How to raise seed funding
An 8-step playbook used by Dragon founders to close their seed round in 6–10 weeks.
- Step 1
Decide if you should raise
Capital is fuel, not validation. Raise only if (a) you have a wedge that needs capital to compound, and (b) the next 12-18 months are clearly defined.
- Step 2
Set the round size
Raise 18 months of runway. Typical seed in 2026: $1.5M–$4M at $8M–$20M post. Anchor on milestones, not vibes.
- Step 3
Build the deck
Use a tight 12-slide structure. See our pitch deck template for the exact slide order.
- Step 4
Build the investor list
Target 60–80 funds and 20–40 angels who actively write checks at your stage and sector. Use Connect to filter.
- Step 5
Warm-intro sequencing
Sort by fit, then by ease of warm intro. Open with B-tier funds first to refine the pitch, then go to A-tier.
- Step 6
Run a tight process
Compress meetings into 3 weeks. Create FOMO with concurrent processes, not exploding offers.
- Step 7
Negotiate terms
SAFE post-money cap, 20% optional pool, full pro-rata. Push back on aggressive liq prefs and board control at seed.
- Step 8
Close and announce
Wire, sign, deliver onboarding docs to investors. Public announcement = recruiting + customer signal.