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What is one great book I should read to learn everything that I need to learn about raising capital for my startup?

1. Inside Silicon Valley

Reading “Inside Silicon Valley” will give you real insight into how VC deals get done. Written by Marc Phillips, Managing Partner of the Silicon Valley-based VC firm Arafura Ventures, this book walks you through a slide-by-slide approach to developing and delivering a successful pitch deck, from crafting your positioning line to pulling together your financials. We consider this one of our bibles of fundraising.
– David Ehrenberg, Early Growth Financial Services

2. Venture Deals

The book “Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist” covers raising capital from A to Z. Brad Feld, a prominent founder-friendly VC, does a deep dive into the different types of capital (e.g., angel, venture), how venture firms work, what terms are actually important, how to negotiate and much more. I wish I would have had this book when we raised funding; I’ll reference it if we raise capital in the future.
– Bhavin Parikh, Magoosh Inc

3. Starting Something

In his book “Starting Something: An Entrepreneur’s Tale of Control, Confrontation and Corporate Culture,” Wayne McVicker gets very real about Neoforma, a software firm he co-founded that accidentally became a dotcom darling and eventually a public company. It’s not a book that covers the ins and outs of raising capital; it is more about the cautions of what can happen when that capital is raised. A must-read for all entrepreneurs.
– Brett Farmiloe, Internet Marketing Company

4. Pitch Anything

A poorly executed pitch can really put a damper on your efforts to secure funding. he book “Pitch Anything: An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading and Winning the Deal” by Oren Klaff contains simple and actionable advice that will help you sell the value of your product or business idea effortlessly to anyone.
– Matt Ehrlichman, Porch

5. The Startup Game

I would start by reading “The Startup Game: Inside the Partnership between Venture Capitalists and Entrepreneurs” by William H. Draper III. It gives you a nice foundational lesson in the mechanics, dynamics and compensation of VC firms and funds. It’s critically important that entrepreneurs understand these factors so they can understand the motives and desires of angels and VCs. This book will answer questions like: “What is an LP?,” “What is a GP?” and “How do funds work?”.
– Danny Boice, Speek

6. Raising Capital

Gone are the days when VC groups pour millions into every next big thing. Competition is fierce, and only the most viable businesses with expert fundraising will reap the capital necessary to drive continuous growth. Read “Raising Capital: Get the Money You Need to Grow Your Business” by Andrew J. Sherman.
– Nicolas Gremion, Free-eBooks.net

7. What Every Angel Investor Wants You to Know

Written by Brian Cohen, Chairman of the New York Angels, early investor in Pinterest and current cofounder of Launch.It, the book “What Every Angel Investor Wants You to Know” gives great insight and concrete advice to startup founders on how to find an angel that is a good match for their company, how angel investors view the investing process (and thus how they should be approached) and what sort of investors are best avoided.
– Peter Minton, Minton Law Group, P.C.

8. How to Win Friends and Influence People

This classic “How to Win Friends and Influence People” by Dale Carnegie has been around for years, but the ability to cultivate relationships is just as important today. Investors give capital to people they know or that come highly recommended. Of course, the substance has to be there, but all else being equal, people prefer to do business with people they like. Nurturing a strong network of people is key to raising capital.
– Marcos Cordero, GradSave, LLC

9. Zero to One Million

Ryan Allis’ step-by-step approach in “Zero to One Million: How to Build a Company to $1 Million in Sales” gives readers great insight on what it takes to build a successful company. He stresses the importance of building a viable business that meets certain benchmarks prior to looking to raise capital. Following these steps will make your business more attractive to VCs so that when you do go to raise capital, you’ll have the upper hand.
– Anthony Saladino, Kitchen Cabinet Kings