5 Startup Fundraising Tips from James Altucher

James Altucher is a serial founder, angel investor, and bestselling author who made his fortune, lost it, and made it again three times. We went through his excellent blog to gather some of his best tips for founders raising capital. Here goes: - Should you go for venture capital money? First build a product, then get a customer, then get friends and family money (or money from revenues, which is cheapest of all) and then think about raising money. But only then. Don’t be an amateur. - Should I negotiate the best terms with a VC? No. Pick the VC you like. Times are going to get tough at some point and you need to be able to have a heart-to-heart with them. If the company does well, everyone will be rich. - Should you require venture capitalists to sign NDAs? No. Nobody is going to steal your idea. - How long does it take to raise money? In a GREAT business, six months. In a mediocre business: infinity. - How much dilution is too much dilution? If someone wants to give you money, then take it. The old saying is 100% of nothing is worth less than 1% of something. One time I raised $30 million in the first round for a company I started (Vaultus). But there was demand for $20 million more and I said no. I wish I had said yes.