How to Conduct Due Diligence
We will always conduct our own due diligence and we vet every deal that we push out. We encourage members to do their own due diligence as well to make sure you have a high level of confidence in your investments.
What is Due Diligence?
Due Diligence is the process of checking risks, compliance, conducting and investigation to review or audit facts and information about a particular company.
Some basic Due Diligence Processes
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Speak to people using the platform! Does what the founders say match what the customer say? Are the case studies real or recycled?
This is the BEST kind of Due Diligence (in our opinion).
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You can ask to see financial records, accounting information to make sure money is actually entering the bank account and not being removed. Typically this isn’t done until a term sheet has been signed.
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Getting an account to login to is a great place to start. At much later stage funding rounds - this can go as far as access to a code base after various NDAs have been signed.
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Chatting to your own network (people you trust) about the market and the opportunity without revealing confidential information will help you build confidence if you get feedback from people you trust.
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Look at the competition, see if you can figure out if they’re looking in the same space as the opportunity you might invest in. If they aren’t why not?
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If they’ve lost any customers or, more importantly employees. Why did they leave?
These may indicate or unveil previously hidden issues.
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Glassdoor reviews or employee interviews are a good step in understanding culture.