Investment memo overview
Your investment memo needs to address every aspect of your business that you might include in a business plan. Here's what to include in each section:
Introduction
Announce your big idea—the one thing you do better than anyone else. You have 10 seconds to hook your audience. Introduction example.
Investment Highlights
Summarize the highlights of your business and investment opportunity. Provide a teaser for what's to come. Investment Highlights example.
Team
Introduce a team with the experience and expertise to transform your opportunity into a large, profitable business. Team example.
Problem
Describe the problem you solve. Identify your target customers (and users) and explain why they are frustrated with current solutions. Problem example.
Solution
Explain how you provide a better solution and list the unique benefits for customers and users. Solution example.
Product
Show how your product works in three simple steps. Keep it visual. Product example.
Competition
List your competitors. Explain why your product is better than theirs in the eyes of your customers and users. Competition example.
Business Model
Explain how you make money. Business Model example.
Market Sizing
Show how much money you'll make when you dominate your target market. Market Sizing example.
Traction
Prove that customers love your product and are willing to pay for it. Traction example.
Growth Strategy
Explain how you'll acquire and retain customers. Growth Strategy example.
Product Roadmap
Show how you'll keep your product competitive. Product Roadmap example.
Financials
Provide a simple model, with explicit assumptions, of how much money you can make in the next 3-5 years. Financials example.
Funding
Ask for the money you need and explain what you'll do with it. Funding example.
Investment Highlights Recap
Restate the highlights of your business and investment opportunity as a closer. Investment Highlights Recap example.
Contact
Provide contact details for your primary investor contact. Usually the founder/CEO. Contact example
Investment memo recommendations
Now let's review what you should include in each section of your investment memo. I'll start with the Introduction section.
Note: I've illustrated each section with sample content for a fictitious startup called Gleamr. Some of you will know Gleamr as the same fictitious startup company I used to provide sample content for my pitch deck template. I hope the sample content gives you a deeper understanding of what's required of you for each section of the template. I invented Gleamr back in 2015, so don't get hung up on some of the claims in this memo :)
Introduction — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Introduction section
- What do you do, and who do you help?
- What’s your product category? Target customer? Primary use case and benefit?
Pro Tips: Use a simple [ product category ] for [ audience ] format. Use a second line to list your primary use case and benefit. Also hint at your differentiation using 'the first' or 'the best' qualifiers.
Sample content using Gleamr
Introduction
- Introducing the first consumer smartphone app for on-demand mobile auto details.
- Like Uber, but for auto details.
- Now, consumers can get professional auto details on demand at their home or office.
Back to overview
Investment Highlights — Investment Memo
This section is often missing from investment memo templates. And yet, it provides investors with a welcome summary of your investment thesis. Include this section and stand out from the crowd.
Investor questions you should answer in your Investment Highlights section
- Why should we invest?
- Is your problem/market big enough?
- Is your product good enough?
- Is your team the right team?
- Are we a fit for your industry, ask, and investment stage?
Sample content using Gleamr
Investment Highlights
Here's why we think Gleamr is a strong investment candidate:
- $2B US market: For on-demand mobile auto details. US only. We have a 9-month first-mover advantage.
- Robust product: Responsive web + native iOS and Android apps. 2 patents pending.
- Strong traction: 82K+ users, 11K+ detailers, $1.5M revenue run rate in our first 9 months. 4.8 star average ratings on Apple and Google stores.
- Experienced team: SaaS and auto detailing veterans from Thumbtack, HomeAdvisor, Yelp, and SpeedyDetail.
- $29M run rate by EOY 2026: With 1.5% market share.
- $2M seed round: SAFE, 20% discount, $15M valuation cap. $500K already committed.
Back to overview
Team — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Team section
- Why is your team the best team for this opportunity?
- What experience do you have solving similar problems?
- What experience do you have building similar solutions?
- What experience/success have you had with similar startups?
- Have team members worked well together in prior companies?
Sample content using Gleamr
Team
Our team has deep, relevant experience in SaaS and auto detailing.
- Ben Brown, Co-founder & CEO. Prev. VP Sales, Thumbtack.
- Dakota Dean, Co-founder & Chief Product Officer. Prev. VP Product, Thumbtack.
- Ella Ellison, Community Manager.Prev. Community Manager, HomeAdvisor.
- Steve Chan, Lead Developer.Prev. Senior Developer, Yelp.
- Sara Klein, Advisor. Co-founder, Thumbtack.
- Dave Smith, Advisor. Founder & CEO, SpeedyDetail.
Back to overview
Problem — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Problem section
- What problem do you solve?
- Who has this problem?
- What are some of the biggest pain points?
- How is this problem solved today, without your product?
- Why do those current solutions suck?
- How big is this problem?
- Is the problem getting bigger? Why?
Sample content using Gleamr
Problem
Consumers lack an easy way to get a professional, affordable auto detail at their home or office.
