How do you present intangible assets to investors?
Short Answer
Present intangible assets as evidence of sustainable competitive advantage, backed by financial metrics (LTV, pricing power, churn reduction) rather than anecdote.
Full Explanation
Investors are sceptical of vague claims like "we have great IP" or "our brand is strong." Present evidence: 1) LTV metrics showing customer loyalty and profitable retention. 2) Pricing power: show customers pay a premium versus alternatives and why. 3) Churn data: stable or declining churn indicates sticky relationships. 4) NRR > 100%: expansion from existing customers signals strong product and relationships. 5) Patent or trademark registrations: demonstrate legal protection. 6) Customer concentration: low concentration (no customer > 10% of revenue) indicates diversified relationships. 7) Team track record: prior exits, domain expertise, execution speed. Use the free Intangibles Questionnaire to take stock of your intangible assets, and the Asset Valuator in Opagio Intangibles to estimate the value of individual assets. Create a data room section titled "Competitive Advantage" including: IP filings, customer references, churn/LTV analysis, NRR trends, team bios and track record. Walk investors through: "Our intangible assets are: (1) proprietary ML model tested versus 5 competitors, (2) customer relationships with 95% annual retention, (3) founding team with 15 years in this domain." Quantify: "These assets drive a 25% NRR, supporting our valuation at 6x ARR—above the 3-4x benchmark for comparable SaaS."
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