Since the vast majority of venture capital hunters don't qualify, you will, in most cases, end up wasting 6 to 12 months of your life writing a business plan which will never be read and doing "dog & pony" shows for audiences who are at best only mildly curious or at worst engaged in "brainsucking" you for ideas. successful business. Everyone who knows the author and his success as a Seattle entrepreneur will tell you that the manual is full of substance.

In a nutshell, most of these middle-man services don't work in 99% of instances. This is also why they won't tell you the Three Dirty Little Secrets of Raising Capital. * One entrepreneur answers that he has been able to finish his business plan as well as find a means to generate cashflow which is being used to move the main project further along. Now he needs more money to fully capitalize on this developing opportunity.

You've got a bright idea. An idea that you think maybe, just maybe, could become a brilliant business. But what next? The Guide is the answer. It takes you through all the crucial stages between those first notes on a napkin to a business that is sound, lasting and profitable. It tells you what the other books don't - the lessons that most people have to learn by bitter experience; the tricks of Industry "stars" qualify for venture capital. This means someone who has already taken a start-up from zero to 50 million in sales or better. So if you're counted amongst the stars in your industry, you stand a good chance of attracting venture capital provided your current deal has the following elements:

Testimonials Necessity truly is the Mother of Invention.

Venture Capital Catch 22TM? My two personal favorites are:

* Realist: "I need to come up with at least 3 different ways to get this show off the ground." 2. Most die on the vine. In many cases, the wannabe entrepreneur simply abandons the project and moves on to something else. (As the joke goes, "That's why God created 'jobs' ".)

Dreamer: "I know the odds are against us. But wait till you see our business plan. It's gonna be grrrreat!" Most first time capital seekers pay the 'Dumb Tax' also known as learning the hard way. This book has the best collection of strategies for avoiding paying it ever put together.

Lesson: put very little faith in these services and never pay up-front fees. The Guide's Smart Start-up Model distills the lessons of America's most successful start-up companies for you to use in your venture. You can use the model as a screen to evaluate your current strategy for viability. If it doesn't pass the test, you can use the model to deconstruct it and formulate a stronger new strategy.

In a Nutshell The Guide is the next best thing to sitting down in person with a group of Inc 500 Fastest Growing Companies founders and having them share their secrets with you.

The Smart Startup teaches you how to get your venture off the ground with little or no outside money. It does so by revealing the financing strategies used by entrepreneurial greats when investors weren't available. Ironically, while the Guide tries to dissuade you from using outside money, the application of its strategies will actually make your venture all the more attractive to venture Before Embarking on a Campaign to Raise Venture Capital Funding, You Should Look at Yourself Objectively and Honestly to Determine if You Even Qualify. Most People Don't Stop to Do This.