Fundraising readiness checklist
Work through financials, cap table and legal, and pitch materials before you start investor conversations. Each task has an optional note field for an owner, due date, or link — check items off as you complete them, then export the whole checklist (with your notes) to a branded PDF or a CSV to share with co-founders or advisors.
Frequently asked questions
What should a fundraising data room include besides the financial model?
A complete data room typically has your P&L and bank statements, cap table, IP assignment agreements, material customer and vendor contracts, incorporation documents, and any prior round's term sheet or SAFE. Investors doing due diligence will ask for whatever's missing anyway, so populating it upfront — rather than scrambling item by item mid-negotiation — keeps the process moving and signals that you run a tight operation.
Why does the financial model need to project 3 years out?
Three years is long enough to show investors how the business scales past its current stage without being so far out that the numbers are pure guesswork. What matters more than the exact figures is that every assumption behind them (growth rate, churn, hiring pace, unit economics) is written down and defensible — investors will stress-test your assumptions in the meeting, not just the output, so being able to explain why you chose each one matters more than the model being "right."
Why line up reference customers before you start pitching, not after a term sheet?
Investors often want to speak with customers as part of diligence, and scrambling to find willing references after you've already got a term sheet slows the deal down right when you want momentum. Lining up 2-3 customers who are happy to take a call — and briefing them on what investors typically ask — turns a potential bottleneck into a proof point you can offer proactively.
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