The Seed Round Checklist: 15 Things You Need Before You Raise

You've built something. You have early traction. You're ready to raise a seed round. Or at least you think you are.

Before you burn a single warm intro, run through this checklist. Every missing item is a conversation killer — and you won't know which one it was because investors rarely tell you why they passed.

The Deck (Items 1-3)

1. A pitch deck that scores 6.5+ across all lenses

Not "a deck my co-founder thinks is good." A deck that an objective third party — ideally an AI trained on 200+ real VC memos — says is investment-ready. If you're scoring below 6.5 on any of the 5 investment lenses (Problem, Differentiation, Execution, Traction, Risk), fix it before you start. Seriously.

2. A one-pager / executive summary

For the investors who won't open a deck but will read an email. One page: problem, solution, traction, team, ask. If you can't fit it on one page, your pitch isn't clear enough.

3. A demo or product walkthrough

A 3-minute Loom video showing the actual product in action. Not a Figma prototype. The real thing, with real data. Investors who see the product in motion are 3x more likely to take a meeting.

The Numbers (Items 4-7)

4. Clear metrics that prove demand

MRR, growth rate, retention, or engagement — whatever your primary metric is, know it cold. "Around $10K MRR" is not a number. "$11,200 MRR, growing 28% month-over-month for 4 consecutive months" is a number.

5. A financial model (simple, not fancy)

18-month projection with clear assumptions. Revenue, costs, headcount plan, runway. Investors don't expect accuracy — they expect you've thought about it. If your model has 47 tabs and a Monte Carlo simulation, you're overcomplicating it. If it's a napkin, you're undercomplicating it.

6. Unit economics (at least directionally)

What does it cost to acquire a customer? What's the lifetime value? Even if these numbers are early, have them. "We're not tracking CAC yet" is a red flag that says "we're not ready for institutional money."

7. A clean cap table

Your cap table should not require a PhD to understand. If you have 14 SAFEs at different caps, a convertible note from your uncle, and shares promised to an advisor who hasn't done anything — clean it up before any investor asks. Use Carta, Pulley, or even a spreadsheet. Just make it clear.

The Team (Items 8-10)

8. A founder story that connects to the problem

Why are YOU building THIS? The connection between your personal experience and the problem you're solving is the most compelling thing in your pitch. If you can't articulate it, investors won't feel conviction.

9. A hiring plan (not a wish list)

"We'll hire engineers" is a wish list. "We'll hire 2 senior full-stack engineers in Q2 to build the API integration layer, and 1 sales lead in Q3 to run our first outbound motion" is a hiring plan. Show investors you've thought about who you need, when, and why.

10. Advisor relationships (not logos)

Having advisors is great. Having advisors who actively help is better. If you list advisors, be ready to explain what they've specifically contributed. "They've introduced us to 3 enterprise customers" is useful. "They give strategic advice" is air.

The Legal & Admin (Items 11-13)

11. A properly incorporated entity

Delaware C-Corp (if raising from US investors), Australian Pty Ltd (if raising locally), or equivalent. Not a sole trader. Not an LLC. If you haven't incorporated, do it this week — it takes 48 hours online.

12. IP assignment agreements

Every person who's written code or created IP for the company has signed an agreement assigning that IP to the company. This includes co-founders. This is non-negotiable — investors will ask, and if the answer is "we haven't done that yet," you'll lose the deal.

13. A data room (even a basic one)

Google Drive folder with: deck, financials, cap table, team bios, product demo, customer list, key contracts. Not fancy. But when an investor says "can you send me your data room?" — and they will — you should be able to share a link in 30 seconds, not scramble for a week.

The Strategy (Items 14-15)

14. A target investor list (researched, not random)

30-50 investors who match your stage, sector, check size, and geography. For each one: who's the right partner, what's their thesis, and what's the warmest path to an intro. This is research, not Googling "top VCs." Our AI matching does this for you — upload your deck and see who matches.

15. A fundraising timeline

When are you starting? When do you want to close? What milestones will you hit during the raise that strengthen your position? The best fundraisers create artificial urgency by timing their outreach around a key milestone — a product launch, a big customer win, a revenue threshold.

The Meta-Lesson

Here's what this checklist really says: fundraising is a project, not an event. The founders who raise fastest are the ones who treat it like a product launch — with a timeline, milestones, assets prepared in advance, and a clear plan for execution.

The ones who raise slowest are the ones who wake up one day, decide "I should raise money," and start cold emailing VCs with an unfinished deck and no data room.

Don't be that founder.

Start with your deck. Get it scored. Fix the gaps. Then work through this checklist. By the time you send your first email, you'll be ready for whatever comes back.