During a recent pitch by an entrepreneur, he asked a question that resulted in a major hit to his credibility. The question wasn't stupid. It wasn't inappropriate, per se. But it demonstrated beyond a reasonable doubt that he hadn't done his homework.

There is not a VC out there who you can't find out about on the web. The same is true of VC funds. You can get the VC's bio. You can get the firm bio. You can find out what boards that VC is on. You can find out in which companies his or her firm has invested. Its amazing the amount of information that is available these days if you do a little bit of digging.

Do your homework. If you haven't taken the time to find out about the firm and individual you are pitching, you may say something that makes you look uninformed (or worse yet, pitch to someone who sits on the board of a competitor). On the flip side, you can often gain credibility when presenting by showing that you are aware of a VC's background, interests, past investments, etc. Venture investors back great people as much as great companies, so be sure to demonstrate your seriousness and rigor by doing the necessary homework before sitting down with a VC.