The assessment
This assessment tests five areas investors examine during due diligence. Each area covers specific requirements, and the total score shows where gaps exist relative to Seed and Series A expectations. Results stay in your browser.
This interactive tool is in development.
What investors test before writing a cheque
Due diligence asks a single question. Does the business work as described? Every document, interview and metric feeds one judgment call. Investors need to hear yes from their own team, not just from the founder.
Five areas carry the most weight.
| Area | What it covers | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Product-market fit | Evidence customers buy and return | Revenue confirms demand more convincingly than any survey |
| Financial clarity | Clean numbers that match across documents | Inconsistency between deck and spreadsheet kills confidence faster than missing documents |
| Legal structure | Shareholders registered, IP assigned, contracts signed | Problems found late force price reductions |
| Team commitment | Founders vesting, key hires locked, advisors documented | Early-stage investments are bets on people, not spreadsheets |
| Market opportunity | Defined market sizing with reasoning behind assumptions | Unsubstantiated TAM figures reduce credibility rather than increase it |
Each of these areas maps to one section of the assessment above.
How the scoring works
The assessment carries twenty-five statements. Each answers true, partial or false based on current facts rather than aspiration. Scores sum to a maximum of fifty points.
Ranges map to practical guidance.
| Score range | Level | Action |
|---|---|---|
| 41–50 | Strongly ready | Open your data room and start meetings. Prepare documents first. |
| 31–40 | Mostly ready | Address gap areas before opening. Two to three weeks of focused preparation usually closes them. |
| 21–30 | Partially ready | Work through weak areas before investor conversations. Consider a preparatory engagement. |
| 11–20 | Emerging | Building traction first makes sense. Return when metrics improve. |
| 0–10 | Early stage | Focus on product development and initial revenue. Reassess in six months. |
Scores change over time. A company scoring sixteen today may score thirty-two after twelve months of execution, depending on which areas received attention.
Building product-market evidence
Product-market fit is the hardest requirement to prove and the most important one investors check. It means customers buy voluntarily, repeat purchases happen organically and retention holds above churn across cohorts.
Three markers signal genuine fit.
- Revenue by paying customer, not partner pilot. Partner pilots convert to revenue eventually but carry hidden commercial pressures. Paying customers who chose to spend money independently carry stronger signal.
- Retention exceeding churn month-over-month for four consecutive months. Short-term retention spikes mean campaigns. Sustained retention means habit.
- Word-of-mouth or referral-driven acquisition. Organic channels cost less, scale more predictably and signal product quality better than paid media.
None of these require perfect metrics. All three require evidence available now or can appear within ninety days.
Preparing financial documentation early
Financial documentation does not need audited accounts at Seed. It needs monthly management accounts, a reconciling cap table, and a financial model with visible assumptions.
Most founders leave financial preparation until investor interest materialises. Assembling documents under time pressure produces inconsistencies between the pitch deck, the spreadsheet and verbal commentary. These inconsistencies cause the most common delays in deal timelines.
- Monthly management accounts prepared before raising. Three months of real monthly figures demonstrates operational discipline regardless of scale.
- Cap table reconciled against Companies House every time shares are issued. Drift between statutory filings and internal records signals poor governance, and poor governance becomes a negotiation lever for investors demanding price reductions.
Closing gap areas before the data room opens
Six gap areas account for the majority of late-stage delays.
| Gap | How long to close | Typical fix |
|---|---|---|
| Unassigned IP from contractors | One to two weeks | Signed assignment agreements from every contractor |
| Unreconciled cap table | One day | Spreadsheet reconciliation against Companies House |
| Missing customer contracts | Two to five days | Collect signed copies or letters of intent |
| No financial model | One week | Build a simple three-year projection with visible inputs |
| Undefined metrics | One day | Write definitions for CAC, LTV, retention and payback |
| Board resolutions not documented | One to two weeks | Produce minute books with recorded decisions |
Name gaps deliberately rather than hiding them. Stating "no audited accounts yet" in a data room index closes a question. Silence leaves it open, and investors fill silence with the least favourable assumption.
Frequently asked questions
Investment readiness means having five things in place. Revenue from paying customers confirming product-market fit, monthly financials reconciling across documents, legal structure completed with IP assigned, committed founding team with documented vesting, and defined market sizing with written reasoning behind assumptions.
A startup scoring twenty-one to thirty on the assessment typically needs two to four weeks to address gap areas. Scoring below this threshold shifts priority to product development and initial revenue generation instead. Six months represents a realistic timeline for emerging companies to reach readiness.
Ideally before raising. Doing it after investor interest appears wastes preparation time dealing with known gaps mid-process. Run it quarterly as a tracking exercise. Changes in scores reveal whether growth efforts target the right areas.
Yes. The framework applies to Seed and Series A alike. Differences lie in depth rather than structure. Series A expects longer historical data, signed material contracts and formal board minutes. Adjust individual question interpretation according to stage.
Low scores indicate product-market development remains incomplete. Focus effort on generating paying customers, recording monthly financials and assigning intellectual property from all contributors. Return to the assessment in six months once fundamentals strengthen.
Next step
A low score identifies specific areas needing attention. A high score confirms readiness to proceed from here. Lucy Colson accelerates both paths through Capital Studio, costing £500 per month without equity or success fees. Raise Ready membership grants ongoing access to this assessment and every other toolkit asset.