M13 RocketGuides are interactive masterclasses in building your startup, from crafting an investor-impressing pitch deck, to strategic conference selection, to writing clear and actionable investor updates.
Written by our expert operators, investors, and former founders, these guides include in-depth insights and best practices to help your company shine. Dive into our guides below.
M13’s Guide to Investor Updates
Investor update emails are a crucial part of effective communication to help you leverage your investor network. They’re your opportunity to share your progress, celebrate your wins, and ask for help where you need it.
In this interactive guide, we cover everything from deciding what metrics to include to finding the sweet spot between under-sharing and oversharing—so you can transform your updates into irresistible must-reads.
Highlights:
- "Investor updates can be just as important for potential investors as they are for current investors. If we meet a founder in between fundraising, we will often ask to be included on their investor distribution list. It’s a great way to stay top of mind for potential investors and give them some sizzle to get excited about." —Brent
- "Be transparent about challenges your startup is facing and the steps you're taking to overcome them. Acknowledging risks shows that you're realistic and proactive." —Rob
- "End with an action. Consider adding a CTA at the end (i.e. schedule a meeting, review a document, etc.) so it’s clear what action investors should take next." —Mary
Our investor letter guide experts:
Mary Lara, Director of Product; Brent Murri, M13 Partner; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product
M13's Guide to Strategic Conferencing in 2024
Conferences present a huge opportunity for networking, fundraising, showcasing your product, gleaning insider insights, and much more. They can also be chaotic, overwhelming, and expensive.
If you’ve wondered: Should I be going to conferences? Which ones? How do I find them? How do I make the most of my time there? Then our RocketGuide to Strategic Conferencing—featuring M13’s Conference Finder Tool—is for you!
Highlights:
- “Pitching investors? Consider creating a data room specifically for the conference, with links to your deck, product demos, and testimonials. Prospective investors you meet can share the link with anyone on their team and you can set up unique link tracking to understand views and engagement." —Amelia
- “Be a good (and strategic) host. Identify great partners and sponsors to add to the network you can bring together, and keep close track of the overarching event schedule—both the conference and offshoot events—to choose an optimal time for your own event." —Melissa
- “Introvert? You’re not alone! Up to 40% of the population needs some solo time to energize. Figure out the 1–3 things that will re-energize you while you’re in the thick of it. AM meditation? 30-minute workout? Favorite B-vitamin supplement from home? Plan these in advance so you know your cup will be filled." —Lizzie
Our conference guide experts:
Lizzie Francis, M13 Partner & Head of Propulsion; Mary Lara, Director of Product; Samantha Hughes, Community Program Coordinator; Melissa Montan, Director of Propulsion; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product; Amelia Zack, Portfolio Operations Analyst
M13's Guide to Building Your Early-Stage Fundraising Deck
Raising a seed or Series A round? Our comprehensive guide walks you through every. single. slide. your potential investors will want to read, from introducing an interesting problem you’re solving, to a strong product roadmap, to defining key metrics for your startup’s success.
Or check out the full deck below:
Highlights:
- “Investors can be lazy. If they only read the titles of your slides, that should be enough to tell your startup story.” —Rob
- “Twist the knife on your problem slide. Start with a problem, then highlight what makes it even worse. Use action words; be declarative.” —Anna
- “Financial projections should be optimistic but realistic. Make sure you understand what “good” looks like, and highlight that on your financial forecast slide.” —Karl
Our fundraising deck experts:
Karl Alomar, M13 Partner; Anna Barber, M13 Partner; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product
Stay connected
Sign up for exclusive early access to future M13 RocketGuides
M13 RocketGuides are interactive masterclasses in building your startup, from crafting an investor-impressing pitch deck, to strategic conference selection, to writing clear and actionable investor updates.
Written by our expert operators, investors, and former founders, these guides include in-depth insights and best practices to help your company shine. Dive into our guides below.
M13’s Guide to Investor Updates
Investor update emails are a crucial part of effective communication to help you leverage your investor network. They’re your opportunity to share your progress, celebrate your wins, and ask for help where you need it.
