Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

An advisory board is a group of three to five people who provide advice on how to grow your startup.

They bring experience, contacts, and domain expertise.

Advisory boards help the company grow and succeed.

In recruiting for your advisory board, consider the following:

Recruit diverse skills, networks, and experience...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Donna Hamlin, CEO, & Nola Masterson, Partner at Boardwise.

Boardwise provides companies and executives with the highest quality solutions, tools, education, independent evaluations, research, breaking news, and advisory support in corporate governance and management available for governance needs around the globe.

They work with all forms of companies and organizations, including private and publi...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Once you’ve found an advisor you want to bring on board, consider the compensation.

It’s important to pay the advisor something for their time and experience.

Real work requires real pay.

Not all advisors bring the same level of support to the startup.

Also consider that equity increases in value as the company grows...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Don Rainey, General Partner at Grotech Ventures.

Headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, Grotech Ventures is a team committed to helping creative and driven entrepreneurs build technology companies that last. Their strategy is simple: early investors in high-potential technology companies. They initially invest from $500,000 to $5 million and look to continue investing and building value throughout the ...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In recruiting an advisor, check to see if they have what it takes to be a good one:

Have they been through the wringer?  

Those who have been tested, such as nearing bankruptcy or going bankrupt will have a deeper understanding of the challenges in running a startup.

Will their work with you put them in conflict with...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Here are some warning signs you may be talking to the wrong advisor:

Their primary business-building experience came two tech generations ago.

They have business experience but only in one area such as sales or marketing.

They can relate their experience but have difficulty understanding your situation.

They have a s...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Christian Czernich, CEO/Founder/Managing Partner at Round2 Capital Partners. 

Round2 Capital Partners is a financing partner for European scale-ups with digital and sustainable business models. In the scale-up phase, outstanding entrepreneurs manage to transform their business from a successful venture into a real company. Round2 offers the innovative funding instruments and insights needed to master ...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Elio Assuncao, Founder and Director at Venture Capital World Summit.

Venture Capital World Summit is a global community for investors and investees where they help businesses get more capital and expertise as they need to scale up and grow internationally with the support, if required, from their trusted network. Their message to international businesses and entrepreneurs is simple: attend their inter...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Once you decide you need an advisor, you’ll need to find and select one.

Here are some key points to consider:

Start with your network and expand out from there.

Hold several conversations with the candidate advisor before making a decision.

If you need to raise awareness for your startup, consider a thought leader i...

In this episode, Hall welcomes John-Mark Collins, Co-Founder, Owner, and Operator of Electric Playhouse.

Headquartered in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Electric Playhouse is an experiential platform company building easily replicable distributable content and operational facilities for families and adults to enjoy. Electric Playhouse has one open location in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and two more in the works in Dallas and Houston. Elect...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In working with an advisor for your startup, look for these characteristics:

In this episode, Hall welcomes back Matthew Sullivan, CEO and Founder of QuantmRE.  

Headquartered in Newport Beach, California, QuantmRE is a real estate finance platform that originates and funds Home Equity Agreements. This new financial tool enables qualifying homeowners to get a cash lump sum from their home equity with no monthly payments, no interest and no added debt. A Home Equity Agreement is an equity based solution - it...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

In choosing a startup to advise, it’s important to find the right fit.

Here are some key points to make sure you are a good advisor to the startup.

Spend time with the startup to really understand if you can add value and if they are ready for an advisor.

Make sure you communicate well with each other and ensure the ...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Igor Khmel, Founder and CEO of Brik.exchange.

Brik.exchange is a platform where you can trade stablecoins. BRIK is liquidity protocol for real estate that they are working on. They want to implement the power of the DeFi market and stable coins to automate the biggest asset class in the world - real estate. They have got multifamily properties confirmed for $15m, and are in the process of onboarding o...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Advisors take many roles in their work with startups.

You can use advisors to fill gaps in the early stage of the startup.

Some advisors provide support as informal advisors.?

There’s no set goals, meetings, or formal advisor agreement.

This is the most common way startups work with advisors.

Those advisors signed up...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

There are several types of advisors you can choose to help your startup.

Here’s a list to consider:

The Brand Name. This type of advisor offers their name to your company.??

This can be helpful to attract investors, employees, and customers.?

They typically bring some value in the form of advice, but it’s primarily t...

This is Investor Perspectives, I’m the host of Investor Connect, Hall T Martin, where we connect startups and investors for funding.

In our new Investor Perspectives series entitled “COVID’s Impact on Cybersecurity”, you’ll hear about changes expected in the coming 12 months and our guests’ final thoughts.

As the COVID pandemic passes, we emerge into a new world. The cybersecurity space is now undergoing tremendous change as we shi...

In this episode, Hall welcomes Berthold Baurek-Karlic, Founder and Managing Partner at Venionaire Capital.

Headquartered in Vienna, Austria, Venionaire Capital is an independent private equity and venture capital firm that offers a wide range of services in a variety of tech-related sectors and industries. Since its foundation in 2012, the company successfully advised more than 50 startups and closed transactions with an overall v...

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Good advisors bring good value to your startup. Great advisors bring great value.

Spend time identifying the right advisor.

In recruiting an advisor, pose specific questions and gauge the response.

How does it rank compared to feedback from other sources?

It should be the best or near best of responses.

If they advis...