Do More With Less: The Fundraising Operating Model Emerging Managers Need
Hosted by Gui Costin, Founder & CEO, Dakota and Rob Robertson, President, Dakota Marketplace
Watch on YouTube | Listen on Spotify
Executive Summary:
Episode 46 is a back-to-basics playbook for emerging managers who don't have a big marketing budget or a big team. Gui Costin and Dakota President Rob Robertson walk through the exact operating model Dakota uses with its own clients: a quarterly webinar as free, repeatable brand-building; disciplined cold outreach built around five active cities at a time; and a CRM workflow that pairs meeting notes with AI to keep every opportunity moving. They also cover where else emerging managers should be spending their limited time, RIAs and family offices first, emerging manager programs and bank platforms as R&D, and why a personal, product-free presence on LinkedIn is one of the most underused channels available. Gui closes the loop by referencing Dakota's newest research note on what the highest-raising fund presentations have in common.
Show Notes
Products Discussed in This Episode
Dakota Marketplace - View Product
The global private markets intelligence platform underlying every channel discussed in this episode: family offices, RIAs, and every other allocator type Dakota tracks, all updated daily.
↓ Download the Platform Guide | Book a Demo
Dakota Family Offices - View Product
4,000+ verified family offices in Dakota Marketplace, including direct-investor filtering to isolate family offices that actually use outside managers.
↓ Download the Global Family Office Report
Dakota RIAs - View Product
17,000+ RIAs, 46,000+ verified contacts, CIO bios, investment preferences, and 13F holdings data.
↓ Download the RIA Capital Raising Guide
Dakota Marketplace for Salesforce - View Product
Dakota's native Salesforce integration, syncing Dakota Marketplace data and activity directly into a firm's existing CRM records.
Resources & Documents Mentioned
The Dakota Way & Be Kind by Gui Costin
The only book written on investment sales: 4 core principles for fundraisers. Available on Kindle and softcover on Amazon.
Request a signed copy
Fund Presentations: 8 Common Trends from Top GPs
A Dakota research note studying the fund presentations attached to the largest capital raises tracked in Dakota Marketplace, identifying eight recurring characteristics shared by the funds that raised the most money.
↓ Download the Report
Mastering Quarterly Webinars: Best Practices for Investment Firms
Dakota's step-by-step eBook on planning, hosting, and following up on quarterly webinars, covering webinar structure, technical setup, audience engagement, and post-webinar follow-up strategy.
↓ Download the Quarterly Webinar Guide
Episode #47 airs at 1pm on September 8, 2026
30 mins. Practical tactics. No pitch. Build for boutique investment firms raising capital without the budget of a large firm.
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