In this interactive guide, we cover everything from deciding what metrics to include to finding the sweet spot between under-sharing and oversharing—so you can transform your updates into irresistible must-reads.
Highlights:
- "Investor updates can be just as important for potential investors as they are for current investors. If we meet a founder in between fundraising, we will often ask to be included on their investor distribution list. It’s a great way to stay top of mind for potential investors and give them some sizzle to get excited about." —Brent
- "Be transparent about challenges your startup is facing and the steps you're taking to overcome them. Acknowledging risks shows that you're realistic and proactive." —Rob
- "End with an action. Consider adding a CTA at the end (i.e. schedule a meeting, review a document, etc.) so it’s clear what action investors should take next." —Mary
Our investor letter guide experts:
Mary Lara, Director of Product; Brent Murri, M13 Partner; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product
M13's Guide to Strategic Conferencing in 2024
Conferences present a huge opportunity for networking, fundraising, showcasing your product, gleaning insider insights, and much more. They can also be chaotic, overwhelming, and expensive.
If you’ve wondered: Should I be going to conferences? Which ones? How do I find them? How do I make the most of my time there? Then our RocketGuide to Strategic Conferencing—featuring M13’s Conference Finder Tool—is for you!
Highlights:
- “Pitching investors? Consider creating a data room specifically for the conference, with links to your deck, product demos, and testimonials. Prospective investors you meet can share the link with anyone on their team and you can set up unique link tracking to understand views and engagement." —Amelia
- “Be a good (and strategic) host. Identify great partners and sponsors to add to the network you can bring together, and keep close track of the overarching event schedule—both the conference and offshoot events—to choose an optimal time for your own event." —Melissa
- “Introvert? You’re not alone! Up to 40% of the population needs some solo time to energize. Figure out the 1–3 things that will re-energize you while you’re in the thick of it. AM meditation? 30-minute workout? Favorite B-vitamin supplement from home? Plan these in advance so you know your cup will be filled." —Lizzie
Our conference guide experts:
Lizzie Francis, M13 Partner & Head of Propulsion; Mary Lara, Director of Product; Samantha Hughes, Community Program Coordinator; Melissa Montan, Director of Propulsion; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product; Amelia Zack, Portfolio Operations Analyst
M13's Guide to Building Your Early-Stage Fundraising Deck
Raising a seed or Series A round? Our comprehensive guide walks you through every. single. slide. your potential investors will want to read, from introducing an interesting problem you’re solving, to a strong product roadmap, to defining key metrics for your startup’s success.
Or check out the full deck below:
Highlights:
- “Investors can be lazy. If they only read the titles of your slides, that should be enough to tell your startup story.” —Rob
- “Twist the knife on your problem slide. Start with a problem, then highlight what makes it even worse. Use action words; be declarative.” —Anna
- “Financial projections should be optimistic but realistic. Make sure you understand what “good” looks like, and highlight that on your financial forecast slide.” —Karl
Our fundraising deck experts:
Karl Alomar, M13 Partner; Anna Barber, M13 Partner; Rob Smith, M13 Partner & Head of Product
Stay connected
Sign up for exclusive early access to future M13 RocketGuides
Read more
The views expressed here are those of the individual M13 personnel quoted and are not the views of M13 Holdings Company, LLC (“M13”) or its affiliates.This content is for general informational purposes only and does not and is not intended to constitute legal, business, investment, tax or other advice. You should consult your own advisers as to those matters and should not act or refrain from acting on the basis of this content.This content is not directed to any investors or potential investors, is not an offer or solicitation and may not be used or relied upon in connection with any offer or solicitation with respect to any current or future M13 investment partnership.Past performance is not indicative of future results. Unless otherwise noted, this content is intended to be current only as of the date indicated. Any projections, estimates, forecasts, targets, prospects, and/or opinions expressed in these materials are subject to change without notice and may differ or be contrary to opinions expressed by others.Any investments or portfolio companies mentioned, referred to, or described are not representative of all investments in funds managed by M13, and there can be no assurance that the investments will be profitable or that other investments made in the future will have similar characteristics or results. A list of investments made by funds managed by M13 is available at m13.co/portfolio.