Finding An Advisor And Building A Startup Advisory Team: The Ultimate Guide To Working With A Startup Advisor
A startup advisor can help you structure your company, navigate through startup pitfalls, motivate your team, secure financing, build equity, and help to grow your business to its maximum potential.
Every new business should try to find an advisor, especially if you're ready to devote your time to get the most out of your advisor's talents, expertise, and connections.
If you run your business without leveraging what your startup advisor offers, then it's a waste of time. However, if you're dedicated to accepting your advisor’s insights, advice, and mentorship, and you find the right advisor, you can more quickly achieve your business goals and grow your startup company.
So what does a startup advisor do, and when does your business need a startup advisor? We'll answer those questions and many more about startup business advisors in this article.
Who Is A Startup Advisor?
A startup advisor is an individual who mentors new business owners on industry matters. A good advisor can help provide mentoring and networking connections to a startup company or startup entrepreneur.
The right advisor should act as a sounding board, since your advisors should be there for you to bounce ideas off of and talk through business challenges with.
The right advisor should act as a sounding board. He or she should be someone you can bounce ideas off of and talk through business challenges with.
It's essential to note that you may not find everything you're looking for in one advisor. That’s why some business owners assemble startup advisory boards or a team of multiple advisors. An advisory board can provide great value to your company and help you get the startup support you need.
What Do Startup Advisors Do?
There's no one-size-fits-all role for startup advisors. Thus, the value a startup advisor provides for you and your business largely depends on what your startup needs. For instance:
A high-growth technology business might require help to raise equity funding or form strategic alliances with big tech companies.
A regional business might require an advisor with accounting skills, industry knowledge, or extensive marketing expertise.
If you were drafting job descriptions for startup advisors, those descriptions may vary from one business to another because their services are specialized for the startup company they are working with.
Also, it's essential to note that business needs change with time. In the first year of your business, you might need advice about forming your business, setting prices, finding the right office space, recruiting staff, or getting your first clients. Six months later, you might need advice about getting industry distributors, building equity, or expanding internationally. This means the skill sets you want from your advisors will depend on the stage your business is in.
What Value Does Startup Advisory Bring into Your Business?
An advisor brings skills or knowledge you don't have to your business. A good advisor is a person who compliments your abilities. This means your business startup advisor knows what you don't know about startups and has skills you lack. A valuable mentor helps compensate for your weaknesses.
Also, an advisor might have connections and contacts with people that you don't know. This means your advisor can open doors to prospective service providers, investors, partners, and key executive employees that you wouldn’t otherwise have access to. A startup advisor with a long list of connections and contacts can help you get an introduction and your phone calls answered.
While you can't expect a startup business advisor to be a part-time or full-time employee, you don't want an advisor who is distracted, impatient, or who is impossible to contact. Having a startup mentor onboard isn't about a set of hours; it's more about whether they will give you undivided attention when you need their help. Find an advisor who can dedicate their time to help you individually and help grow the equity of your company.
A startup advisor is a person you can develop a strong business relationship with. An advisor is invaluable as a mentor or sounding board who you can talk through challenges and come up with marketing strategies with. Whatever the issue at hand, you and your advisor need to be able to work together.
What happens if you and your advisor have different opinions on something? For instance, if one of you thinks bringing on a partner and investors are the way to go, but the other is committed to bootstrapping, or if you get on each other's nerves because of different communication styles, you'll have a hard time working together as a team. Ultimately, you must follow your own judgment to find the right advisor for your startup.
A good startup advisor is a person you trust enough to be honest with. You and your advisor must trust each other enough to communicate openly, even after a disagreement. Without trust and honesty between you and your advisor, there is absolutely no point in trying to work together on growing your company.
When Do You Need To Hire An Advisor For Your Startup?
Knowing when to hire a startup advisor to help you scale your business will depend on your goals and needs. Some startup companies find it helpful to hire an advisor from the get-go. Other startup entrepreneurs wait until they face new challenges or growth opportunities. And some business owners hire startup advisors when they find themselves hesitating to make tough company decisions.
Typically, you should hire an advisor when you need help or have a reason to do so.
The reason many entrepreneurs seek startup advisors is that they're just starting their first business venture, and they're unsure about some of the compliance and legal issues facing their company. Maybe your business is facing product development challenges or perhaps you're considering launching a new service or product and want to get advice from an experienced entrepreneur.
