recently rated:

Rated by 4

2.0 2.5 1.3 3.0 1.0

2.0

OrbiMed Advisors

 

$$$$$ New York, US East

top rated funds:

Rated by 16

3.8 3.1 2.9 3.0 3.5

3.3

Azure Capital Partners

Certified

$$$$$ San Francisco, US West

Rated by 10

3.2 3.2 3.2 3.5 3.4

3.3

Adams Capital Management, Inc.

 

$$$$$ Sewickley, US East

Rated by 10

3.6 3.4 3.2 3.0 3.2

3.3

Noro-Moseley Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Atlanta, US East

Rated by 23

3.3 3.4 3.0 3.4 3.3

3.3

Allegis Capital

Certified

$$$$$ Palo Alto, US West

Rated by 14

3.0 3.4 3.4 3.1 3.4

3.3

OpenView Venture Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Boston, US East

Rated by 38

4.2 3.3 2.9 2.9 3.1

3.3

Greylock Partners

Certified

$$$$$ San Mateo, US West

Rated by 39

3.6 3.4 3.3 3.1 3.3

3.3

Foundation Capital

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 34

3.4 3.5 3.2 3.2 3.4

3.3

InterWest Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 14

3.6 3.5 3.5 2.8 3.4

3.3

Meritage Funds

Certified

$$$$$ Denver, US West

Rated by 47

3.5 3.5 3.0 3.0 3.2

3.2

Mayfield Fund

 

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 19

3.1 3.3 3.2 2.9 3.5

3.2

Blumberg Capital

Certified

$$$$$ San Francisco, US West

Rated by 39

3.0 3.5 3.3 3.0 3.4

3.2

Hummer Winblad Venture Partners

Certified

$$$$$ San Francisco, US West

Rated by 10

2.6 3.4 3.6 3.2 2.9

3.2

Palomar Ventures

 

$$$$$ Santa Monica, US West

Rated by 41

2.8 3.1 3.5 3.3 3.3

3.2

Shasta Ventures

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 31

3.1 3.1 2.9 3.2 3.4

3.2

BlueRun Ventures

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 33

2.9 3.3 3.4 3.3 3.2

3.2

Opus Capital

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 15

3.2 2.7 3.9 3.3 3.1

3.2

Kepha Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Waltham, US East

Rated by 10

3.6 3.5 3.2 2.2 3.5

3.2

Sequoia Capital Israel

 

$$$$$ Oceanos Hotel, ..., ME / Africa

Rated by 21

3.4 2.9 3.2 3.4 3.0

3.2

Sutter Hill Ventures

Certified

$$$$$ Palo Alto, US West

Rated by 23

3.4 3.4 3.3 2.6 3.2

3.2

Emergence Capital Partners

Certified

$$$$$ San Mateo, US West

Rated by 15

3.5 3.4 3.6 3.0 2.4

3.2

Balderton (Benchmark EU)

Certified

$$$$$ London, Europe

Rated by 50

3.5 2.7 3.2 3.2 2.9

3.1

Draper Fisher Jurvetson

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 28

3.1 2.8 2.8 3.3 3.3

3.1

Flybridge Capital Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Boston, US East

Rated by 14

3.4 3.2 3.5 2.8 2.4

3.1

Trident Capital

Certified

$$$$$ Palo Alto, US West

Rated by 43

3.8 3.1 2.8 3.2 2.7

3.1

Accel Partners

Certified

$$$$$ Palo Alto, US West

Rated by 26

3.3 3.1 2.9 3.2 3.0

3.1

Sigma Partners

 

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 18

2.8 2.9 3.2 3.6 3.1

3.1

FirstMark Capital - Pequot Ventures

Certified

$$$$$ New York, US East

Rated by 37

3.3 3.0 3.0 2.9 3.1

3.1

Charles River Ventures

Certified

$$$$$ Menlo Park, US West

Rated by 12

3.1 3.1 3.5 2.6 2.8

3.0

SoftTech VC

Certified

$$$$$ Palo Alto, US West

Rated by 13

3.3 2.9 3.7 2.1 2.8

3.0

New York Angels

Certified

$$$$$ New York, US East

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Raising money for early stage companies has become more challenging. Traditional angels are more organized and difficult to reach. Most early stage venture funds have exited the field, and the remaining funds are (1) overwhelmed, (2) extremely focused, (3) incompetent, or (4) incubators.

Within this challenging environment, it is still possible to succeed if you know the "new" rules of the game. Here are some tips to consider with your early stage fundraising.

Structure: Almost all professional North American investments are made into Delaware C corporations. Lawyers greedily sell LLCs to charge you for conversion. If needed at inception of your fundraising, convert to a Delaware C corp structure with 2 to 5 million authorized shares to avoid closing friction.

Geography: Most angel and early stage investors focus on a strict investment region so that they can spend time with portfolio companies. Unless you are SERIOUSLY planning to move, don't bother to pitch a firm more than 100 miles away in the early stage. It's literally a waste of your time and theirs.

Traction: Every early stage investor will want to see traction before they invest, whether that is a prototype, a patent, or a committed team of experts. Gone are the days of funding a dream and a PowerPoint pitch. You alone are going to need to make the initial investment in your idea, committing both time and money to get your idea off the ground.

Relationship: Having a standing relationship with your early stage investors makes a big difference, so start attending regional entrepreneur networking events as soon as you have an idea. Don't wait until your idea is ready for prime time, as this is already too late.

Format: Avoid embarrassment by knowing about round types and raise amounts. A friends and family round is usually a purchase of common to get the company off of the ground, but can also be part of the angel round. Angel investors tend to participate in convertible debt or equity rounds that raise between $100K and $1.5 MM. Venture capitalists lead Series A rounds for $750K to $5 MM in preferred equity, sometimes more. The average Series A round varies widely by sector and geography.

Focus: More and more early stage investors are focusing, and they will rarely invest in competing businesses. This means that you should do your homework before pitching a fund. Just check their portfolio page to get a sense of what they are doing.

Pitfalls: Be very weary of convertible debt from venture funds, since, if that fund does not invest in future rounds, you will be completely unable to raise further capital. Avoid corporate venture firms, as these investors scare off other professional investors, since everyone will ask why the big parent corporation just doesn't buy you.