Investor Updates Guide
Practical guide for creating consistent, effective investor updates.
Investor updates are one of the most effective tools you can use to stay connected with investors over time.
This guide is designed to help you create updates that are clear, concise, and easy to maintain, so you can keep key people informed, showcase progress, and make it easier for investors to re-engage when the timing is right.
What you’ll find in this guide:
Why send investor updates?
How often should you send investor updates?
What should investor updates include?
Why Send Investor Updates?
Investor updates are a simple way to keep current investors, prospective investors, advisors, and key supporters informed about your progress.
If an investor has asked to "stay in the loop," periodic updates create natural opportunities for them to re-engage when timing, interest, or fund availability changes.
For those who have already invested, these notes signal momentum and demonstrate how you’re putting their money to work. It’s also a key opportunity for you to activate your investors’ knowledge and network.
Simply put, investor updates help you:
Demonstrate momentum over time
Build credibility through consistent communication
Share key milestones and learnings
Keep fundraising conversations warm
Make it easy for others to help through introductions or advice
How Often Should You Send Updates?
There is no single right cadence, but common approaches include:
Monthly Updates
Often used for existing investors and highly engaged collaborators
Helpful during active fundraising periods or periods of rapid growth
Quarterly Updates
Common for prospective investors, advisors, and broader supporters
Provides enough time for meaningful progress between updates
Fundraising Updates
Some also send milestone-based updates when significant events occur, such as:
Launching a funding round
Closing a major customer
Reaching a key revenue milestone
Receiving regulatory approval
Launching a new product
The most important thing is consistency.
A short update sent regularly is often more effective than a detailed update sent only occasionally.
Most investor updates are brief and focus on four areas: Milestones, Challenges, Status, and Ask.
Some founders include all of these sections in a concise email, while others will include only highlights and ask, and then link to a more comprehensive update.
Scroll down for a full sample.
1. Key Wins & Milestones
Share the most important progress since your last update. This includes news that you are excited to share and signals momentum, even if it led to a challenge or pivot.
Examples:
Significant customer or revenue growth
Product launches or feature releases
Hiring or partnership milestones
Regulatory applications and approvals
Pilot results
2. Learnings & Challenges
Investors generally appreciate honest updates, including what you've learned and how you're responding. You don’t need to include this on every update, but if there has been a substantial or interesting change, challenge, learning, or pivot, this is your opportunity to keep your investors in the loop.
Examples:
Customer feedback
Changes in strategy
Delays or unexpected challenges
Market insights
3. What’s Next
Provide a concise update on your next milestones and fundraising progress.
Include, where applicable:
Round size and target close date
Amount committed
Changes to timeline
New lead investor discussions
4. Your Ask
This is your opportunity to tap into the knowledge and network of a well-connected and invested group of people.
The key is to be specific. People are much more likely to help when they know exactly what you're looking for.
Examples:
Customer or investor introductions
Industry expertise
Hiring referrals
Pilot opportunities
What Should an Investor Update Include?
“Do you know VCs that lead USD $5M seed rounds in deeptech or healthcare? Starting to line up meetings in October.”
“Do you have contacts at startup orgs or accelerators in Toronto or SF? Looking to get in front of high growth startups.”
Sample Investor Update
Subject: June Update | Acme Health
Hi everyone,
A quick update on what we've been working on since our last note.
Highlights
Signed 3 new pilot customers, bringing us to 12 active organizations.
Completed our beta product rollout and received feedback from more than 200 users.
Hired our first full-time sales lead.
Selected for the XYZ Accelerator beginning this fall.
Key Learning
Over the past two months we've learned that mid-sized organizations are moving through procurement significantly faster than enterprise customers. As a result, we're focusing near-term sales efforts on that segment.
Fundraising Update
We're currently raising a $750K Seed round and have secured approximately 40% of the round to date.
We're continuing conversations with angels and seed-stage investors with experience in healthcare technology and B2B SaaS.
Our Ask
We're looking for introductions to:
Healthcare operators at hospitals or clinics
Seed-stage investors active in digital health
Experienced SaaS sales leaders willing to provide occasional advice
As always, thank you for your support and introductions.
Melanie
Founder & CEO
P.S. You’re receiving this email because you’re either already an investor or have expressed interest in following Aceme’s journey. If you'd like to be removed from future updates, just let me know.
Where to next?
Browse Volition’s practical tools, guides, and research on pitching, capital raising, and the funding ecosystem.
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