Entrepreneur's Toolkit: Cash Landing

Maria Bennett had a $42 million success story on her résumé when she asked JumpStart to invest in her medical device startup. Few entrepreneurs have that kind of track record. We asked JumpStart chief investment officer Lynn-Ann Gries her advice for trying to land investors.

Don’t look for handouts. “Too many people try to show up on your doorstep and are like, ‘I need money,’ ” Gries says. “And then they launch into what they’re trying to do.” Instead, approach investors with opening a dialogue in mind.

Bring backup. “If they’re a super-smart scientist and they know their technology but they’ve never actually started a business, the thing that would bring the most credibility to a funder would be to find someone that can be an adviser,” Gries says. Ideally it’s someone who’s built a business, perhaps someone with an established company in the same field.

Let investors inside. Now it’s their money too. They’re going to want a board seat and advisory role. At least some kind of say. And accept their advice. “If that’s not welcomed,” Gries says, “that’s going to be a problem later on down the line, and it’s not going to be pretty.”