Key takeaways
- One row per firm per round, each with a dated next step.
- Stages run Prospecting, Contacted, Engaged, In due diligence, Term sheet, Committed, Closed won, with Passed at any time.
- Weight each open investor by stage to see if the pipeline can cover the gap to your target.
- A short weekly review stops investors from going quiet without anyone noticing.
Investor pipeline tracker to copy
Paste the block into a spreadsheet or a notes app. Each line under COLUMNS becomes a column header, and each investor becomes a row.
INVESTOR PIPELINE TRACKER Round: [pre-seed / seed / Series A] Instrument: [SAFE / convertible note / priced equity] Target: [amount and currency] Valuation or cap: [ ] Minimum cheque: [ ] Lead investor: [name or "not yet"] Target close date: [date] Committed so far: [amount] of [target] Last updated: [date] STAGES (one per investor, move left to right) Prospecting > Contacted > Engaged > In due diligence > Term sheet > Committed > Closed won Passed (any time, with the reason) COLUMNS (one row per investor) Firm | Partner you deal with | Investor type (fund, angel, syndicate, corporate) | How you reached them (warm intro from [name], cold email, applied on their portal, event) | Stage | Typical cheque | Amount discussed | Probability (stage default or your own) | Priority (high, medium, low) | Last contact (date and what happened) | Next step (what, who, by when) | Materials sent (deck version, data room, model) | Status on their side (if they show one, such as In review) | Reason if passed STAGE DEFAULTS FOR WEIGHTING (change to suit your round) Prospecting [5%] | Contacted [10%] | Engaged [25%] | In due diligence [50%] | Term sheet [75%] | Committed [90%] | Closed won [100%] | Passed [0%] Weighted pipeline = sum of (amount discussed x stage probability) for every open investor. WEEKLY REVIEW (15 minutes, same time each week) 1. Every investor without a next step: write one, or move them to Passed. 2. Every next step past its date: do it today or reschedule it with a reason. 3. Committed against target: [amount] of [target]. Gap: [ ]. 4. Weighted pipeline against the gap: is it at least two to three times the gap? If not, add to Prospecting. 5. Three investors to move forward this week: [ ], [ ], [ ]. RULES - One row per firm per round. Merge duplicates as soon as you see them. - Record the reason when someone passes, in their words where you can. - Don't count a verbal yes as Committed until the amount and terms are agreed in writing. - Keep the tracker private to the founding team.
How to fill it in
- 1Fill in the round header first: instrument, target, valuation or cap, minimum cheque and target close date.
- 2Add every investor you might approach to Prospecting, with how you would reach them.
- 3Move an investor to Contacted when you have reached out, and to Engaged when they reply with interest.
- 4Record a next step with a date for every investor that is not Passed or Closed won.
- 5Move investors to Committed only when the amount and terms are agreed in writing.
Choosing stage probabilities
The percentages in the block are placeholders, not benchmarks. Set them from your own round: if few engaged investors reach diligence, lower Engaged. The weighted pipeline is a planning number, not a forecast. Its job is to tell you early when you need more investors at the top.
Common mistakes
- Counting a warm meeting as a commitment.
- Leaving investors in Engaged for weeks without a next step.
- Not recording why someone passed, which hides a pattern you could fix in the pitch.
- Sharing the tracker with investors. It is for the founding team.
Using the tracker with Delsivo
The tracker works in any spreadsheet. Delsivo plans a fundraising CRM for founders for after its first release, with the same stages on a board and a table, and every application made through a Delsivo fund portal added with the fund's live status. Funds never see a founder's CRM.