprise determines the value of the size of the investment.

Based on the calculations performed, investors decide whether it is advisable to invest in the business the amount of money that the entrepreneur requires.

Effective Presentation: A Step-by-Step Guide to Action

How to attract private investment in business

Private investment is a guaranteed method of obtaining financing for a business in any economic situation even in a crisis. However, one should take into account the fact that now investors are not demanding a small block of shares, as before, but on the contrary - they need either a blocking or a controlling stake. In other words, they become co-owners of your business.

Difference between investment funds and private investment in business are mainly in the amount of capital investment, as well as in the amount of profit that investors want to receive from one source or another.

This means that private investors and funds have different investment targets. Those who are going to engage in small and medium-sized businesses would be preferable to contact private investors.

In this case, you can get an investment of small volumes, and most importantly, borrow money, and not sell part of your company's shares.

In most cases, they contact private investors directly using dating. However, if you are applying for small amounts of money from ten to several hundred thousand US dollars, then you can start looking for a private investor yourself. There are quite a few offers from private investors, so you need to understand that you should devote quite a lot of time to choosing the best and most profitable one.

There are two main conditions without which you cannot attract business investment from a private investor:

Accounting is required in accordance with international standards financial statements.

Otherwise, one should not count on negotiations with an investor.

Soft financial modeling.

It is important for an investor to know how the product in which he invests will behave in different market conditions.

Expert opinion

It's more interesting to work with innovative projects

Stefan Glinser,

business angel, London

I love investing in business development that has a touch of innovation. I believe that it is better to form a portfolio of various successful projects than to invest in the same area. Investing in business projects to create new digital technologies, which, quite possibly, will change our world for the better - this is my choice. I prefer to invest in companies early in their development. Despite the fact that I sometimes made many mistakes, I will not stop investing in business projects.

Expert opinion

I don't like it when money is kept under the bed.

Kirill Shalankin,

private investor, Moscow

The money under the bed is not mine. Therefore, I decided to invest them in a project. My condition was equity participation in the project, or representation in it as a co-founder. I spent quite a lot of time to choose the right project for me. I searched through friends, on various forums and sites on this topic. As a result, the process of my choice was divided into three stages:

Acquaintance with a business idea and an entrepreneur.

The description that they provide to me must necessarily contain reasoned information, on the basis of which I must choose this particular project, assessing its prospects, as well as the attached calculations. I am a person with principles, so I will not invest my capital in projects that can harm people. An entrepreneur must explain to me the purpose of his business. Naturally, I pay attention to what impression the partner makes. Changing a business plan is easy; changing a person is almost impossible.

Discussion of the business plan.

When discussing a business plan, it is important to think critically in order to calculate all the risks. I ask what happens if there are problems with business development, and what solutions will be taken to eliminate them. At the end of the conversation, I understand for sure whether the business plan is 100% thought out or not yet.

Time for reflection.

If the results that I received in the first two stages satisfied me, I take two weeks to think it over to make the final investment decision. If after this time I am still eager to invest my capital in this project, I will do so.

Who provides assistance in attracting business investment on the Internet

If you are unable to find an investor for your business on your own, you can contact the specialists who will do it for you.

The most popular Russian-language services for finding business investments and investment objects are:

EASTWESTGROUP

The essence of this service is to find investments in an existing or frozen business. Thanks to him, you can save a lot of time and effort. To work with this resource, you need to go through a simple registration, after which you can contact investors.

This service has more than 10 years of experience. Experts are absolutely free to assess the prospects, as well as the strengths and weaknesses of a particular business project, which helps to attract investors to it.

After registration, you can immediately contact a large number of investors, which increases the chance of receiving money for your business project. This service takes a small fee for finding a depositor, which is discussed individually with each entrepreneur after the completion of the transaction. Before you receive your investment, you don't have to pay anything.

To use this service, you need to follow a few simple steps:

Submit your application.
Consult a specialist free of charge.
Review the Reseller Service Agreement.
To sign an agreement.
Wait for the negotiations between the investor and the service to take place.
Conclude a mutually beneficial deal with the investor.

Start2Up

In fact, this service is a message board. Here, startups, budding businessmen and investors post ads to find a partner.

This site helps those who have money to invest. And for those who do not have money to create or develop their own own business, it helps to find investments.

Ads are divided into categories based on the area of \u200b\u200bactivity and region.

The most popular business areas on this site are: “IT” and the Internet, education, art, culture and science, and real estate.

Several thousand people have already used this service. Moreover, its visitors are not only Russian citizens, but also residents of the CIS and Eastern Europe. Thanks to such a vast geography, the chance of getting investment in your business increases.

On the site you can find a huge number of proposals for buying a start-up, investing in a start-up business or in the development of existing business projects.

Moreover, you can buy a ready-made business.

Thus, thanks to various Internet portals, you can easily find an investor if your project is interesting enough.

Do not forget that there is such a thing as crowdfunding. Using one of its varieties - crowdfunding, you can get financing for a share in a project for investors.

