Full Transcript

Jason Kirby: Hey Jeff, welcome to the podcast. We're so happy to have you. Happy to learn more about your background and Answers Now. It'd be great if you can tell the audience a little bit more about your background, how you got started, and kind of what the origin story is of Answers Now.

Jeff Beck: Sure, so my background is as a licensed clinical social worker. I spent the early part of my career as an in-home and outpatient therapist. I then spent some time in community-based services and then in value-based care. Across all those experiences, I saw two prevailing challenges: access to quality therapy and the fact that therapy was incredibly expensive for either the individual or the payer.

Jeff Beck: Around 2016–2017, with the rise of teletherapy platforms, it seemed like in the special needs and neurodiverse space there could be value in connecting families, parents, and individuals with autism directly to a master's-level clinician. At Answers Now, we do exactly that: connect families to their own board-certified behavior analyst (BCBA) through a proprietary platform designed for the needs of this learner and parent. That's what we do, and that’s the quick origin story.

Jason Kirby: I appreciate that. Give a little more background, because the story is amazing. You're helping kids with autism with a solution that can immediately impact them. Tell us more about the types of customers you support and how your business model works.

Jeff Beck: In the very early days (2018–2019), we used HIPAA-compliant Slack. Parents would pay via Stripe, sign up for a month, and we'd connect them with a clinician. We started to see strong outcomes. One early example: a 12-year-old with autism had a sensory-related fear of automatic flushing toilets, which kept him from using public restrooms. Within a couple of weeks, one of our clinicians coached his mom on daily 20-minute techniques, and soon he wasn't afraid anymore. We realized you can serve this population effectively without ever seeing them in person, which many thought was impossible.

Jeff Beck: We initially went to payers in 2018–2019 and said we could save money by improving outcomes for less severe learners—avoiding the ~$100k/year status quo for ABA services. Every payer told us it couldn't be done without in-person care. Then in March 2020, they asked how our model worked. That was a huge tailwind. We went through the long process of getting in-network. Today about 85% of our revenue is insurance reimbursement and ~15% is cash pay.

Jason Kirby: So it sounds like COVID accelerated your business and proved it’s possible to serve these kids virtually. Our audience loves the fundraising journey. You had the initial “Stripe-and-Slack” product, then momentum, and eventually a successful Series A. Share the fundraising journey and highlights.

Jeff Beck: We went through a local Virginia accelerator (grant-funded, no equity) and raised $200k pre-seed from ecosystem angels—no friends or family. Six months later, we joined Techstars, which I consider the second tranche of our pre-seed, bringing the total to just under $1M. We used a capped convertible note. Looking back, there’s a lot I wish I’d known about caps, discounts, and liquidation preferences. We cleaned up a lot of that at the Series A.

Jeff Beck: Through 2019–2020 we stayed scrappy—burning no more than $50k/month. As the pandemic hit, we raised a small bridge believing we could get insurance reimbursement, which we proved at the end of 2020. In early 2021, we raised just under $3M in a priced seed to scale and expand to more states. Some things went to plan; others didn’t—networking with payers took longer than expected. We saw traction toward the end of the year, raised a ~$500k bridge in early 2022, and then grew rapidly through 2022, closing the Series A at the end of the year.

Jason Kirby: You mentioned convertible note structure—what would you have done differently?

Jeff Beck: It’s hard to remember that early “outside Walmart with a hat” phase where you’ll take any terms. A mechanism we learned during Techstars was a “cap on a cap”—limiting the upside of a note depending on company size. We used it in our second tranche; it’s fair for both sides. Otherwise, a very low cap can create misaligned incentives if you grow quickly.

Jason Kirby: Some founders don’t realize traditional notes convert on a deadline. If you don’t close an equity round by maturity, you may need to repay, which is brutal.

Jeff Beck: Ours converted into equity at maturity. We even delayed a financing a few months so a tranche could convert first. SAFEs can be clean, but founders still get tripped up by pre‑/post‑money mechanics and how conversion impacts ownership. Get savvy—it matters.

Jason Kirby: You also bridged between seed and Series A. What was that like and the market feedback?

Jeff Beck: A couple of insiders were bullish and wanted us to avoid going to market with only six months’ runway. We raised a simple internal SAFE with a cap and no discount—basically one page—and added one external investor who was a big value add. We did encounter an investor months later who wanted the same terms as earlier in the year despite the market shifting; we held our line.

Jason Kirby: How did you decide you were “Series A ready,” and what was your process?

Jeff Beck: Best advice I got: raise when you feel best about the business—not at a magic ARR number. We had clear use of funds and a plan to rinse‑and‑repeat state expansion and shore up functions. I reengaged ~25 friendly firms in late August/early September; five or six quickly leaned in, asking for the data room and partner meetings. First convo was late August; term sheets arrived by early October—it moved quickly.

Jason Kirby: That momentum matters. What made you feel confident?

Jeff Beck: We’re a complex, two‑sided marketplace—clients, clinicians, proprietary tech, multiple payers, and revenue cycle. As we 10x’d–20x’d year over year, we knew our margins, LTV, and the levers to scale. I could clearly explain where capital would go, with conservative and moonshot outcomes.

Jason Kirby: Pre‑term sheet, how many came in and why choose your lead?

Jeff Beck: We had three term sheets. I liked the first one—Left Lane—because they deeply understood our industry and competitors. In my experience, it’s tough if you must first convince a Series A investor that your space is big. Our three most interested funds (EdTech, HealthTech, and Left Lane) all knew the terrain.

Jason Kirby: From term sheet to close?

Jeff Beck: ~30–45 days. We were oversubscribed and adjusted valuation. We collaborated with our lead on round construction. Diligence was intense; we were transparent about things like revenue cycle management we planned to shore up in Q1. Lots of legal cleanup—expensive but necessary.

Jason Kirby: Timing across the holidays can be tricky.

Jeff Beck: Exactly—our business has December seasonality. I wanted it done by Thanksgiving. No one wants to drag into late December, and that urgency helped.

Jason Kirby: Tips for qualifying investors?

Jeff Beck: Ask who they’ve seen in your space and what they liked or didn’t. Amplify what resonates; counter what doesn’t with your differentiation. Also, make sure they actually have net‑new capital to deploy—ask which fund they’re investing from and how many new deals remain.

Jason Kirby: Any rough patches?

Jeff Beck: Nerve‑wracking weeks where resting heart rate never dipped. Pro‑rata negotiations were tense—most were supportive, one threatened legal action. We navigated it and moved forward. Also, some firms leaned in for many meetings then couldn’t get there—don’t count it till it’s signed.

Jason Kirby: How did you juggle fundraising and operating?

Jeff Beck: Structure and team. Mornings on operations, afternoons on investor meetings, evenings on outreach. My CTO acted as day‑to‑day operator; a part‑time COO wrangled billing data. I traveled sparingly and kept family time intact where possible.

Jason Kirby: Parting advice for founders raising now?

Jeff Beck: Know which path you’re on: relationship building (regular updates) or stealth then splash. I’m the former—consistent updates over time led directly to our first two term sheets. Raise when the business feels strongest, be clear on use of funds, and qualify investors early.

Jason Kirby: If founders want to follow up or learn more about Answers Now?

Jeff Beck: Email me: Jeff at GetAnswersNow.com.

Jason Kirby: Thanks, Jeff—this was incredibly insightful.