How to Raise Funds as a Startup - Sedem Balfour | Developer's Log - Entry 10

Sedem Balfour sheds light on his diverse portfolio of entrepreneurial ventures and his experiences with each. He takes us on a deep dive through his various franchises - from a marketing firm to a sexual wellness platform to a skill acquisition initiative and many more - and a near death experience that ultimately altered the course of his life.
Key Takeaways:
Importance of Versatility: Sedem’s journey as a polymath showcases how leveraging a wide array of skills and interests can lead to diverse entrepreneurial ventures. Rather than sticking to one niche, exploring multiple fields helped him tap into various opportunities for growth and innovation.
Overcoming Adversity: A near-death experience shifted Sedem’s outlook on life, inspiring him to pursue his ventures with renewed purpose and focus. His story underscores the importance of resilience and the ability to adapt in the face of personal challenges.
Raising Funds: Sedem elaborates on raising funds through initiatives like the Young Entrepreneur Forum (YEF) and shares insights into preparing effective pitch decks and building solid relationships with angel investors. Understanding what works and what doesn’t when raising capital is crucial for any startup founder.
Learning When to Pivot: Knowing when to let go of an idea is as important as the process of building one. Sedem discusses how Entrepreneurs should gauge when a project has run its course and have the courage to pivot or pursue new opportunities.
Key Business Lessons: Sedem stresses what entrepreneurs should and shouldn't do after receiving funding-focusing on the responsible use of resources and how critical strategic planning becomes once a startup secures investment.
Understanding Your Market: From his experiment with XOXOGH , Sedem learned that contraceptives were the highest-selling products, offering insights into market behavior and buyer priorities, which can be pivotal for product-focused businesses.
Networking and Community-Building: Sedem’s involvement in initiatives like “Code and Cocktails ” emphasizes the significance of building and engaging with communities-especially within the tech ecosystem-for support, learning, and collaboration.
Video Timeline:
00:33 Who is Sedem Balfour?
01:51 What exactly is a polymath?
02:50 Specializing vs Generalizing
05:15 Being an Entrepreneur in Training
06:28 Hackathon with Hacklab Foundation - From participant to Ecosystem Manager
07:33 Starting a Marketing Agency (BrandAfrik) and the essence of Selling Skills
09:32 Near-Death Experience and a New Perspective to Life - I am going to Live!
11:04 Becoming the CEO of StudXpress and Raising funds through the Young Entrepreneur Forum (YEF) by Ghana Investment Promotion Center (GIPC)
13:36 Building a website for the anonymous sale of Sex Related Products (XOXOGH) - "Protecting Dreams and Propelling Futures"
17:05 The Skill Club - Allowing students to build essential professional skills
20:14 What exactly is StudExpress - MOUs (Memorandum of Understanding) with vendors on campus for Discount Cards
22:49 What it takes to raise funds from an Angel Investor as a startup - Hint: Pitching and Pitch Decks
23:33 What not to do when you receive funding for your startup
28:34 What to do when you receive funding for your startup
32:20 How to realize when you need to let go of a project/idea and the steps to take to move on
36:28 The conclusion from the experiment with XOXOGH - Contraceptives are the highest selling products
45:35 Code and Cocktails - The Tech Party for Tech Enthusiasts.
48:40 How to get a ticket for Code and Cocktails - The SeveighTech team will be attending!
50:19 Question from the previous guest - If you had all the power, what would you do to push the African continent forward?
52:12 Advice/Opinion - Believe in yourself. You have the power to make or break yourself.
54:46 Conclusion
56:50 Outro
Guest Information:
Name:
Sedem Balfour
Links:
X (Twitter): x.com/@sedem233
LinkedIn: / sedembalfour
Code and Cocktails: codeandcocktai...
The Skill Club: theskill.club
BrandAfik: brandafrik.com
Video Aim
Learning all the secrets from experienced individuals within the Tech space.
For collaborations or to potentially be our next guest, kindly reach out here:
KZbin Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.seveightec...
Video Link
• How to Raise Funds as ...

[@Sed0]

Thanks for hosting me, Joseph ✨️

[@SeveighTech]

Looking forward to more collaborations in the future!!❤️

[@richmondowusu7337]

Great conversation. The xoxo website always fascinated me😂😂.

[@SeveighTech]

😂Right?! Glad you enjoyed it!