3 Essential Steps to Secure Seed Funding in 2025
And register for the first event of the year dedicated to womxn entrepreneurs looking for co-founders!
Bienvenue! I am Marion Siboni, CEO and founder of La Creme de la STEM™, the only global, private network for early-stage female founders in tech and science, - 20 spots left to join as a Founding Member, don’t wait and apply!
Twice a month, I share valuable insights about entrepreneurship, community building and inspiring women stories. 4,100+ investors, entrepreneurs and operators already subscribed. Join them!👇
✍️ Current setting ✍️
📍 Writing you from: Moka & Co, a new coffee shop in Fort Greene, Brooklyn
☕️ Drinking: a decaf moka spicy latte - no coffee after 2pm for me
🎵 Listening to: Ma meilleure Ennemie - Pomme and Stromae - I had the chance to meet Pomme in a private setting last year, and this is why I love NYC so much!
💰Securing Seed Funding in 2025 💰
📊Understanding Key Trends Shaping 2025
It’s no secret that AI dominated the industry over the last year, capturing a record 46.4% of the total $209 billion raised. The industry is evolving faster than the speed of light. While the sudden rise of DeepSeek is raising concerns about a potential commodification of the AI market, the Stargate Project intends to invest $500 billion building infrastructure for AI in the United States.
The new administration impacts the VC world, and we can already see the consequences, as AngelList revealed Aerospace and Crypto are among the top 5 markets on their platform. We will see crypto emerging as a payment method for AI agents, with companies like Coinbase and Stripe building crucial infrastructure.
Frontier Tech is a clear trend for 2025 as Robotics is also gaining momentum - the intersection of hardware and software is creating unprecedented opportunities.
⭐ Build a Strong Personal Brand
Whether you are building in those trending industries or not, establishing a strong online presence, particularly on LinkedIn, is crucial for startups seeking funding- Business Insider revealed a few days ago that for 'VC Twitter,' LinkedIn is becoming the place to be. By optimizing your LinkedIn profile with relevant keywords and engaging content, you can attract potential investors, partners and customers, while build relationships that are essential for securing funding.
I have been building in public since day one. I tapped heavily in personal branding to develop brand awareness around La Creme de la STEM™, which positioned me as a thought leader. This also led to media coverage, public speaking opportunities and being named LinkedIn Top Entrepreneurship Voice. I share my tips and tricks with the Founding Members of the community.
Maintaining a consistent flow of updates about your startup's progress helps keep potential investors informed and interested. This "always be selling" mentality ensures that you are continuously showcasing your startup's potential to a wider audience.
🔎Aligning With Investors Interest
Building your own brand in order to secure VC funding is useless if you don’t have some form of validation that you’re building something people want. Investors typically look for startups with product-market fit (PMF), some revenue, a clear product on the market, and a defined pipeline of customers. Demonstrating a big market opportunity, relatability to the problem you're solving, and a scalable business model are also key factors.
When approaching investors, it's vital to ensure that your startup aligns with their investment thesis. Research whether they have invested in similar spaces and if your company is at the right stage for their investment focus. Additionally, highlighting diversity in your board and leadership team can be a positive factor. Clearly outlining where the investment will be allocated and how it will accelerate your business is essential for securing funding.
Don’t forget, presenting real data supporting growth and scalability is crucial, as it shows that you are selling a stake in a great business opportunity. This approach not only secures funding but also fosters a supportive network that can propel your startup forward.
I shared a lot about this topic in the past. To go further:
Read my article about Highly Effective Networking
Listen to the podcast I recorded on how to Network Smart, Not Hard
Watch my Nasdaq webinar recorded on the opening day of the community
Join me IRL at SXSW as I am speaking about Scaling Early-Stage Startups - seriously, let me know if you are going, and let’s connect!
🚨 Entrepreneurs Alert 🚨
I am a Limited Partner for Park Rangers Capital, led by Erica Wenger, a serial entrepreneur with an exit under her belt and a passion to help founders doing it for the first time. The fund is actively deploying capital & looking for early stage startups to write checks into. As a reminder, these are the types of companies we like to back:
Stage: pre-seed & seed, $20M post valuation & under
Type of company: elephant company ethos (community-driven, purpose-driven, founder building in public)
See our poster on our merch page, which further clarifies how we like our founders to talk about their company (aka it should seem like they’re building a “good cult”)
Unique traits we look for in elephant founders: serial founders (they typically understand distribution > product), community builders at their core (have a podcast, started a conference, host a book club), very contrarian, and most importantly… they’re deeply customer obsessive
Elephant company examples:
Larger companies we’re excited about (for pattern matching): Whatnot, Canva, Notion, Github, Discord, Replit, etc.
Smaller companies we’ve backed (for pattern matching): Superpower, Beehiiv, The Juggernaut, Carry, etc.
Please send deals at keepclimbing@parkrangerscap.com! We can’t wait to meet you and any amazing founder friends you’re supporting.
🔗 Community Building Thoughts 🔗
Starting a startup is hard, but finding the right co-founder is even harder. Did you know that 65% of companies fail because of co-founder issues?
This is why I am excited to announce a partnership between La Creme de la STEM™ and FemBuild for a networking event designed specifically for ambitious women seeking their perfect startup co-founder! It is a unique opportunity to meet passionate startup enthusiasts and find this wing-woman you have been looking for everywhere.
Anne Garofalo, Founding Team Relationship Expert, will be helping facilitate this event. Having worked with YC, MIT and Harvard she specializes in team-based work to strengthen communication and protect the co-founder relationship before conflict arises.
Join us February 18th in Manhattan, NYC: register here.
✨ Inspiring Women Stories ✨
I could not send the first newsletter following the launch of La Creme de la STEM community without sharing some of the exciting companies led by Founding Members.
Consulta Immigration, an immigration platform streamlining the immigration process by offering flat rates with an innovative software
On My Way, a tool to drive needed real-time local action globally by catalyzing and organizing opportunities, funding, and impact metrics for individuals, NGOs, and foundations
Dovetail®, a care coordination platform for family caregivers to manage care logistics and create their own care network
Dextego, an autonomous Go-To-Market Coach helping your reps increase win rates and giving you back time.
LexPal, a P2P language learning platform powered by AI-based content
Visit their websites and show support by subscribing to their emailing lists, following them on social media and talk about what they build to people who could use their solutions!
Interested in joining the community? We have 20 spots left for Founding Members who want to benefit from exclusive benefits and join like-minded women entrepreneurs! Apply for membership before it is too late!
That’s it for today! If you want to keep up with my content on other channels, join 8000 followers who read my posts on LinkedIn and don’t forget to give some love (aka likes) to the company page! Your support means a lot to me, thank you!
