At our Expresso event at the Trident, Gurgaon, we sure were onto something enormously rewarding. Between the founders sharing their successful fund-raising journeys, the passionate LIVE pitches by promising entrepreneurs and the mimosa brunch, it was an elevated afternoon. 

While the investors were plumbing the psyches of the female founders in whom they might invest, our members leveraged the learnings in ways that can embolden them to move from the blueprint phase to scaling up meaningfully. Here are the key takeaways.

1. Fundraising is not the answer to everything. First, think through the basics and iron them out at the fundamental level. Then reassess how much early funding you really need. Remember, stability comes before scaling!

2. Even if you do not agree with critical feedback from stakeholders, always take it in your stride constructively. All feedback is important because it could come from someone whose worldview has more breadth than you, at that particular point. 

3. While making a pitch, make sure to share the city and tier-wise break-up of your target audience with the investors. Also, suggest your estimated incremental growth on a year-on-year basis.

4. During an investor pitch, make sure to highlight ‘why’ you are better than your competitors and bring forth the edge you have over them. List your competitors no matter how big they are. It helps the investors understand the scalability of your business.

5. Unanimously, there is a slight bias among investors when it comes to the development sectors. They are concerned about:
a) Whether ventures in this sector can be big, if at all.
b) Whether it comes across as a partnership or a project rather than a business in itself.
c) Although fact remains that everybody is looking to invest in something that can contribute positively to society as well as the economy. 

6. Less is more when making a presentation to an investor panel. Limit the number of slides. Keep it short and concise to avoid confusing the audience.

7. During the scaling up stage, businesses need to make space for people who can add immense value. The founder’s job is to create that space. Bring in people who are willing to do the heavy lifting.  

8. Be aspirational of a larger amount when fund-raising. Tech and marketplace businesses with significant supply and demand creation need larger capital to scale.

9. What matters to investors is that a founder has strong fundamental knowledge of their specific sector. It’s equally important for founders to know their strengths, weaknesses and build a genuine connection with the investors.