Edgar Allan’s worked on a lot of VC websites. That’s not a flex, just a fact. However, whenever you do a lot of one thing really well, questions like “but how do you do it, aren’t they all the same?” are sure to come up.

Instead of triggering an existential crisis, questions like those get us thinking about how VC sites really aren’t all the same, but it’s easy to see why people would think so. It’s all in the approach and execution.

Differentiators come in all forms, shapes, and sizes. Even if you have just one thing that sets your firm apart, leaning into it can tip the scales in your favor and lead to a wholly unique digital experience that’s yours to own and run with. That’s not to say that you can’t share commonalities with other firms and their websites, in fact, there are tons of things that all great VC websites do have in common. 

But you came here for tips on how to think about your VC website differently, didn’t you? Let’s do this.

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Be who you are

There’s a lot of work that goes into personalized branding that helps differentiate companies from competitors. Creating VC websites is no different, really. Some advice from our resident Queen of Brand Strategy, Kendra Bentle Rainey, is to take an approach that treats your brand like the character it is, digs deep into how your firm functions, who you are, what you stand for, and the kinds of companies you invest in. 

This all helps companies find threads to follow for the entire brand-to-build process from selecting typography, imagery, and creating animations to defining a narrative, UX architecture, and a user journey that gives you an edge over other firms out there. It’s the approach we take and, so far, it’s never steered us wrong. An air of authenticity always helps, too. Users have built-in bull detectors and can see through what’s fake really easily. 

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Find your story and stick to it

We talk about how important storytelling is all the time. But it does bear repeating! There’re a lot of rich ideas within VC firms that create incredible stories. From the firm’s origin story to major milestones and challenges overcome, to the micro stories you can create with case studies on your relationships with your investment companies. It’s all there to be leveraged and spun into something cohesive and wholly unique to your firm. 

Humanizing your firm helps forge emotional connections with audiences. You could even go the opposite direction and create a bombastic and over-the-top story for your brand if you wanted to. As long as it’s true to who your firm is and how it functions, we say have at it and commit fully.

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All hail content

Enhancing the user experience and creating content that’s interactive and engaging is a great way to differentiate your firm from competitors. Your thoughts and insights are completely yours and are worth sharing. Trust us, it creates great value for a brand to create and share thought leadership to establish your firm as a place that knows its stuff and does it well. 

The thing about good content, aside from the value it creates, is that you could do literally anything you want and find the right audience for it. Blogs and articles are a good place to start, but you can push it even further by developing whitepapers, infographics, and research reports. Hell, create a podcast if you have the means to. Anything it takes to spread the good word of what you do and how you do it differently from anyone else.

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Consider the user, always

A lot of websites aren’t user-friendly. It’s a little disheartening to think about but it’s also a worthwhile opportunity for your firm to do better when creating your own site. Create a seamless and responsive experience that’s accessible and you’ve won half the battle already. Users don’t use websites they don’t like visiting; make yours one they want to engage with. 

Here are some ideas to improve engagement, retention, and user satisfaction when designing your Venture Capital website: Optimize for mobile devices, simplify navigation, and ensure fast loading speeds. There’s obviously a lot more that can be done, but those are all good places to start.

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Triumph with tactical tech

The world of tech is vast and exciting. That’s a little bit of a clichéd statement to make, but it’s not false. Incorporating technology into your site can go a long way as far as differentiation is concerned.

Some ideas for VC websites specifically could be anything from integrating AI-powered features such as chatbots for instant support and serving up personalized content recommendations. Another is to build functionality that allows you to host virtual events on your site that showcase your partners, investment companies, tools you use, and more. 

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Work with an agency that understands VC websites

As a Webflow Enterprise Agency with a penchant for powerful storytelling and brand building, Edgar Allan specializes in crafting unique and impactful online identities for VC firms. Our expertise lies not just in design, but in weaving narratives that resonate deeply with audiences, showcasing the essence of each firm's values and vision. 

With Edgar Allan, it's not just about creating websites; it's about crafting digital experiences that leave a lasting impression and elevate brands to new heights in the competitive landscape of Venture Capital. But that’s a lot of talk. Check out the work we did on these VC websites: Premji, Felicis, and Accel to see a little walk.

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