Behind the scenes of a 70 million dollar series c

Greetings, Chief Storytelling Officers.

There’s only a few weeks left of this year and if you’re like me this is a period of deep reflection. I’m looking back at where things went well, what things went wrong, where I can improve, and what I want 2024 to look like.

It’s been an interesting year. The founders I’ve worked with this year have raised more money than last year. But it’s been tough on the ecosystem as a whole and I’ve certainly noticed that in talking with hundreds of founders this year. Fear has creeped in and held many founders back.

I hope that 2024 will bring back some optimism.

Which brings me to the story I want to share with you today because you will see that even when things look bleak you can turn things around for your company.

-Robbie

Behind the scenes of a 70 million dollar series c

What’s it take to turn a failing fundraise into a successful round? 

It's not always about the idea, but the person behind it. 

This week I made a video about how my client secured a 70 million dollar Series C raise. 

It’s literally a step by step of the changes we made and how it created a winning fundraise.

But before I show you the video… 

Imagine you're a violin virtuoso who got a chance to play at Juilliard. 

Or a teenager who built a lawn mowing company from scratch, earning $100,000 in a year. Impressive, right? 

That's because you've proven to be world class at something. And that's the first trait of a special founder.

But it's not just about being the best at something. It's also about passion. Picture yourself on a roller coaster, experiencing the highs and lows of entrepreneurship. (Probably not hard to do if you’re a current founder) What keeps you going? Is it a deep-seated desire to change the world? Or maybe it's about financial freedom for your family. 

That's your 'why', and it's what keeps you moving forward. That’s the 2nd trait. 

Do you have the confidence of a Winston Churchill, Oprah, or Brian Chesky, ready to take on any challenge with unwavering belief in your success? That's the third trait - delusional confidence.

The recipe to be a special founder - world-class skills, deep passion, and delusional confidence. 

But what happens when you put those three together and give it the storytelling and persuasion treatment it deserves?

That’s where the true magic comes in. 

The 70 million dollar series C founder I mentioned earlier, he was already a special founder in the robotics field. 

Having started his company in 2014, he had significant experience running the company by the time he reached out to me. With seven years under his belt, he had grown the company into a category leader.

‍But as the rounds climbed (he had already closed A and B rounds), it became apparent that the same fundraising tactics that worked before would need to be seriously upgraded for the biggest fundraising round yet.

Especially in a market that isn’t doing much growth and late stage investments. 

And here is how he did it.

Make sure you leave a comment and give me a follow over on YouTube. While you’re over there, I have a whole library of videos for you to binge on and learn how to become that special founder you want investors to see. 

Never surrender and remember there is help out here for you.

Pushing back when negotiating

I’ve had two founders the past few weeks enter into term sheet negotiations. Both were questioning whether they could push back on some of the terms. I told them they absolutely could and should.

Investors want to see a founder who is willing to fight for every inch. That’s what great founders and CEOs do for their business.

Both founders pushed back and both got better terms out of it.

Cool stuff around the internet this week

I absolutely loved this article from Nathan Baugh’s newsletter that was written by Jason Levin on the 20 Classic Story Themes…from Rap.

***

What can writers learn from comedians by David Perell is a beautiful talk with tons of useful insights. One thing about storytelling and communication work is the diversity of study it requires to pull aspects from all kinds of places to maximize the persuasion level. That’s why today you’re seeing three places I often study from. Music, writing, and comedy.

***

The story of Jimmy John’s by founder Jimmy Liautaud is fascinating. Dyslexic and difficult in school turning into a multi billion dollar company.

Ways to get help from me

1. If you’re looking to perfect the story of you, your company, and where you’re vision is headed you can reply back to this email to start the discussion. Think strategic vision that can be used across your company to lead, recruit, speak publicly, and other use cases.

2. If you’re raising at least 8m as a founder or 50m as a fund then you can apply here.

3. If you’re an early stage founder looking to nail the story you need to fundraise your preseed or seed round then go ahead and check out Potential AI. It’s fast and affordable.