Fundraising is a complex and time-consuming challenge for startup founders, often filled with information gaps and repetitive tasks. FundsConnect, a SaaS-based CRM platform, simplifies this process by streamlining investor discovery, automating outreach, and enabling transparent communication.
As the Product Designer, my goal was to create an intuitive experience that empowers founders to focus on building their business while fostering direct, meaningful connections with investors. This case study highlights the design process, key challenges, and solutions behind FundsConnect.
What are we solving?
Startup founders often face significant challenges during fundraising, including identifying the right investors, managing scattered communication, and handling repetitive outreach tasks. These inefficiencies not only consume valuable time but also divert focus from core business operations. On the other hand, investors seek clarity, direct communication, and transparency in their interactions with founders, without the involvement of intermediaries.
FundsConnect aims to bridge this gap by providing a SaaS-based CRM platform that automates repetitive tasks, centralises communication, and streamlines investor discovery—empowering founders to fundraise efficiently while enabling investors to engage meaningfully with startups.
User Research
Startup founders often face significant challenges during fundraising, including identifying the right investors, managing scattered communication, and handling repetitive outreach tasks. These inefficiencies not only consume valuable time but also divert focus from core business operations. On the other hand, investors seek clarity, direct communication, and transparency in their interactions with founders, without the involvemeUnderstanding the needs, pain points, and motivations of both startup founders and investors was essential in shaping the user experience of FundsConnect. To achieve this, we conducted a series of user interviews.nt of intermediaries.
Research Goals:
-
01
Identify the core challenges founders face in fundraising.
-
02
Understand the communication and engagement preferences of investors.
-
03
Explore existing tools and methods used for fundraising and their limitations.
Key Insights:
- Investor Discovery is Time-Consuming: Founders struggle to identify relevant investors due to a lack of effective filtering tools.
- Scattered Communication: Managing investor conversations across emails, spreadsheets, and CRMs leads to inefficiency and missed follow-ups.
- Repetitive Tasks are Draining: Manual follow-ups and administrative tasks consume significant time and mental bandwidth.
- Repetitive Tasks are Draining: Manual follow-ups and administrative tasks consume significant time and mental bandwidth.
- Investors Prefer Direct Communication: Investors value clear, direct, and uninterrupted communication with founders.
- Transparency Builds Trust: Investors want better visibility into fundraising progress and startup updates to stay aligned.
Competitor Analysis
To ensure that FundsConnect addresses the unique needs of startup founders and investors while offering a competitive edge, we conducted a thorough analysis of similar platforms in the fundraising and CRM space. Here’s a breakdown of key competitors, their strengths, weaknesses, and opportunities for FundsConnect to differentiate itself.
Key Differentiators for FundsConnect:
- User-Centric Design: A clean, intuitive interface with minimal learning curve for non-technical users.
- Automated Workflows: Built-in automation for follow-ups, reminders, and email templates to save time.
- AI-Driven Personalization: Advanced investor matching and engagement insights tailored to each startup’s profile.
- Transparent Communication: Real-time activity logs and investor updates to foster trust.
- Affordable and Scalable: Pricing designed for early-stage founders with features that scale as startups grow.
Design Approach
The design approach for FundsConnect focused on creating a user-centric, efficient, and transparent platform to simplify fundraising for startup founders and enhance communication with investors. By prioritizing clarity, automation, and transparency, the design approach empowers founders to navigate the fundraising journey efficiently while fostering stronger investor relationships.
- Investor Discovery Made Simple: Advanced search filters and intuitive investor profiles enable quick and precise investor identification.
- Centralised Communication: Integrated inbox and automated follow-up reminders streamline investor outreach and reduce scattered conversations.
Information Architecture
The FundsConnect platform is structured around two key sections: Investor Discovery and Outreach & Communication. The Investor Discovery section allows founders to easily search and filter investor profiles based on criteria like funding stage and industry, helping them find relevant investors quickly. The Outreach & Communication section consolidates all tools for managing investor interactions, including a unified inbox, customizable email templates, and automated follow-ups. This design ensures that founders can efficiently manage communications, track activity, and maintain seamless connections with investors, optimizing the overall fundraising process.
Wireframes
The wireframes for FundsConnect were designed to map out the core user flows and ensure a user-friendly experience for both startup founders and investors. These Hi-Fidelity wireframes helped visualise the layout and structure of key screens before the final design phase. By mapping out the wireframes early on, we were able to refine the platform's layout, ensuring that each feature was logically placed and accessible, ultimately setting the foundation for a seamless user experience.
Interface Design
The visual design of FundsConnect was crafted to reflect a balance of professionalism, clarity, and sophistication, ensuring a seamless experience for users to navigate through.
Logo
The logo symbolises a smooth and dynamic fundraising journey, represented by a gradient line atop the letter ‘F’, giving it a sense of motion and vitality. This approach creates a live and evolving identity that aligns with the ever-changing nature of fundraising.
Colour Palette
A minimal colour palette was intentionally chosen to maintain a clean and focused interface, enhancing visual hierarchy and reducing cognitive load. The rich blue primary colour conveys trust, reliability, and sophistication, while subtle accent tones guide user attention without overwhelming the experience.
Customs Iconography
Custom iconography was designed with clarity and consistency, ensuring every visual element supports intuitive navigation. By adhering to core design principles—balance, contrast, and alignment—the interface remains not only aesthetically pleasing but also highly functional.
Design System
The FundsConnect Design System was built to ensure consistency, scalability, and efficiency across the platform. By establishing a unified design language, we enabled seamless collaboration between design, development, and product teams while maintaining a polished and cohesive user experience.
By adopting this comprehensive design system, FundsConnect achieved a scalable and maintainable design infrastructure, allowing for future enhancements and new feature rollouts without compromising on quality or user experience.
In essence, the visual design of FundsConnect combines clean aesthetics, purposeful colour choices, and thoughtful detailing to create a platform that feels professional, trustworthy, and easy to navigate.
In essence, the visual design of FundsConnect combines clean aesthetics, purposeful colour choices, and thoughtful detailing to create a platform that feels professional, trustworthy, and easy to navigate.
Automated Email Engagement Flow
The automated email engagement flow is a key feature of the FundsConnect platform, designed to enhance user engagement and streamline communication between startups and investors. This feature ensures that users remain actively engaged with the platform while reducing the manual effort required for outreach and follow-ups.
The Outcome
- Improved Investor Discovery: Founders can now quickly and easily identify relevant investors using advanced search filters and detailed profiles, reducing the time spent on research.
- Enhanced Communication Efficiency: The centralized inbox, automated follow-ups, and customizable templates simplified outreach, increasing investor response.
- Scalable Platform Design: A robust design system ensured consistency across the platform and positioned FundsConnect for future feature expansion and growth.
- Positive User Feedback: Early adopters praised the platform for its intuitive design, clean interface, and ability to streamline key aspects of their fundraising journey.
