Finding and targeting the right investors
How to Define Your Investor Demographic Target
Investor Demographic Target | Ep 2
Fund managers, sponsors and founders who raise capital from many kinds of investors and want a sharper picture of who to approach first.
5 key takeaways
- Trust drives how fast deals close. Richard says deals close fastest when investors trust the team or leadership, know the industry, or are local to the opportunity. In his view, investors who have none of the three are unlikely to be a good fit for the deal.
- Start from your own background. A past career as an engineer, athlete, lawyer, doctor or CEO can point to the investors you can reach fastest. Your background may give you the right lingo and access to groups, associations and their leaders.
- Find where your investors gather. Look for events, clubs and memberships where the ideal investor already congregates, such as business owner clubs with annual fees of ten or twenty thousand dollars or more. Also think about the CPAs and attorneys who advise them and how to bring those advisors onto an advisory board.
- Focus on one main demographic. Richard suggests spending 60 to 90 percent of energy on one demographic and treating a second as an experiment. If the main group shows traction, shift energy toward the next experiment and build niches within niches.
- Customize everything to that group. Term, liquidity, income, branding, one-liner, website URL and even vocabulary can be tailored to the chosen demographic. Many sponsors talk to a securities attorney and a tax professional about structure and tax questions. Richard frames this as working smarter, not only harder.
The short version
Richard C. Wilson explains why capital raisers should pick a specific investor demographic instead of pitching everyone. Drawing on a decade of running Family Office Club, he says deals close fastest when investors trust the team, understand the industry, or live near the opportunity. He calls these the three trust curves and uses a medical practice deal in San Diego to show how each one works.
The talk then covers how to find that demographic. Richard suggests starting with your own background, looking for groups and associations where ideal investors already gather, and bringing in advisors those investors trust. He gives examples from a short-term rental fund and a medical practice platform. He recommends putting 60 to 90 percent of effort on one main group, with a smaller experiment on a second.
From the source
- The talk is module two of the 17 module Hundred Million Dollar Rainmakers series.
- Joe, co-founder of Keller Williams, invested in the investorresidences.com short-term rental fund and joined its advisory board, with 173,000 real estate agents in his network.
- A litigation hedge fund example describes spending four hundred thousand dollars on legal fees to win seven million dollars, which law firm partners could understand quickly.
Sources
From Richard C. Wilson's Centimillionaire Strategies YouTube channel: Investor Demographic Target | Ep 2. Quotes come from the video captions, lightly edited for readability. Figures are the speakers' own estimates and experience.
General education only. Not legal, tax or investment advice.
Talk to a securities attorney to explore options around investment structure choices, tax treatment questions and advisory board arrangements. Do not use AI to write your own legal agreements.
In their words
"If you don't know the team, you don't understand the industry, and you're not local to the opportunity, you should not even be looking at that deal."
"By focusing most of your energy on one demographic, you'll pretty quickly find out if it is a horrible idea or if you feel the traction."
"Everything should be customized to the investor demographic."
- 1Review your own background and wins
- 2Pick one main investor demographic
- 3Find where those investors gather
- 4Tailor materials to that group
- 5Test a secondary group as experiment
Related questions
- How do I close a funding round?I close a funding round by focusing on investors who fit the opportunity and moving each interested prospect through clear, consistent follow-up.
- What documents do investors request during due diligence?Prepare a clear, organized package covering your operations, investments, compensation, team, and track record.
- How do I raise capital for my business?I raise capital by building a repeatable system for attracting the right investors, establishing credibility, and developing relationships before asking for money.
Questions about this video
What are the three trust curves?
They are trust in the team or leadership, understanding of the industry, and being local to the opportunity. Richard says to think about which curve you are trying to move each investor up in a given room.
Is raising from family offices or high net worth individuals specific enough?
Richard calls that a lazy answer. He suggests narrowing further, such as a family that made its money in manufacturing or is based in three specific cities.
How should energy be split between investor groups?
Richard suggests 60 to 90 percent on a main demographic and the rest on a secondary experiment. When the main one works, the next experiment can get closer to half the energy.
Put this into practice with the one-liner builder. See all finding and targeting the right investors resources.