You should be able to devote enough time to communicate with your advisor. Don't wait until your business is in crisis to contact your advisor. Startup advisors are there to guide you or address specific issues. Advisors are not there for crisis management.
What Should Startups Owners Look For When Hiring A Startup Mentor?
As a startup founder, you must look for an investor with the specific advantages, skills, and abilities you need. As you interview advisors, ask yourself these questions:
What area do I most need advice on right now: startup legal matters, accounting, team building, marketing, or management? Think about the areas where you need advice the most, and then look for startup experts and advisors with that type of expertise.
Would a key introduction act as an accelerator to my business right now? If so, what companies do I need introductions to? Does the advisor I want to hire have connections with those people? Is the advisor I'm considering willing to make those introductions?
Will I benefit from bouncing ideas around with a startup mentor? How much of a mentor or sounding board do I need? Most startup advisors bring a broad perspective and decades of business experience. This could be more valuable to a new startup founder than subject matter expertise.
What type of format best works for me: informal lunch meetings, formal board meetings, video calls, or emails? Is the advisor I'm considering hiring willing and able to work within my preferred format?
How much time would I like from my startup advisor? If you require additional information on a narrow topic, then a one-time phone call would suffice. However, if you're looking for regular guidance for your startup, then you'll need quarterly calls or meetings with your advisor and email or video communication in between.
Will I communicate well with this startup advisor? As you interview potential advisors, see if there's any rapport between you two. How easy is the advisor to talk with? If you feel the person is impatient or is cutting you off, then know you won't get value from that person.
How Do You Find An Advisor?
There are two approaches to finding the right startup advisors, depending on whether your startup is:
A high-growth startup, or
Any other type of company.
High-growth companies, such as Silicon Valley tech startups, often are focused on securing angel investment or venture capital. Or they may take part in an accelerator that offers a package of startup services, such as advisory support.
Startup mentors for high-growth startups often are investors in the company. These investors may receive an equity stake as compensation for being a startup advisor. Learn more about startup advisor equity.
Most startups aren't high-growth but are bootstrapped. They may get capital from family or friends, use personal savings or credit cards, or other means to fund their business venture.
If your startup company is a non-high-growth enterprise, you may lack the capital to pay advisors or get access to Silicon Valley insiders. In that case, you’ll have to get creative or rely on volunteer advisors.
With diligence, you can find startup advisors that are the right fit for you, your team, and your company.
Practical Ways To Find A Startup Investor
There are a variety of people willing to serve as advisors for your company, and there are several platforms that can connect you with the right advisor for your needs.
SCORE provides a ton of startup advice on its website. Even better, it'll pair your company with a mentor. You can search online to find a startup investor with the skills and expertise you're looking for. Next, you must meet with the mentor. SCORE startup investors are volunteer advisors and they offer their services for free. But you must adhere to SCORE's program methodology.
You can also find a startup investor online. There are thousands of tools out there that can help your company find a startup advisor.
GrowthMentor is a platform that offers on-demand growth advice from vetted experts. Once you sign up, you can book a free onboarding call to discuss your goals and needs. Then you can filter through experts and book Skype and Zoom calls right on the advisors' calendar. This is a flexible way to find the right startup advisor that meets your needs. You can filter startup advisors by expertise and the tools they use, such as social media, content marketing, growth hacking, and advice on funding.
MentorCruise is a platform that offers mentorship with tech leaders, and you can access customized guidance to reach your maximum potential. It offers long-term relationships with expert advice for a monthly compensation fee. This tool offers a lot of flexibility. It allows you to filter startup advisors by expertise, such as social media, growth hacking, entrepreneurship, or JavaScript skills.
All these tools provide a perfect opportunity to find the right startup advisor for your company. You can filter through loads of experts and find advisors on different stages of your company and for different purposes, such as marketing, operations, finance, sales, HR, and IT. Learn more about what questions to ask start-up founders.
Jump On The Advisor Trail For Insights
A startup advisor is a valuable asset for any startup, especially during the early stages. But first, you need to do your homework by conducting a self-audit. If you're old school, a SWOT analysis can help. Go through your company and planning in detail and identify your weak areas.
This way, you'll narrow down whether your company needs a startup mentor, and, if so, what you need from them. Then you'll be in a better place to find the right person to help you and your business move to the next level.
Do you have any advice on choosing a startup advisor? We'd love to hear your feedback, so please leave a comment about your experience. Learn more about what an advisory share is.