Five steps to get your small business ready for funding

Getting access to funding is a constant hurdle for small companies, so it is of the upmost importance that you and your business understand how you need to best present yourselves so as not to hinder your chances when the funding opportunity arises.

Below are five ideas to help you get your business ready for funding.

Details

Your business plan will need to be detailed and ready to go. This is not only going to aid you in presenting the finer points of your plan, but if your funder wants a closer look themselves, your detailed plan will prove your readiness to proceed with developing your business or project.

Accuracy

You will need to present a complete and accurate business story to your funder or investor. To inspire their interest in your company, you will need to demonstrate essential details of your business, so make sure you know all the aspects of your market and industry as well as your own company details. As well as this, you need to be able to express your own passion for the business or project you are promoting.

Accounts

Your company’s financial position must be accurately accounted, this is a vital aspect of being funding ready. You should consider providing two different forecasts to provide reflections for your ‘worst’ and ‘best’ case scenarios, this will demonstrate your realistic approach to your business’ potential development.

Image

With so much being available online in this day and age, making sure you have a great online image is key. It won’t take much for a funder or investor to research you and your business, so having a good website and strong social media presence will help to promote you, and your previous successes.

Understanding

The most important aspect or applying for funding, is to understand the funding program and investor. You are potentially wasting your time if the scope or requirement of the funding is beyond your business’ remit. Is it definitely the best fit for your business and is your business the best fit for this particular funding stream? Do your research to make sure your business meets the criteria, and that the funding provides you with what you need before you tackle your application.