This article is about people eliminating threats to their business, taking risks and getting others interested. Read on to find out how the intrepid pitch for investment yet fail to illustrate their position on risk, never mind secure someone else’s hard earned finance.
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Dragon’s Den is a risk worth taking
I learn a lot when watching Dragons Den. It is always interesting to see a great idea. Everybody loves those. Yet, a lot of the time we are treated to ‘car crash television’ where it appears that the unprepared have been literally thrown at the Dragons. I have actually cringed when watching the programme, yet it is rarely the Dragons that scare me. It’s some of the characters that arrive and put their “worst” foot forward. On the other hand, my heart does sink when a genuinely warm, credible person drops themselves in it. Even then, I don’t feel sorry for too long because I have a lot to learn myself.
Even though I’m watching on television, it’s not hard to spot the weak points that are being attacked. I’m always alarmed by those who do have a great idea, a coherent plan and still fail because they didn’t think about the objections that would inevitably be raised. When they shoot themselves down in flames I feel their pain. I suppose not all of it can possibly be unwitting. I expect some people do well out of the exposure even if they don’t get the investment they were after. Good luck to them!
Sometimes you can smell the ill-preparation
Recently a couple of entrepreneurs explained they had a huge following and people were biting their arms off to extend their travel and tour company business to take in festivals in different places. I had heard of this type of business yet they seemed to have a way of making it cost efficient and therefore more profitable. The Dragons were listening. Right up until one of the Dragons mentioned that they were not happy that the risks to the business had been thought about in detail. The lady announced that “all it takes is for one hotel to go down and you are snookered”. I had heard the guys mention that they were ATOL/ABTA protected which means that their clientèle are flown home in the event of the holiday providers having financial problems.
They should also have mentioned that ATOL/ABTA (and others) provide insurance that covers them for most of the other costs that follow such issues. They didn’t. Why not? Didn’t they realise this protection was available? Had they decided that insurance was too expensive for their business? It didn’t sound right that people who had been sending clients on trips to festivals around Europe hadn’t put any protection in place for their clientèle, never mind their business. I remain puzzled because the investors lost interest. No surprise there then.
When the Dragon questioned whether they would be able to continue if a third party let them down, all they had to do was say they would insure the risk. Even if they hadn’t arranged it at the time they could have accounted for the investment in their plan. It rarely “breaks the bank” to protect oneself.
Wrap Up: If you have a great idea think about the threats that could interfere with your business plan. Reduce them or eliminate the impact completely where possible because Dragons are risk averse, they only take balanced risks. They don’t assume. They gauge their possible ROI based on all the variable outcomes. You can too.
Top Tip
If you are looking for investment try and understand just how risk averse your investors are before you pitch to them. Their previous investments will give you clues.
