Top 10 VC Objections (And How To Overcome Them)

比如，市场太小，团队太差，阶段太早，规模太小。。。。。。

都可以找到相应的应对措施

Someone asked a question about this on TheFunded and here’s (my expanded) response.  First, let me say that the reason VCs come across as entirely pessimistic is because most companies that come in to pitch in reality don’t measure up to their claims.  Their objections are an imperfect process for testing the claims.  It’s tough on both sides.  So anyway, here is my list of the top 10 VC objections and some tips on how to overcome them:

10. We think your market is too small (or will take forever to mature). Dealing with this feedback from a VC has mostly to do with understanding the constraints of venture capital.  You can either broaden what you consider your target market, explain why you see the market as bigger than they do or go talk to a VC with a smaller fund.
9. You are too early stage. This could be real feedback or it could be a platitude.  VCs usually develop a comfort zone with a particular stage of company, but all but the most adventurous shy away from companies where the product is not yet in the market.  Most VCs like to see some revenue and depending upon the industry they maybe want to see close to $1MM in revenue for early stage deals.  Respond to this one is tough, because you are where you are.  Best thing to do if confronted with this is find out where their comfort zone is and potentially come back when you reach that (I’ve actually seen that result in funding).
8. The valuation is too high. This usually means the VC thinks your company is okay and they might consider investing if you were giving it away at a couple million pre. It also can be used as a platitude. Sometimes it’s a reference to companies that have raised a lot of money and have to do a flat or down round because they’re running behind plan/expectations.
7. You are too late stage. This is really a variant of #8.  Any early stage VC would love to own 20% of your late-stage business.  This typically happens in Series B rounds or Series A rounds where the CEO/founders have an existing track record of success.
6. Google/Microsoft/Yahoo/AOL is already (or about to or could) do this. This is a push back on competitive landscape and your relative positioning.  The key to thwarting this objection is to have more market knowledge than the VC you’re talking to (which is an uphill battle given the information flow they get).  You have to do your homework.
5. We think your projections are unrealistic (or alternatively: you have no business model).  If you haven’t spent enough time preparing your financial model, you can get caught flat-footed.  Best thing to do on a financial model is to be very conservative.  You want the VC commenting, "Oh, I think you’ll get customers faster than that."  There are also a lot of comparables out there so no need to reinvent the wheel.
4. We’d like to see more market traction before moving forward. This is typically a blow-off or a legitimate variant of #9.  A close cousin of this one is when the VC says, "we’re interested, but we need to know who else is interested to know if we’re really interested."  If you get that response, you’re wasting your time…just get up a leave.
3. Company is a "feature" or "product" but not a business. This is really a variant of #10.  Best thing to do is to try and step back and take a broader view of the opportunity and what it could be.   
2. You have to ask yourself…what about India and China? I’ve only gotten this objection once.  It’s a dumb question so it’s hard to give advice on how to respond.  Maybe just make a reference to snoman.
1. B- or C-level team. Actually, Most VCs won’t tell you this and instead you get one of the other platitudes.  That makes it one of the hardest objections to respond to.  I think the best way to overcome this is not to say that you have an A-level team (if in fact you don’t) but rather to say something along the lines of, "here’s our staffing plan for success…"

Overall, the best policy is honesty and candor. In fact, your best bet is to address these objections before they come up. And if, for example, a VC asks if the market may be too small you can respond, "you are probably right, but here’s what would have to be true if that were not the case…"  You want to turn it away from a "in-order-for-me-to-be-right-you-have-to-be-wrong" conversation.