You too are a business

Today we have some tough love for you. Not everything is a joke here, you know?!

If next year things don't go as you expect – did somebody say ✨ recession ✨? –, can you trust that you will eventually be fine because everybody knows you are the motherf*cking G?

Or have you focused too much on the business and forgotten to communicate YOUR awesomeness to the world?

📌 “One of the key mistakes I see founders make when they are at the top, or when they are at a rise, is not taking advantage of their position,” says Oso Trava, founder of Cracks Fund and an expert at building digital audiences.

For Oso, building a personal brand as a founder, or just as a person who adds some form of value, is not only a GREAT asset. It’s something you CANNOT set aside.

Is it really important to work on my brand?

Yes, people, come on. Reality check.

As you know, almost all startups die. If your endeavor indeed ends, or if you cash in your chips early because sh*t happens, and then nobody knows who you are or what kind of street cred you have, you will have to recollect your dignity cool, and restart from 0. 🫠

But if you have consistently worked on your personal brand, delivered valuable information to an audience – even a small one –, and have built for yourself an image of fab, glam, and smart entrepreneur or investor, you can just pick it back up from level 1 or 2.

What we don’t do is quit, k? We don’t even know the meaning of the word.

How to manage my community?

Whether you are a person or a brand, you need to understand who your audience is – the user persona – and in which ways you can add value and serve them.

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If you approach them with that mindset and put yourself out there, they will connect with you. 💙 Only this way will you build a loyal base of followers that will help you or your company grow.

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Now, exposure helps – and it's not that you need to go on Mexican morning TV shows, but are you actively using LinkedIn? Is there some unique knowledge you could share as a guest contributor somewhere? Have you considered writing your own newsletter? There are many ways to amplify your voice, Kathia! 📣

The amazing Oso Trava was a guest at the Latitud Podcast, where he also talked about:

• How did he change his life after years of climbing the corporate ladder?
• Is J. Balvin investing in a mental health app? (Say whaaat?)
• What does it mean to be a crack?

Ay! with the AI

Internal chisme: one specific anonymous VC at Latitud (Marcial) has intensively requested Latitud copywriters to use ChatGPT AI for the past 2 weeks – obsessed he is, obsessed! 🤌

Anyway, we tried it.

If you don't know what we're talking about, you are super behind Vinicius – chop chop! Learn why people like NFX's James Currier are so excited about generative tech.

The fellows ask

Q: What common mistakes founders do make when raising their pre-seed that are red flags for investors?
The most common mistake, and a huge red flag about the founder, is not running a process.

So, how to make it right?

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1. First, you need to figure out who are the right investors for you and create a list of those investors that you want to talk to.

2. Then, you need to figure out who is gonna introduce you to them.

Clue: introductions from angel investors or fellow founders are the best way to go (which is significantly easier if you are part of our Fellowships 😎, you’re welcome).

Once you have your list of investors and have reached out to them, you need to run a very quick meeting process.

Don't do random meetings. Set aside 2 or 3 weeks and have all the conversations in that time, one after the other. That gives you the leverage you need for creating the fear of missing out.

👉 This question was asked during the Explore Fellowship at the session Fundraising Strategy with Lucas Bagno, Investor at Village Global

Would you like your questions to be answered?

⛵ Hot News Ahoy!

🧠 Giuseppe's getting smarter

The Chilean foodtech NotCo has raised US$ 70M in an extension of its Series D. Valued at US$ 1.5B, the company will use the new cash injection to improve its artificial intelligence, called Giuseppe. It's also preparing an IPO for 2025.

🤝 Startup M&As in the game
M&As between startups are keeping up with last year's pace. The number of startups buying other startups should reach 1,300 this year, similar to the deal count seen in 2021. There's growth ahead: TechCrunch predicts next year to be even better.

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-> Every time one of your friends subscribes to our Newsletter, a LatAm founder stops bringing a ladder to pitch meetings ✨ So ask them to subscribe!

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