Crowd marketing: why work with negative customer reviews around the clock

Typical mistakes of businessmen attracting business investments

Mistake 1.Ignorance of profit

Due to excessive confidence in their idea, some entrepreneurs cannot accurately calculate how much income the investor will receive.

Error 2.Didn't calculate the benefit

First of all, you need to determine how much an investor can earn on your project.

Error 3.Asking for more than needed

Mistake 4."I have developed a new product that is not yet on the market."

Many people start a presentation of a business project with these words. But they never thought about the fact that this is not on the market for the simple reason that no one needs it. If you presented your project in this way, then be sure to prove why it will be promising and useful.

Mistake 5.Lack of competitive advantage

It is imperative to have a competitive advantage that others do not have. At the same time, you should not give your business imaginary advantages, which, in fact, do not represent any benefit for the project.

Information about experts

Ivan Rodionov, Director of the Direct Investment Fund AIG-Brunswick Millennium Fund, Moscow. Doctor economic sciences... In parallel, he manages the AIG-Interros Russia Century Fund private equity fund. AIG-Brunswick Millennium Fund is an American private equity fund. Founded in 1996. Manages capital of USD 285 million. The fund has now successfully completed all of its investment projects.

Anatoly Saklakov, President of the Kaskad Group of Companies, Perm. "Cascade". Business profile: design and construction (KaskadStroy), trade and logistics (Logotrans, UralPromKomplekt, Dilon Finance, Dion Praha), property management (VKIU, URS Kama-Flot), health services (Mir ", Go! Fitness), beer production (Burma), retail sales (Ounce). Form of organization: group of companies. Territory: Russia; head office in Perm. Number of staff: 120.

Stefan Glinser, a German business angel living in London. Took part in the founding of companions.de, companionsTV, ricardo.de and myblog.de, Mendeley.com, RjDj.me, Last.fm. Stefan's investment in Last.fm, valued at several hundred thousand pounds, brought him a profit of $ 22 million when Last.fm was sold to CBS. Stefan truly believes in the European entrepreneurial spirit and remains an active business angel. In addition to his business interests, he received his PhD in Management foreign exchange risks and worked as a DJ for 15 years.

Own business is a pleasant business, albeit a responsible one. You are your own boss, an independent person, a person who has stepped on the right path.

But, be that as it may, the case needs to be promoted. And if you are a wise entrepreneur, then you will definitely start attracting investors to your business over time.

It is difficult to do without the help of investors, both for a novice businessman and an accomplished entrepreneur. This is because young businessmen do not have sufficient start-up capital to translate their ideas into reality, and large entrepreneurs come to the point when they need a large amount of money to further their business.

And just at such moments, the way out of this situation will be to attract investors.

How and with what to interest an investor?

To begin with, you must be completely confident in the success of your business project. To do this, you need to competently and carefully study the business idea. Correctly calculate the amount that is needed for its implementation, and calculate the approximate time of its recoupment. All this is necessary for the investor to understand what he is investing in and when the profit is expected.

Creativity is an important ingredient in the success of your business project. You need to come up with something unusual, not necessary new business idea, you can only find a non-standard approach to its implementation. And then, investors will certainly be interested in your business project.

Competent business management

Let's say you've found a prospective investor. Your task is to prove to him that it is possible to do business with you. Show your strengths: do not be late for the meeting, correctly submit information about the project, boldly and openly conduct a dialogue.

Advertising

In order to interest anyone, in this case investors, it is necessary that as many people as possible know about the project. It is not necessary to advertise on radio or television, of course, if it is not a million dollar business project. For a novice entrepreneur, it is enough just to tell your acquaintances and friends about your idea, and they will already advertise you in their circle.

Confidence

If you yourself are not sure about the profitability and success of your business, you should not even try to attract investors. You will not succeed, rich people will not invest their day in the project of a businessman who is not confident in success.

Remember these rules, they will help you attract an investor. I wish you successful and profitable business projects.

Grow your business and investors will find you on their own

There are ideas in the air - don't worry, mom. Go to any startup get-together, of which there are a huge number in any major city, and you will be amazed at the number of crazy ill-conceived ideas per million that young inexperienced brains generate. And they want that very million right now, otherwise suddenly you will steal this brilliant idea of \u200b\u200bthe second Facebook. A million dollars, of course, not rubles.

Just sit down and do it. Find like-minded people, make with them the first, horribly crooked version of your miracle. Finally get feedback from your potential customer. Most ideas die without being born - one is not a warrior in the field, if you are not able to motivate your team (or even assemble it) - your idea will not even reach the first prototype.

I have friends who have created several dozen different projects. None of them turned out to be breakthrough. Except for the last one. After 3 months, they were bought by one of the most famous companies in the United States and all the world media wrote about them. Or vice versa, first they wrote and showed on TV, and then a dream proposal followed.

