Find. Build. Sell.

CHAPTER 10Sell your story

The mirror is a worthless invention. The only way to truly see yourself is in the reflection of someone else's eyes.

Voltaire

What do you call an investment manager who will only invest a minimum of $50 million? Your best friend.

That's a joke, sort of. But if you're going to seek out an investment, you may as well seek out those who can invest a significant amount of money. After all, it takes almost as much work to secure $15 000 as it does $15 million, so you may as well focus your efforts and go for gold at the start.

The first thing they are going to ask for is some information about the business. You'll remember from Chapter 8 that the document they'll want to see is the information memorandum (IM).

The IM is where you get to set out your vision for the business and why someone should invest in you. It's a very important document and any competent investor will ask for it, review it carefully, get their lawyers and accountants to pore over it as well and hold you to account.

It's the document that summarises your dream and it tells investors (and your banker) what the business will do, what it will sell, who to, for how much, why it's different from others, what's in it for them to invest — and much more.

How to create an IM that impresses investors

When I started out, I had no idea what an IM was. I made a few mistakes and lost a bit of money because of that. I do things differently now and the IM is at the heart of every investor pitch ...