How to become an angel investor

Becoming a successful angel investor should not just be reserved for a few. You'd be awesome at it.

And to prove just that, we gathered together a group of the seasoned and the new to hear from Collider’s multiple-time angel Richard Fearn, and Super Mentor who led Unruly’s exit, Marion Bernard.

And now we’re sharing it with you.

Enter a community, don't go it alone.

As an investor, you need to pick the right companies – obviously, so why risk everything to begin with when there's a whole ecosystem out there looking to help you.

As Richard said, accelerators can solve problems before said problems kill a business. That's for sure a comfort to investors.

Your time is more valuable than your money.

If you're looking to invest, you'll likely have some pretty useful skills – so why not share them? Work out how you can add value to your companies, which actually might not be what you think.

Get good at being patient.

Once you invest, don't expect it to pay for itself within a year or two (or even five). You're playing the long game, so make sure you follow the company through from the start.

It's not just about investing for returns.

Really, there’s so much more than that. Make sure you allow yourself to enjoy the journey as you'll be surrounded by some of the most innovate startups and investors. It's quite infectious, really.

Check your record.

Learn the lessons from your track record; and if you haven’t got one, learn from those that do.

Amplify you.Position yourself in the market as you would with anything else.

Position yourself in the market as you would with anything else. Amplify what you can bring to get on the cap tables you want to be on. Amplify your value.

It really isn't just about your money, and the best startups will know that. They'll be looking at your connections, too.

It’s about your exit too.

Do your best to work out where you might like to follow on, and what would have to happen for you to not. Remember, you’ll likely get most of your money from just one or two exits.

How To Be Successful In A Startup Accelerator

After relaunching our Collider quarterly MadTech drinks, it would only be right to get someone to say a few inspirational words to a room of startups, investors and brands, right? And that someone could only have been Carl Wong from Living Lens. Check out his top six tips to all startups on how to really get the most from an accelerator programme.

1. Play the long game.

Don't ever forget who you've spoken to. Meet them. Follow up with them. Make demands of their time, but play the long game.

2. Keep at it.

It's bloody hard raising money, and much, much harder than you think it is now [early stage]. You have to keep at it, you have to keep going, and it's going to take three times as much effort and three times as long in terms of time. If you do keep at it, you will make it happen.

3. Craft your story.

That's a learnt skill, not an art. There's a way to tell your story, but make sure you know it inside out.

4. Be bold.

Show off. It's not about what you think you may be able to do, but what could you do if you had everybody behind you and all the starts aligned.

5. Be prepared.

You should be prepared for all the questions – that's what's going to help you in shaping, thinking about your product market fit, who your competitors are, what is your pricing, your distribution, how are you different from the rest, how do you prove that? Who is going to beat you? You need to know the answers to all of that because somebody is going to ask you and you need to be coherent.

6. Love it.

Have a brilliant time, because, do you know what? You may never get the exit. You may never even fundraise to the level that you want to. But if you keep thinking about tomorrow, you're not going to be able to enjoy today.