With our Seedrs crowdfunding campaign in full swing, our founder shares her advice to help females tackle that investment inequality

Confidence is key

When pitching for investment female founders have been found to be notoriously more conservative in their revenue forecast than men, which can result in a “thanks but no thanks” from potential investors. It’s really important to be confident in yourself and your business, and while you don’t want to swing the other way and over promise on sales projections, don’t underestimate your trajectory either.

Shout about your business

Don’t be shy about your accomplishments and don’t look at shouting about your business as bragging or sharing goals as ‘desperate’ – it’s not. You’d be surprised by how many opportunities can come your way just by sharing with your network what you’re up to. LinkedIn is a really useful (and often underutilised) platform when it comes to sharing about your business – namely because you’re getting the right eyes on your posts, i.e. people in your industry who can help the growth of your business.

It’s really easy to underestimate how much a product or business launch will cost. So, while you might have some money saved, it’s worth looking into other ways to help get your business up and running

Network with other founders

Build a network of founders and consider them your teammates rather than rivals – even those you’re in direct competition with. Share your experiences and help people out when you can – you’ll discover that as founders you go through similar challenges, and it can be invaluable to get advice and support from one another – remember there is room for everyone!

Be strategic with your fundraising

You need to have a really good handle on your financials when it’s time to look for investors. You don’t want to start desperately pitching for funding because you’ve run out of money, it doesn’t help your cause one bit as investors will want to know you can manage your finances. Be strategic and keep assessing where you are, and where you want to be, so that when you present your figures to potential investors they can see you’re following a well thought out expansion strategy.

Be opened minded about where investment will come from

It’s really easy to underestimate how much a product or business launch will cost. So, while you might have some money saved, it’s worth looking into other ways to help get your business up and running. Check out The Angel Investment Network, crowdfunding platforms like Seedrs, and look into any accelerator programmes with monetary prizes attached.

“Crowdfunding doesn’t just help address investing inequity; it also helps even the odds for female founders. Female entrepreneurs are typically less likely than men to get investment for their ventures, however female-led campaigns on crowdfunding platforms were found to be 32% more successful at reaching their funding target than male-led campaigns”, says Faace founder, Jasmine Wicks-Stephens.