Why Influence Matters in Capital Raising

Richard C. Wilson presents a workshop presentation on influence and persuasion, drawing on his studies and capital-raising work.

Richard C. Wilson explains why he began studying influence and persuasion and how he applied the subject to raising capital. In this workshop presentation, he connects influence to choices people make when overloaded with information, then discusses how capital raisers can improve their positioning and draw investors toward them.

In this video: Richard C. Wilson (Family Office Club founder)

What they said

1. Media shapes behavior. Wilson says the media people consume affects what they absorb and express. He uses children repeating vocabulary from television to make the point that input shapes output for adults too.
2. Information creates shortcuts. Wilson says information is expanding faster than people can absorb it, creating cognitive overload. He cites over 400,000 scientific journals to show the scale of that growth.
3. Credibility gets judged quickly. Wilson says people make rapid judgments about whether an investment manager seems credible and whether a counterparty can steward wealth. He says a pitch deck may be judged in less than 1 second.
4. Second place may not count. Wilson says investors may research 15 providers or meet 50, then allocate to only one or two. In his view, a capital raiser can be eliminated quickly if the business appears informal or unestablished.
5. Wilson on attracting investors. Wilson recommends shifting effort from reaching out and hoping for replies toward attracting investors. He says he uses events, ebooks, videos, and webinars to position his company.

In their words

"So the more information there is, the more that influence and persuasion works"

"Instead, focus your energy on attracting investors and attracting people so that the investors are coming towards you."

Why it matters if you are building or preserving great wealth

Wilson says his sales team has to explain that the company has a team of 20 and more than a decade of experience. That detail gives a first impression a practical job: help prospects recognize an established operation before the sales call.