What makes good deal flow?
1. a reputation for building cool shit. if you’ve built a company that other founders admire, they’ll come to you for advice
2. a reputation for writing cool shit, ie you’re a thought leader.
3. an existing portfolio of awesome companies (founders seek a self-fulfilling prophecy that your investment grants)
4. supporting your existing portfolio companies. they’ll talk you up to the other founders in their network. of course, there are other benefits to supporting your portfolio companies. That’s the job!
5. an ear to the ground. outreach can sometimes work, but it tends to be more successful in places other vc’s are ignoring. if you can predict hot areas of growth before other VCs pounce, your outreach will be much more successful. you’ll also establish a reputation for being “the” investor in the area of growth.