- No single view of all currently available detailers,
- Few reviews from prior customers to guide selection.
- No leverage to negotiate prices.
Detailers waste too much time and money finding customers when they’d rather be detailing cars.
- Hard to reach ready-to-buy consumers.
- Low ROI on traditional marketing.
- Hard to collect and leverage customer reviews.
Back to overview
Solution — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Solution section
- What’s your solution to the problem?
- Is your solution an app, software, a device, or ???
- What are the benefits of your solution?
- How much better is your solution?
- Why is now the right time for your solution?
Pro Tip: Match your solution benefits to the limitations of current solutions listed in your Problem section.
Sample content using Gleamr
Solution
Introducing Gleamr, the first consumer app for on-demand mobile details. Like Uber, but for mobile auto details.
Benefits for consumers
- Save time: Detailers come to them in their home or office.
- Save money: Detailers compete for their business which lowers prices.
- Get a great job: Detailers work hard for great reviews.
Benefits for detailers
- Save time: Spend less time chasing customers.
- Earn more: Spend more time detailing cars Gleamr fee is guaranteed ROI.
- Grow faster: Great reviews + Great prices = More work.
Back to overview
Product — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Product section
- How does your product work?
- What does your product look like?
- Where does your product fit in your customer’s world?
Pro Tip: Break your product’s primary use case down into 3-5 simple steps and show the user experience for each step. Add a Case Study if you like.
Sample content using Gleamr
Product
How our app works for consumers
- Browse detailers. Screenshot
- Compare reviews and prices. Screenshot
- Book and pay. Screenshot
How our app works for detailers
- Build profile, including photo showcase. Screenshot
- Manage jobs. Screenshot
- Collect payments. Screenshot
- Track earnings. Screenshot
- Manage reputation. Screenshot
Back to overview
Competition — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Competition section
- Who are your competitors?
- How will you beat them?
- How sustainable (defensible) are your advantages?
Pro Tip: Only list competitive advantages that customers truly care about. Advantages that will win deals over your competition. The 3-5 must-have solution attributes that would top your customer's RFP if they write one. Group competitors by type. Types of competition can include manual processes, legacy third-party solutions (standalone or modules within a larger legacy solution), legacy home-grown solutions, and other newer startups like yours.
Sample content using Gleamr
Competition
We compete with a couple of slow followers: Competitor 1 and Competitor 2. We win on detailer coverage, user traction, and user ratings. Like Uber vs. Lyft, we expect to maintain and extend our lead via network effects.
- 4x more detailers.
- 4x more consumers.
- 4.8 star average ratings on Apple and Google vs. 3.6 or lower.
- 3,600+ reviews on Apple and Google vs. ~200 each for our competitors.
Back to overview
Business Model — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Business Model section
- How do you make money?
- Do you charge per customer? Per transaction? Or ???
Pro Tips: Keep it simple. List all revenue streams if you have more than one. Include a typical transaction.
Sample content using Gleamr
Business Model
Mobile auto detailers pay us 15% for each job. The average cost for a mobile detail is $75 in the US (Source):
- Customer pays $75.
- Detailer gets $63.75 (85%).
- We get $11.25 (15%).
We currently use Stripe for payment processing. In the future, we may build our own payment processor and collect an additional payment processing fee with no additional cost to the detailer or consumer.
Back to overview
Market Sizing — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Market section
- How big can you get?
- How much market share do you need to make $100M a year? I.e. Approach unicorn valuation.
Pro Tips: A bottom-up calculation is best for credibility and explicit assumptions. Use customer count x ARR per customer. List sources for customer counts and other data. List the annual revenue opportunity for logical market and/or product expansions to get to $1B and beyond.
Sample content using Gleamr
Market Sizing
We’re tapping into a $2B market (US only). Our bottom-up calculation:
- 180M US mobile auto details per year (Source)
- x $75 average cost per detail
- = $13.5B total mobile detail revenue per year
- x 15% rev share
- = $2B Gleamr revenue per year
Back to overview
Traction — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Traction section
- How much do customers love your product?
- What are your key metrics?
- How fast are you growing your key metrics?
Pro Tips: Pick metrics that matter most for your business. E.g. MAUs and DAUs vs sign-ups. Trends over time are more useful than snapshots.
Sample content using Gleamr
Traction
We've experienced strong growth in our first 9 months
- Users: 10,936 (EOQ1) > 31,714 (EOQ2) > 82,457 (EOQ3)
- Detailers: 1,533 (EOQ1) > 4,447 (EOQ2) > 11,561 (EOQ3)
- Revenue run rate: $196K (EOQ1) > $568K (EOQ2) > $1.5M (EOQ3)
- 4.8 star average rating in the Android Play Store (1.2K reviews)
- 4.8 star average rating in the Apple App Store (2.3K reviews)
Back to overview
Growth Strategy — Investment Memo
This section can also be referred to as 'Go-To-Market (GTM)' or 'Sales & Distribution.'
