The Pre-Seed Fundraising Checklist: What You Need Before You Start Pitching

Pre-seed fundraising takes 3-6 months on average and requires more preparation than most founders realize. The startups that close rounds quickly aren't the ones with the best ideas, they're the ones who show up prepared with all the right materials ready before making their first investor introduction.

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We've helped dozens of startups successfully raise pre-seed and seed rounds. Here's exactly what you need ready before you start outreach.

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1. Professional Pitch Deck (10-15 Slides)

Your pitch deck is your most important fundraising asset. Keep it to 10-15 slides that tell a clear story investors can review in under 5 minutes.

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Essential slides: Problem, Solution, Market Size, Traction, Business Model, Competition, Team, Financials, and Ask.

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Key tips: Lead with the problem, not your solution. Keep slides visual with minimal text. Show any early traction you have, even if it's just user feedback or LOIs. Make your ask clear: how much you're raising and what specific milestones it will fund.

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2. Organized Data Room

Set up a professional data room before investors ask for it. This shows you're organized and speeds up due diligence dramatically.

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Must-have documents: Cap table, incorporation docs, financial model with 3-year projections, monthly financials, customer contracts or LOIs, IP documentation, team backgrounds, and market research.

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Pro tip: Use DocSend or similar platforms that let you track which investors are reviewing which documents. Update your data room monthly so nothing looks stale.

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3. Strong Brand Identity

Investors will search for you before taking a meeting. Your brand needs to signal you're serious and understand positioning.

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What you need: Professional logo and visual identity, clear tagline, website explaining what you do and why it matters, active LinkedIn company page, and consistent messaging across all channels. If you want to overachieve, you should be creating a strong personal brand that discusses point related to your core product's value proposition / paint points as well.

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Why it matters: First impressions happen before the pitch. A polished brand differentiates you from competitors and helps with both fundraising and talent recruitment.

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4. Financial Model and Unit Economics

Even at pre-seed, investors want to see you understand your business model and path to profitability.

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Include: Revenue projections by segment, cost structure and headcount plan, CAC and LTV assumptions, burn rate and runway, and detailed use of funds showing how investment capital deploys.

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Common mistake: Avoid hockey stick projections without logic. Build bottom-up from specific assumptions. Show you understand your key metrics even if the data is early.

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5. Founder-Market Fit Story

At pre-seed, investors bet on founders as much as ideas. Your narrative needs to explain why your team is uniquely positioned to win.

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What makes strong founder-market fit: Domain expertise in the problem space, relevant experience building or selling to your market, complementary founding team skills, and personal connection to the problem you're solving.

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How to communicate it: Weave founder-market fit throughout your pitch, not just on the team slide. Be specific about how each founder's background contributes to success.

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6. Early Customer Validation

You probably don't have significant revenue yet, but you need proof people want what you're building.

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Forms of traction: Letters of intent, design partner agreements, waitlist signups with engagement data, early revenue or pre-orders, user feedback from MVP testing, or industry validation like awards or press.

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Present it right: Quantify everything. Show month-over-month momentum. Connect your current traction to the milestones this funding round will achieve.

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7. Targeted Investor List with Warm Introductions

Cold outreach has a sub-5% response rate. Successful fundraising runs on warm introductions to the right investors.

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Build your list: Research investors who back companies at your stage in your category, identify firms writing pre-seed checks in the last 12-18 months, and note individual partners focused on your vertical.

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Get warm intros: Map your network systematically using LinkedIn. Ask for specific introductions to aligned investors. Make it easy for introducers by providing a short forwardable blurb and your deck.

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8. Practiced Pitch

Your deck matters, but your live presentation matters more. Investors evaluate how you think, handle questions, and communicate under pressure.

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Prepare thoroughly: Practice your pitch 20+ times before investor meetings. Record yourself to catch issues. Role-play Q&A covering expected objections. Know your numbers cold (financials, traction metrics, market size) without checking your deck.

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9. Clear Investment Terms

Know exactly what you're raising, on what terms, and how you'll deploy capital before you start conversations.

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Have decided: Funding amount (minimum and target), instrument (SAFE, priced round, convertible note), valuation cap if applicable, and timeline for closing.

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Use of funds: Be specific about capital deployment. Show 18-24 months of runway. Clearly articulate what milestones this capital achieves that enable your next fundraise.

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10. Fundraising Process Systems

Fundraising is a full-time job for 3-6 months. Set up systems to manage it while keeping your business moving.

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Get organized: Track every investor conversation in a CRM or Airtable. Block 20-30 hours weekly for fundraising. Spread meetings out to avoid burnout and allow time for follow-ups.

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Mental preparation: Expect lots of "no" responses, even great companies hear no from 20-30 investors. Don't let the business slip while fundraising. Continued momentum is what investors want to see.

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Common Mistakes to Avoid

Starting outreach before you're ready. You get one shot with most investors. Don't waste it by pitching before your materials are polished.

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Unclear deal terms. Confusion around structure kills momentum. Be consistent across all conversations.

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Neglecting the business. Keep shipping product and closing customers even while fundraising. New traction is your best fundraising asset.

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Your Pre-Seed Fundraising Checklist

Before starting outreach, make sure you have:

✓ Professional 10-15 slide pitch deck
✓ Organized data room with all due diligence materials
✓ Strong brand identity and online presence
✓ Financial model with projections and unit economics
✓ Clear founder-market fit narrative
✓ Early customer validation or traction
✓ Target investor list with warm intro strategy
✓ Practiced pitch and polished presentation
✓ Defined investment terms and use of funds
✓ Systems to manage the fundraising process

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Preparation separates successful pre-seed raises from painful, extended ones. Build these assets before outreach and you'll dramatically improve your chances of closing quickly on favorable terms.

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How Cactus Marketing Supports Pre-Seed and Seed Fundraising

At Cactus Marketing, we've helped dozens of startups successfully close pre-seed and seed rounds by building the materials investors need to say yes. We design compelling pitch decks, develop professional brand identities, organize data rooms, automate a majority of cold outreach at scale, and make warm introductions to relevant VCs in our network.

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We've been through this process multiple times and understand what investors look for at early stages. If you're preparing to raise and want support building the assets and connections you need, get in touch. Let's get you funded.