Most founders raising their first round think the problem is access. They do not know any investors, so they assume they need a network before they can start. In practice, the founders who find pre-seed investors with no network are the ones who run a better process: the right investors, a short personal email and real follow-up.
I worked in venture capital in London, reading founder emails by the hundred. The good companies that did not get through rarely had a weak pitch. They had a weak process. This guide is that process, step by step, for founders who are starting from zero.
Who pre-seed investors actually are
"Pre-seed investor" covers several kinds of people and firms. They write different cheques and want different things from you.
- Angel investors. Individuals investing their own money. Often former founders or operators in your sector. They can decide quickly and usually care most about you and the problem.
- Pre-seed funds. Small venture funds that invest before there is much traction. They expect a clear story about why this team and why now.
- Seed funds that start early. Some seed funds also write smaller first cheques. Check their recent deals rather than the stage on their website.
- Accelerators. Programmes that invest a fixed amount in a batch of companies, usually with deadlines and an application form.
- Angel syndicates and groups. Groups of angels who invest together, often with a lead who does the first review.
You do not need all of them. You need the ones that fit your round.
Step 1: Decide what a fit looks like
Before you look for a single name, write down what a good investor for this round looks like. One page is enough.
- Stage. Do they invest before revenue, or only after early traction?
- Cheque size. Does a typical cheque from them fit inside your round? A fund that writes cheques larger than your whole round is not a fit, however famous it is.
- Sector. Have they backed companies in your space, or written about it?
- Geography. Do they invest in companies where you are based?
- Who to exclude. Anyone who has backed a direct competitor. Most investors will not fund two companies fighting for the same customers, and some will not take the meeting at all.
This is the step most founders skip, and it is the one that decides whether everything after it works.
Step 2: Build your list from real investments
A list of investor names is not the same as a list of investors who fit. Build yours from what investors have actually done, not from what their websites say.
- Look at comparable deals. Find companies like yours that raised a pre-seed or seed round in the last year or two. Note who invested, and which partner at the firm led the deal.
- Read portfolio pages. A fund's portfolio tells you more about its real focus than its description of itself.
- Follow the partner, not just the firm. At most funds, a specific partner decides whether to take your company forward. Write to the person whose past deals look like yours.
- Count each firm once. Pick the single best partner at each fund. Emailing three people at the same firm at once usually looks careless.
- Find operator angels. People who have built or run companies in your sector often invest at this stage. Look at who founders in your space thank in their funding announcements.
Keep the list in a simple sheet: name, firm, why they fit, the evidence and anything you are not sure about.
Step 3: Check the timing
An investor can fit perfectly and still be the wrong person to email this week. Before you send, look for signs that they are actively investing.
- A new fund. Firms that have just raised a new fund are usually looking for deals.
- A new partner. New partners are often building their first portfolio at the firm.
- Recent deals in your space. A fresh investment near your sector suggests current interest. A direct competitor in the portfolio is a reason to skip them.
- Open calls. Some investors and accelerators announce when they are taking pitches.
If you cannot find any recent activity, move them lower on the list rather than removing them.
Step 4: Write a short, personal email
Cold email works at pre-seed when it is short and specific. The investor should be able to tell, in the first two lines, that you wrote it for them.
- Why them. One sentence on why this investor, based on the evidence in your sheet.
- What you do. One plain sentence. No adjectives doing the work of facts.
- Why it matters now. Your strongest piece of evidence: users, revenue, pilots, a waitlist or a hard-won insight.
- The ask. A short call, or permission to send the deck.
Send it from your own inbox, signed by you. Investors are backing the founder, and the email is the first thing they see you do.
Step 5: Follow up
Most raises stall here. Founders send one email, hear nothing and assume the answer is no. Silence usually means the email was missed or put aside for later.
- Follow up about a week after the first email, with one new piece of information.
- Follow up once more if there is still no reply, then stop.
- Reply to every answer, including a no. Ask whether there is someone better placed to look at it.
A polite no today is often a useful introduction later.
Turning cold starts into warm introductions
Having no network at the start does not mean you will have none by the end. Every reply is a chance to build one.
- Ask founders in an investor's portfolio for an honest view of working with them. Some will offer to introduce you.
- When an investor passes but likes you, ask who else they would send it to.
- Keep a short monthly update going to everyone who replied. Investors who said "too early" often want to see progress.
A simple weekly routine
A pre-seed raise works best as a steady weekly habit rather than one big push.
- Add a small batch of new investors who fit, with the evidence for each.
- Check timing on the ones at the top of the list.
- Send personal emails to the best of them.
- Send follow-ups that are due.
- Answer replies and book meetings.
- Update your sheet with what you learned.
Keep it small enough that you can still run your company.
Where RaiseRunner fits
RaiseRunner runs this process for you. We find investors who fit your raise, write personal emails in your voice and run the follow-ups from your inbox. You still confirm the facts, approve what goes out, answer real investor questions and take the meetings.
If you are raising pre-seed or seed, you can apply for Ignite: six weeks of investor outreach, run for you, free.