- The “money guys” that I talked to were from Angle Investment groups or standard VC firms. They knew nothing about the eDiscovery industry, so it was difficult to explain why this is a good idea, why now is the perfect time, and why I am the best one for the job, etc. Along with that, most of these guys are non-technical, so they just couldn’t get their arms around my vision. I kept being told that they were looking for “simple” businesses they could invest in and help steer.
- The second issue, and probably the biggest as I look back at it, was that I didn’t have anything. I had ideas, a business plan, some cool graphics and the like, but I did not have anything tangible that these guys could lock up as collateral if they decided to invest. I was constantly being asked how much intellectual property I had. It was just too big of a risk for these guys since everything was still in my head.
So, after a couple of months of writing Executive Summaries and being rejected, I started realizing how much time I was wasting by doing something that was clearly outside my skillset. I decided to start this business on my own – one line of code at a time. I’m not working as fast as I would like since I have to keep my day job, but I’m making progress and am happy with my decision. Another decision I made is that if and when the day comes when I do find an investor, the investor will need to understand the eDisovery industry completely. A good fit would probably be a big law firm that wants to get into DIY eDiscovery, or a professional review company that may want to expand their offerings. I’m getting ahead of myself here, but I guess what I am saying is that I am looking for money and knowledge this time around, not just money.
The trip down the funding road was not all bad. I learned a lot about how this part of the business works and I am sure this newfound knowledge will come in handy someday.
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