Why you should take this workshop
What comes first – the money or the product? How can you make revenue, apply for grants, qualify for loans, or get VC funding if you can't get the money to produce the product or service in the first place? Every day we see entrepreneurs get stuck at this phase. Don't let this dilemma stop you from pushing forward on your business! It's time to break out of this ineffective thought loop and start creating revenue for your business. There are several options to raise capital for your business and picking the right one or one(s) depends on a lot of different components. In this workshop, we'll explore several funding options for pre-revenue and pre-product startups like bootstrapping through early sales, crowdfunding, grants, investors & more to find the right funding fit for your startup based on your goals and business sector. Come prepared with questions for an in-depth 30-minute open Q&A and troubleshooting section at the end of the session!
Features
- 30 minutes of course instruction from IFundWomen Product Manager, Maya Brooks; 30 minutes of open Q&A and troubleshooting
- 2 Case studies on pre-product startups who've bootstrapped or used creative MVPs to create successful companies
- Access to & instruction from the IFundWomen Founder Playbook to help detail your capital plan
- A copy of the IFundWomen Startup Canvas to help detail your business plan
- Access to the live replay in the IFundWomen workshop library
What you will learn
- The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly of several funding options including crowdfunding, loans, grants, bootstrapping, outside investment, accelerators & more
- Options for creating a low-tech MVP (minimum viable product) without spending tons of money
- Strategies for securing pre-orders, pre-sales, and letters of intent which can propel funding
- How to choose the right funding options for your business stage, business goals, and business industry
Course lessons
Learn about the funding landscape for small businesses and what financial options and tools are available for early stage startups.
Dig into the meaning of the seemingly elusive startup "traction" & learn the strategies to building it without investing tons of money through mechanisms like pre-orders, waitlists, and letters of intent.
Explore the wealth of pre-product funding options available for early stage startups and weigh the good, the bad, and the ugly of things like crowdfunding, bootstrapping, pre-sales & more.
Learn how to get past the "no money, no product" barrier by creating a low-tech MVP (minimum viable product). We'll share tools, tips, and resources you can use to build your product without investing heavily in technology or spending tons of money. In addition, we'll explore 2 real life case studies of companies that have successfully bootstrapped their businesses.
Explore the funding options available for post-product funding options available for early stage startups and weigh the good, the bad, and the ugly of things like loans, accelerators, investors, and grants.
Come prepared with detailed, specific questions for this 30 minute open Q&A session where Product Manager and Startup Coach, Maya Brooks, will help troubleshoot your specific challenge.
About the Coach
Maya is an Award Winning Product Manager, Educator, Speaker, and Entrepreneur. Fueled by her passion to create new ideas (and perhaps a bit too much Cold Brew), Maya enjoys helping fellow entrepreneurs & tech enthusiasts reach their full potential. She is currently a Product Manager & Startup Coach at IFundWomen, a crowdfunding ecosystem for women-led businesses, where she builds thoughtful and intuitive products & experiences to empower female founders. Maya has coached over 100 early stage entrepreneurs on how to build revenue generating MVPs.
Maya has a background in finance and previously worked in Commercial Banking at JPMorgan on both credit and sales teams for clients with $20MM-$2B in revenue. After gaining some technical expertise as a front-end web developer, she made the leap to startups in 2018, working as a freelance web & product developer. Prior to IFundWomen, Maya also held a position as a Business Associate in the Barclays Fintech Accelerator program powered by Techstars.