Emerging Manager Builds Institutional Deal Flow Without a Network

The Challenge

A first-time fund manager had just closed their $15M Fund I focused on vertical SaaS. They had a strong thesis and deep operational experience in healthcare and logistics software, but no portfolio companies making introductions, no brand recognition in the VC community, and a limited personal network outside their operating background. They were competing for deals against established funds with 20+ year networks and dedicated sourcing teams. In their first three months, they had seen only 12 companies, all through personal connections, and none had been strong thesis matches.

The Solution

ScoutedByTed was configured with a focused vertical SaaS thesis: healthcare software and logistics software, seed through Series A, with heavy weighting on domain-specific hiring (healthcare compliance staff, logistics operations hires), product launches targeting specific verticals, and customer signals from health systems and logistics providers. Ted delivered 10 companies per day, and the GP reviewed the top-scored companies each morning, reaching out to 3-5 founders per week with value-first messages referencing the specific signals Ted had identified.

Results

• Deal flow increased from 4 companies/month to 50+ scored companies/month
• 22 founder meetings in the first 60 days (vs. 4 in the prior 90 days)
• Pipeline grew from $0 to $8M in potential deployable capital across 6 active opportunities
• First signal-sourced investment closed in month 3 (healthcare scheduling platform)
• Response rate on outbound founder emails: 45% (founders appreciated the signal-specific context)

Timeline: Configured in one session. First scored email within 24 hours.