Don't be pushy

Most investors are not investors at all. Many in this way want to prove their importance to themselves, many of the educational motives, someone is promoting, someone is looking for the necessary connections. And someone is looking for certain projects, and yours simply does not fit his aspirations. Maybe a person likes to spend time in restaurants, ordering various delicacies, and considers himself a guru of the restaurant business. He's more likely to invest in yet another tablet app that lets him call a waiter with one button, rather than your brand new disruptive social network for budgerigar owners.

Therefore, do not get too much of those who told you no. Yes, keep them informed, periodically send them personal letters with information about how steeply your project is developing, how the number of users has tripled in a month. Let them know. As soon as (if suddenly) you succeed, they will talk about you, the greedy person will come running and tell you that he has always believed in you and you must sell the project to him. Well, it will not work - who remembers the losers.

Don't get hung up on attracting investments

Many entrepreneurs have long been serial idea generators. They sit in coworking spaces, drink smoothies, point fingers at tablets, follow trends. Tax, what's in fashion there: social networks, airbnb for cats, BigData, a site for discounts, an application for installment cards, overhead masks on a face in a mobile phone with Leonardo DiCaprio in the lead role ... That's it, we do it today, tomorrow we are looking for an investor. And, no, it still needs to be done, to strain, to spud the developer. Better on the contrary, tomorrow we are looking for an investor, the presentation in the popular application for the beloved AiMak is already ready. We'll hire a developer later. Fashionable to do everything on a turnkey basis. While we will look after a new iPhone for each of the 20 managers, and an office in the Federation Tower. And a secretary so that oh, oh.

Be prepared to take risks own funds / time at the initial stages.

Decide on the type of investor

Aspiring entrepreneurs always make the same mistake. They hammer investors who are not strangers do not understand the niche in which you are doing your project. If you know that this investor has invested in a brick factory, in a restaurant or in a hostel, it is highly likely that he will not understand anything when you tell him about your breakthrough iPhone application, in which you can immediately see where you can order near you fried steak and cracklings for white wine.

In addition to the fact that different investors have different specializations, they are also subdivided into investors of different stages. There are those who might think about whether to invest 5 thousand dollars in your project for 90% of the business at the stage of the first prototype, and there are those who only consider projects with a team, a proven business model and a gross revenue of at least 500 thousand dollars per month ...

Someone understands that a viral application that does not have any direct monetization potential can be worth millions and be of interest to a major player, while someone still walks with the golden Vertu dialer of the 2007 model year.

There the grass is greener and the water is wetter

Do not think that in the West they are waiting for you with open arms, and you just have to write a couple of letters to funds from Silicon Valley (or Silicon, as you like), and you will immediately be invited to his office by Mark Zuckerberg, aka Jacob Greenberg.

Yes, they have more money and opportunities in the valleys there. But it's so damn expensive to be there, and to break through among a million startups per square millimeter, that you should first think about whether you need to immediately pack your bags and sell your apartment. That for any year renting an apartment / room in Mountain View or Palo Alto was enough.

Small business projects, projects with a high degree of risk, projects with an untested business model, other local non-scalable projects, by definition, have no chance. And even potentially breakthrough, but at the stage of idea or initial launch. Everything has its time. If you reach millions of users, Zuckerberg will call. He will definitely call.

Death Valley is not the time to invest

Death Valley is a period in a startup project when you have already spent all the money, are already in debt to the very top (and no one else gives you money), the project is either launched or not launched, and at this stage it is not yet bringing in money. And whether or not it will bring is unknown. In short, you are in complete ass, an investor is urgently needed.

And the investor is not a fool either. He needs it to work already and is guaranteed to bring him profit. And your personal investor problems are of little interest. Moreover, an investor is not a philanthropist who, like a fairy godmother, flies over the coworking space (this is the place where startups hang out and rent a table and chair for the price of half a separate office) and saves everyone from bankruptcy.

The project team

An investor does not invest in a project, he invests in his team. Most projects make Pivot after Pivot (change of business model). Each time, receiving feedback from users, the project is modified. And most projects at the stage of the first prototype and after a year or two are completely different projects. The founders sometimes only smile sadly, remembering how it all began and what ideas and hopes were gushing out of them then. And only a team of like-minded people is capable of constantly changing without losing faith in the project. Nobody invests in singles.

Do you have a legal entity?

Nobody will give money on parole. You need a financial model, a clear business plan, a well-developed sales funnel / or viral growth of + 200% of users per month. And you also need a legal entity. In Delaware, out of good old habit. In order to immediately distribute the shares between the founders, other key employees were issued for vesting (this is when their share is not immediately, but only after a year in equal shares for 4 years). And so that the investor can immediately dilute the share in the startup in exchange for his investment. The early stage investor wants to recoup the remaining 9 failed projects by selling his share, and not play your friend. And everything should be properly legalized at once.

Think like an investor

First of all, understand for yourself what buns and cookies the investor will receive from communicating with you. What is the investment attractiveness of your project for him?

On the road

The process of obtaining / attracting investment is a damn complicated, lengthy and dreary process. Few have the strength to break through this jungle.