Top 5 Softwares to Raise Capital for a Startup Business

If you’re a typical founder, your average day probably looks something like this: Wake up, shower (hopefully), eat, raise capital, panic, raise capital, eat (hopefully), raise capital. Wake up and do it again tomorrow.

This is only partially a joke.

Cash is oxygen, as they say. The need for startups to raise capital is beyond critical. And it’s much harder to do without the right software to help you organize your raise and track your progress.

There are some great softwares on the market that help founders create unique and captivating presentations, monitor fundraising relationships, and manage communications.

Here are five of our favorite software tools to help you succeed in your fundraising efforts. Enjoy!

Top 5 Softwares for Raising Capital

• Foundersuite
• Slidebean
• Paperstreet
• Visible
• Ledgy

Foundersuite

Foundersuite is a one-stop-shop for founders looking to raise money – something virtually every founder desperately desires!

Foundersuite’s features make it easier for founders to find new prospects and manage relationships, making the fundraising process more efficient and effective.

Here’s a quick rundown of some key features:

• A purpose-built Investor CRM gives founders the ability to group contacts, track interactions, and organize notes and information.
• A curated database of thousands of VCs and individual investors including the ability to sort by past investments or levels of interest.
• The ability to send and manage investor updates, and hosting software for pitch decks, videos, and other fundraising collateral.
• A library of documentation. Not just product documentation. Foundersuite offers templates for capitalization tables, financial models, NDAs, and much more. While you do still need to customize and edit everything, the templates make life much easier for founders trying to meet the daily demands of raising capital.

Slidebean

Slidebean is a pitch deck design platform for startups and small businesses. It eliminates the nightmare of trying to squeeze all of your relevant information into a tiny PowerPoint presentation.

Slidebean enables you to create sharp, professional presentations that are entirely tailored to your unique purposes. They provide a great service and we frequently recommend them to our clients.

Here’s an overview of some key features:

• A pitch deck toolkit that includes many customizable templates. You simply add your data and your copy to create an impactful pitch deck that sets you up for success.
• Financial model templates that are customized for various business types. You can develop a model on your own, or work with Slidebean’s staff.
• Access to investors in the Slidebean network through their Investor Finder tool. You can create customized searches to match your target investor profile.

Paperstreet

Paperstreet lets you manage all of your investor updates and communications quickly and easily. Paperstreet understands that solid communication is key to a successful raise, and they have some great features to help you get there.

Paperstreet’s tools make it easy to keep all of your current and potential investors in the loop. You never go dark, so your investor relationships don’t go cold. At Forecastr we use Paperstreet and we love it.

Here are a few key features:

• Configurable templates make it quick and easy to deliver elegant update emails.
• Track key metrics, including opens.
• Seamless import allows you to leverage contacts from other platforms.
• Create custom contact groups for targeted messaging.

Visible

Visible is an investor relationship platform that allows you to send investor updates, manage relationships, and track contact history. 

Visible recently introduced Visible Connect, a massive global database of investors. You can filter the database by deal stage, industry focus, country, region, check size, fund size, and more.

Visible is built around three primary functions:

• Update: Create data-rich updates that drive interaction. Configurable templates include standardized templates for YC, Techstars, and more.
• Raise: Simple investor CRM allows you to track and manage fundraising relationships. Includes file hosting and sharing.
• Track: Elegant dashboards provide a convenient centralized place to track and share engagement metrics and data.

Ledgy

Ledgy is an equity management platform that lets founders build cap table models, manage employee stakes, and coordinate investor relations. These tools allow you to align your team, investors, and other stakeholders with a shared vision.

Ledgy’s goal is to make ownership simple for scaling companies. The platform also offers an extensive range of resources for founders, including community support, regular webinars, and enterprise-grade data security.

Some key features include:

• HR and compensation models that help you track equity plans and employee engagement.
• Cap table management including scenarios and exit modeling.
• Document automation and signature management with customizable templates and variables.
• Investor relations management with KPI reporting and engaging investor dashboards.

Do You Need Financial Modeling Software?

We’ve shared some great tools that can go a long way toward creating a smashing success when you raise capital. But there’s one last tool that we think you should know about.

When you’re raising capital as a founder, there’s no tool more valuable than a world-class financial modeling software. A financial model gives you a framework to showcase your company’s growth, which translates into confidence when you’re pitching investors.

Forecastr takes the guesswork out of financial modeling with a convenient interface and a team of dedicated financial analysts who work along with you to help you get the most out of your model. Reach out today to learn more.