Know your "mathematical fit" to attract private equity funds

"When you do the math and understand your figures," advised financial expert Jacoline Loewen, "then you will do well in business."    Loewen, a partner with Loewen & Partners and author of Money Magnet, was talking to over 120 women business owners who were gathered together to celebrate International Women's Day.

She highlighted several successful women entrepreneurs who had not only done well in their business ventures, but sold them for millions and encouraged the women in the audience to think big, to believe in themselves and pursue growth. (You can see Jacoline Loewen's presentation at the Exempt Market Dealers Association website here. Scroll down.)

And the panel of women entrepreneurs who followed had done just that.  There was a common theme in their stories - each had just leapt in and followed her passion, not always knowing what they didn't know, but confident that they would obtain the knowledge they needed to succeed.

Neither Chioma of AMOI magazine nor Marissa McTasney of Moxie Trades were shy about pursuing someone who could help them, and when they had successfully tracked down the right person, and won them over, it was as if the doors opened and nothing could hold them back.

Marilyn Sinclair of WordCheck and iContent, on the other hand, was a serial entrepreneur, with over four businesses to her name, including one she had recently sold.  When she reflected back on her finances, she admits that she had difficulty getting a line of credit in the early days, and that one bank had required her to have her father's signature.  As she said, had she been married at the time, likely it would have been her husband's consent that was needed.

Times have changed, but we still have a long way to go.  The first step, recommends Loewen, is to do your homework and determine the type of investor who would most suit your financial needs.  Next is to know your figures; to present yourself in a competent, warm but professional manner, and be able to articulate your unique value proposition.  She also suggested that women focus on growth, not on the actual product, as that could change.

The Honourable Brad Duguid, Minister of Economic Development and Innovation (MEDI) gave the opening remarks at Become a Money Magnet which was organized by Company of Women, EMDA, Enterprise Toronto, Microskills and WEConnect Canada, and hosted by Ernst & Young.  "We wanted to focus on women and money, because while more and more women are entering the world of entrepreneurship, their rate of growth is lower when compared to their male counterparts." shared Mary Anderson of WEConnect Canada.  "And a lack of financial literacy, confidence and knowledge of what is available are all part of the problem."

This International Women's Day event was one of 25 held across the province that was funded by MEDI. 

The Exempt Market Dealers Association was a proud organizer of International Women's Day. This is part of the strategy to reach female business owners and link them to financial expertise and sources of private equity.

If you want to improve your pitch, watch realSociable on BNN

Women pitchers can gain quick traction if they quickly demonstrate competence. Investors have now seen a long track record of women entrepreneurs who have made other people very wealthy with great business concepts. If a woman proves her business expertise quickly, she will be on the same track as male business owners.
If you want to know how to pitch to demonstrate competence and warmth, watch Dalia Asterbadi, the founder and CEO of realSociable which helps companies transform tweets and Facebook updates into useful information for sales.

Here is the Realsociable pitch on BNN The Pitch. 
Watch Real Sociable pitch on BNN.

Tips on how to give a killer pitch if you go on BNN The Pitch

Going on TV and pitching takes guts but can pay off high dividends if done well.
You can learn a great deal by watching the best pitchers. Here is Unhaggle doing a good presentation, you can see how Andrew Bell responds warmly because the business is understandable.
Also watch how the panel is very interested and questions the pitcher for deeper understanding, rather than closing down the discussion.
Watch BNN The Pitch here:

Finance can give dentistry a good reputation but it also has its wonderful side. I am preparing a presentation for International Women's Day this week and could not resist sharing some of these quotes from people who raised the money to keep themselves going:
INSPIRATION

1) "If you can dream it, you can do it." 
-Walt Disney, founder of The Walt Disney Company
2) "Business opportunities are like buses, there's always another one coming." 
-Richard Branson, founder of Virgin Enterprises
3) “Capital isn't that important in business. Experience isn't that important. You can get both of these things. What is important is ideas.” 
-Harvey Firestone, founder of Firestone Tire & Rubber Co.
4) “Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life. Don’t be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people’s thinking. Don’t let the noise of other’s opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.” 
-Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple and Pixar
5) “Find your passion… then it is no longer work!” 
-L.A. Reid, co-founder of LaFace Records

TAKING INITIATIVE
6) “I had to make my own living and my own opportunity! But I made it! Don't sit down and wait for the opportunities to come. Get up and make them!" 
-Madam C.J. Walker, creator of beauty products and the first female self-made millionaire 
7) “The critical ingredient is getting off your butt and doing something. It’s as simple as that. A lot of people have ideas, but there are few who decide to do something about them now. Not tomorrow. Not next week. But today. The true entrepreneur is a doer, not a dreamer.”
-Nolan Bushnell, founder of Atari & Chuck E. Cheese’s
8) “The key is to just get on the bike, and the key to getting on the bike… is to stop thinking about ‘there are a bunch of reasons I might fall off’ and just hop on and peddle the damned thing. You can pick up a map, a tire pump, and better footwear along the way.” 
-Dick Costolo, founder of Feedburner.com
9) “The important thing is not being afraid to take a chance. Remember, the greatest failure is to not try.” 
-Debbi Fields, founder of Mrs. Fields Cookies

