How can you manage stakeholder expectations during a seed round?

1 Know your audience

Different stakeholders have different interests, motivations, and concerns. You need to tailor your message and tone accordingly. For example, your co-founders may want to know how the seed round will affect their equity and control, your employees may want to know how the seed round will impact their roles and compensation, your customers may want to know how the seed round will improve your product and service, and your investors may want to know how the seed round will accelerate your growth and traction. Be clear, transparent, and respectful when addressing each group.

2 Set realistic goals

One of the common mistakes that founders make is overpromising and underdelivering. This can damage your credibility and trust with your stakeholders. To avoid this, you need to set realistic and achievable goals for your seed round. For example, you can use benchmarks and data from similar startups in your industry or stage to estimate your valuation, runway, and milestones. You can also use tools like OKRs (Objectives and Key Results) to track and measure your progress and performance. Be honest and humble about your assumptions and risks.

3 Update regularly

Communication is not a one-time event, but a continuous process. You need to update your stakeholders regularly on your seed round status, achievements, challenges, and learnings. This will help you build rapport, feedback, and support. For example, you can use newsletters, blogs, podcasts, webinars, or social media to share your stories and insights with your customers and the public. You can also use email, phone, video, or in-person meetings to share your reports and updates with your co-founders, employees, and investors. Be consistent and responsive in your communication.