Hi friend,

Investors want evidence. Evidence that you can actually improve health outcomes. But what exactly are they looking for and how do you make sure you have it when they come looking?

That’s what we cover in today’s Hemingway Guide.

Guides are our new, expert-led series where we share practical playbooks on the biggest challenges in mental health innovation. Today’s expert is Jennifer Huberty, PhD.

Jen has over twenty years of experience in both academic research and commercial digital health. She’s was Head of Science at Calm and has advised several of the world’s leading digital health business. She knows how to do great science that advances both commercial and impact goals. She also knows what investors (and payers) want to see, and how to make it happen.

So, over to Jen…

What Investors Mean When They Ask for Validated Outcomes

by Jennifer Huberty, PhD

You get a meeting with an investor you’re excited about. You present your metrics showing how many active users you have, what your retention rate is and how many sessions users complete per week. The investor likes it, but then asks about your validated outcomes. Then what do you do? 

In Seed rounds you are rewarded for traction but in Series A and beyond you have to have proof of impact. Most founders don’t start their company thinking about how they will measure proof of impact, but when they hit Series A funding, they find themselves scrambling for those answers.  The purpose of this founder guide is to explain what “validated outcomes” actually means and how to prepare before investors ask.