Startup Funding Espresso – When Investors Turn You Down

Startup Funding Espresso – When Investors Turn You Down

March 19, 2026 by investor

When Investors Turn You Down Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso — your daily shot of startup funding and investing. Investors say no to most of the deals they see. Founders should take ‘no’ in stride and do the following: Review the deal for the risks the investors see. Some investors worry about risks that don’t exist, as they are not familiar enough with the company or the market. Founders should show how they mitigate those risks anyway. Founders can also review the valuation to see if it’s out of market. If only some investors have a problem with the valuation, then the founder can use warrants with those investors to help close the gap. Founders can also review the business to see if all the values in the business are coming through on the pitch deck. Finally, the founder should review the positioning of the startup. There are many ways to position the deal so it is attractive to the investor. Potential positionings include financial. This shows how the business makes money and can scale to make a great deal of money. Other positionings include impact. This shows how the business is providing a community benefit. Another position is the low-risk option. This shows how the business is running a known business model, with a proven team that has already exhibited significant success. Consider the valuation, the values in the business, and the positioning of your startup when the investors say no. Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding. Let’s go startup something today. _______________________________________________________ For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/ For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/ For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/ For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/ For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/ For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group Please follow, share, and leave a review. Music courtesy of Bensound.


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Disclaimer:
Hall T Martin is the director of Investor Connect, which is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to the education of investors for early-stage funding. All opinions expressed by Hall and podcast guests are solely their own opinions and do not reflect the opinion of Investor Connect. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be relied upon for the basis of investment decisions.