Raising Money in a Down Market San Francisco CA

So you’ve got an idea. One that you truly believe could launch a business and your fortune. Your friends and family completely agree and encourage you to go chase your dream. So you decide to get some funding and make it happen.

But have you checked the credit markets lately? This is where all the actual operational money comes from and the venture capital industry follows their lead. The current freeze in the credit markets means that no one is getting money right now. No money for payrolls. No money for inventories. No money for expansion. According to the National Venture Capital Association, the total private equity investment in the quarter was $7.1 billion, down from $7.8 billion a year ago, and those numbers are before the Wall Street and credit market meltdowns.  This means that raising money for a new venture right now will be tough, but definitely not impossible.

Here are some traditional and non-traditional sources of funding for young entrepreneurs:

 

Venture Capital

This is typically the first thought of aspiring entrepreneurs: make a pitch, get millions, have some fun and sell the company. But is that VC money still available? Sure, but you have to do more than WOW them during these times. You have to go in with a bullet-proof idea, run lean, and show how soon you’ll get to profitability—if they agree to meet with you at all.

Venture capital operates on seven-to-ten-year cycles. Firms don't, for the most part, use d

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