HARD WORK vs. LUCK
10) “Genius is 1% inspiration, and 99% perspiration.” 
-Thomas Edison, founder of General Electric (GE)
11) “I made a resolve then that I was going to amount to something if I could. And no hours, nor amount of labor, nor amount of money would deter me from giving the best that there was in me. And I have done that ever since, and I win by it. I know.” 
-Colonel Sanders, founder of KFC
12) “Nobody talks of entrepreneurship as survival, but that's exactly what it is.” 
-Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop
13) “Don’t ever let anyone tell you that something is too competitive. Once you subtract the people who don’t work very hard, or the people who aren’t as good as you, your competition shrinks dramatically.” 
-Maggie Mason, founder of Mighty Goods
14) “Life is really simple as far as I’m concerned. There is no luck, you work hard and study things intently. If you do that for long and hard enough you’re successful.” 
-Jason Calacanis, founder of Weblogs, Inc.

PERSEVERANCE
15) "When you reach an obstacle, turn it into an opportunity. You have the choice. You can overcome and be a winner, or you can allow it to overcome you and be a loser. The choice is yours and yours alone. Refuse to throw in the towel. Go that extra mile that failures refuse to travel. It is far better to be exhausted from success than to be rested from failure." 
-Mary Kay Ash, founder of Mary Kay Cosmetics
16) “It doesn’t matter how many times you fail. It doesn’t matter how many times you almost get it right. No one is going to know or care about your failures, and neither should you. All you have to do is learn from them and those around you because all that matters in business is that you get it right once. Then everyone can tell you how lucky you are.” 
-Mark Cuban, owner of the Dallas Mavericks, co-founder of Broadcast.com, founder of HDNet

GUIDING PRINICIPLES
17) “Entrepreneurs are risk takers, willing to roll the dice with their money or reputation on the line in support of an idea or enterprise. They willingly assume responsibility for the success or failure of a venture and are answerable for all its facets.” 
-Victor Kiam, owner of Remington Products
18) “The best reason to start an organization is to make meaning; to create a product or service to make the world a better place.” 
-Guy Kawasaki, venture capitalist, CEO of Garage Technology Ventures
19) “A friendship founded on business is a good deal better than a business founded on friendship.” 
-John D. Rockefeller, founder of Standard Oil
20) “An entrepreneur tends to bite off a little more than he can chew hoping he’ll quickly learn how to chew it.” 
-Roy Ash, co-founder of Litton Industries
21) “I've been blessed to find people who are smarter than I am, and they help me to execute the vision I have.” 
-Russell Simmons, founder of Def Jam
22) “One of the unique things we small companies have over the big guys is the ability to establish personal relationships. Big companies really can't do that. You read about effective organizations, learning organizations, lean and mean organizations, but small companies can be virtuous. We as small companies can have virtue because we as small companies are basically the embodiment of one or two people, and people can have virtue, while organizations really can't." 
-Jim Koch, founder of Boston Beer Company
23) “Experience taught me a few things. One is to listen to your gut, no matter how good something sounds on paper. The second is that you're generally better off sticking with what you know. And the third is that sometimes your best investments are the ones you don't make.” 
-Donald Trump, real estate developer
24) “High expectations are the key to everything.” 
-Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart

SATISFACTION
25) “I find that when you have a real interest in life and a curious life, that sleep is not the most important thing.” 
-Martha Stewart, founder of Omnimedia

 About Loewen and Partners: Since 2002, Loewen and Partners professional advisors have assisted more than 1,500 clients in launching and growing their businesses, and raising more than $1 billion in growth financing. 

• Need help with your business plan? 

• Looking to raise capital?

Speak with a finance expert today!

Jacoline Loewen can be reached at Loewen Partners.

If you want global market share, Wireless will give you clues

Resilient Strategy, more and more, must look at the wider ecosystem. There is no point pursuing services and products that require technology that is vanishing - music onto TDK cassette tapes, for example.
If you have a technology product, service or App, this presentation is a wonderfully detailed presentation showing you the market share of wireless: phones, Android, country uptake of each service provider and so much more.
It surprised me - RIM does not look very healthy...sad for Canada. Here is a snapshot of the wireless industry and it is a "cheat sheet" to the mobile space: industry ratings, trends and company overviews. .
See the presentation on Slideshare: Pegasus Strategies Wireless Overview 2012