Investor questions you should answer in your Growth Strategy section
- How will you reach customers? Activate them? Retain them?
Pro Tips: Break out your strategies and tactics by function. Be as specific as possible. E.g. If you mention industry trade shows, list the top 2-3 that you’ll attend for your market.
Sample content using Gleamr
Growth Strategy
Here's how we’ll acquire and retain users and detailers.
Marketing & Sales — Customer acquisition
- Focused SEO, paid search, paid & organic social, influencers.
- Refer-a-friend discounts for consumers.
- Loyalty programs for consumers & detailers.
- Employee incentive programs for HR and office managers.
Customer Success — Customer retention
- Dedicated customer service reps for each DMA.
- Gleamr staffed community message boards for consumers and detailers.
Product — Customer retention
- Consumer Product Advisory Board to guide consumer features UX improvements.
- Detailer Product Advisory Board to guide detailer features and UX improvements.
Back to overview
Product Roadmap — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Roadmap section
- How will you maintain and extend your product and business moat over time?
Pro Tips: In addition to major product features and modules, consider certifications (e.g. SOC) and integrations that might also enhance your competitive position. Include past milestones accomplished.
Sample content using Gleamr
Roadmap
Here's how we’ll maintain and extend our product lead.
- H1 2023: Launched MVP.
- H2 2023: Detailer Product Advisory Board Portal + Employee Incentive Program.
- H1 2024: User Product Advisory Board Portal.
- H2 2024: Loyalty Program.
- H1 2025: In-house payment processing.
Back to overview
Financials — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Financials section
- How fast can you grow and how big can you get over the next 2-3 years?
Pro Tips: Offer to share your pro forma Income Statement on request including explicit assumptions for revenue and expense drivers. Investors care less about the numbers and more about your thought process in building the model.
Sample content using Gleamr
Financials
We’re projecting a $29M run rate by EOY 2026.
Detailed model with explicit revenue & expense assumptions available on request.
- Users: 83K (2023) > 247K (2024) > 643K (2025) > 1.4M (2026)
- Detailers: 2.3K (2023) > 6.9K (2024) > 17.9K (2025) > 37.7M (2026)
- Revenue Run Rate: $1.5M (2023) > $4.8M (2024) > $13.1M (2025) > $29.2M (2026)
Back to overview
Funding — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Funding section
- How much money do you need right now? On what terms?
- How will you spend the money?
- What will you accomplish WRT product, customers, and revenue?
Pro Tip: Be as specific as possible on your ask and use of proceeds. Address what you’ll achieve in addition to where you’ll spend.
Sample content using Gleamr
Funding
We’re raising $2M on a SAFE. We have$ 500K committed, so $1.5M remaining.
Prior Funding
- $300K from friends and family
- Launched MVP.
- Grew revenue run rate from $0 to $1.5M in our first 9 months.
Current Raise
- $1.5M available on a $2M SAFE with 20% discount, $15M valuation cap.
- $500K committed by Tech Coast Angels ($200K) and Newport Ventures ($300K).
- Fund next 2 years and get to 600K+ users, 18K detailers, $29M run rate.
Back to overview
Investment Highlights Recap — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Investment Highlights Recap section
- Recap your investment thesis.
Pro Tip: Repeating this information reminds investors what they have read (if they got this far). It also provides them with a ready-to-go investment thesis they can share with their team.
Sample content using Gleamr
Investment Highlights Recap
Our investment thesis (again for convenience)
- $2B US market: For on-demand mobile auto details. US only. We have a 9-month first-mover advantage.
- Robust product: Responsive web + native iOS and Android apps. 2 patents pending.
- Strong traction: 82K+ users, 11K+ detailers, $1.5M revenue run rate in our first 9 months. 4.8 star average ratings on Apple and Google stores.
- Experienced team: SaaS and auto detailing veterans from Thumbtack, HomeAdvisor, Yelp, and SpeedyDetail.
- $29M run rate by EOY 2026: With 1.5% market share.
- $2M seed round: SAFE, 20% discount, $15M valuation cap. $500K already committed.
Back to overview
Investor Contact — Investment Memo
Investor questions you should answer in your Contact section
- Who should we talk to if we have follow-up questions?
Pro Tip: Include your phone, email, and a link to your LinkedIn profile. Make sure you (and your team members plus advisors) all update your LinkedIn profile to match the story in your pitch deck.
Sample content using Gleamr
Contact
I’d love to tell you more!
Ben Brown, Co-founder & CEO.
949-637-1234 · ben@gleamr.com · LinkedIn
Back to overview
Conclusion
Thanks for reading. I hope you found my investment memo template and example helpful. If you're interested in my help with your investment memo, check out my coaching services.
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