Do you want to hire top-tier freelance startup funding consultants to woo potential investors? As its name suggests, Toptal accepts only top talent who are in the top 3% of their fields. Business owners can immediately browse profiles of financial consultants, investment bankers, and corporate finance advisors and read about each expert's knowledge and skills without a lengthy sign-up process. In fact, this is one of the few platforms that doesn't charge a fee until you successfully hire a consultant. Toptal estimates you can start work with a qualified person in its network in as little as 48 hours. User-friendly tags make it easy to find consultants with specific expertise that match your project description and needs.
Guide To Hiring Great Startup Funding Consultants
When you need capital to help your small company expand, you may want the expert advice of a startup funding consultant. These individuals help businesses navigate the complicated landscape of fundraising for startups, from making the right connections to building an impressive pitch and closing the deal. If you're ready to seek substantial capital to scale your startup, use this guide to learn about the best sources to hire funding consultants.
What Are Startup Funding Consultants?
Startup funding consultants come from various career paths and industries, but they share the ability to connect serious investors with businesses that can deliver impressive returns and plan future strategies. Often, these consultants spent decades founding their own startups or working with investors at venture capital firms, so they are well-versed with the consulting process.
Regardless of background, funding consultants offer spot consulting services and ideally bring a vast investor network and a wealth of knowledge that can facilitate growth for your startup. Businesses may hire startup funding advisors to provide support for idea validation, pitch deck development, business plan creation, competitive and market analyses, and deal negotiation.
How To Hire Startup Funding Consultants
Most startup funding consultants work on a freelance hourly basis and prefer longer-term consulting relationships. Usually startups hire them for a temporary engagement, such as the extent of the initial fundraising process. Consider whether you’d like to work with a consultancy firm that offers project management or a single individual, as well as whether you’d prefer to work remotely or meet in person.
Skills To Look for When Hiring a Startup Funding Consultant
These are some of the key attributes you'll find among the best startup funding consultants:
A deep, robust investor network: Companies that hire the top startup funding consultants are paying for access to an audience with these contacts. You want someone who knows the most important stakeholders in your industry.
Extensive relevant experience: The person you select has ideally gone through the startup fundraising process more than a handful of times as a founder or investor. They may have retired from a venture capital firm or from a CFO position at a prestigious company in your sector.
A track record of fundraising success: Avoid freelance startup funding consultants who cannot provide several references from satisfied clients. Opt for candidates with proven analysis strategies and strategic planning.
How Much Does It Cost To Hire Startup Funding Consultants?
Pricing structures for startup funding consultants might include hourly, daily, or monthly rates. For example, the Expert360 platform features members who charge between $1,000 and $2,500 per day for this type of work. If you decide to pay a salary for this role, the average is about $91,000 annually, according to Glassdoor.
An hourly pay structure is also common for freelance and remote startup funding consultants, although the exact rate can vary dramatically by factors such as industry and geographic location. For example, Salary.com reports a median wage of $30 per hour for startup funding consultants in the US, while Indeed says these professionals earn an average hourly rate of more than $90.
Another option is a platform like Clarity, where you can hire consultants for pay-per-minute video calls. Rates advertised on the site for fundraising experts range from $1 per minute up to $85 for 60 seconds of advice.
Where To Hire Startup Funding Consultants Easily
As you can see, startups make a significant financial investment when they hire startup funding consultants. Careful preparation can ensure you find a candidate with the necessary expertise.
Why Hire Startup Funding Consultants
Simply put, companies hire funding consultants to raise growth capital. The critical functions of this role tend to fall into one of three broad categories:
Developing materials and preparing a pitch designed to appeal to investors in your industry, based on targeted knowledge of your niche
Making connections and building relationships with decision-makers who invest in companies
Structuring a deal and providing support during the negotiation process
When businesses hire startup funding consultants to ensure strategy in alignment to goals, leaders can shift focus from fundraising and finances to core operations. This is a notable advantage for first-time founders who haven't been through the fundraising process before.
How To Find a Great Startup Funding Consultant
There's no guarantee of success for someone in this role, so before your company moves forward, you need to be sure you've conducted your due diligence. For carefully vetted candidates who check all the boxes in terms of experience and knowledge, Toptal earned a spot as one of the best sites to find startup funding consultants.
GrowthMentor is on the list for remote-first companies that prefer to connect and collaborate over video calls. We recommend Fintalent if you want to hire startup funding consultants from outside the United States who also understand tech or nonprofit strategies.
Things To Consider Before Hiring a Startup Funding Consultant
Companies that hire startup funding consultants to reach a network of investors have to be prepared to respond immediately if a promising opportunity with an investor arises. To that end, consider these questions before you begin interviewing freelance startup funding consultants:
Do you have a comprehensive business plan that includes financial projections, detailed marketing strategies, and other necessary documentation?
Do you have a solid corporate structure in place (a necessity to inspire investor confidence)?
Can you articulate how the company will use the funds, including a project plan and timeline?
Do you have the necessary documents for investor due diligence, the next phase of fundraising negotiations?
Even the best startup funding consultants with the best technological resources can't raise money when they can't convince investors that the company is ready to create a real return.
