Bill Payne · 2011
Scorecard / Bill Payne
Founder takeaway
Founder reading: this is the method you can argue against. The 30% management weight means you can move your valuation by 5-15% just by making a stronger team case. The 25% opportunity weight means a credible TAM justification matters as much as your traction. Spend negotiation time on the two heaviest factors.
Best for
Pre-revenue startups vs regional median.
Formula
Adjusted pre-money = Regional median × Weighted score (factors 1-7)Inputs
- Regional median
- Management (30%)
- Opportunity (25%)
- Product (15%)
- Competition (10%)
- Marketing (10%)
- Funding need (5%)
- Other (5%)
Caveats
- Requires defensible regional anchor
- Subjective factor weighting
- Default weights are Payne's
Source
↗ https://www.venionaire.com/startup-valuation-payne-scorecard-method/Verified 2026-06-03.
Other methods