Friday, June 04, 2021
Thursday, May 20, 2021
How to cut through the fog and deliver a winning pitch
This week I was asked by an entrepreneur friend to review a recording of his pitch, along with his PowerPoint deck. I thought his presentation was terrific. But it could have been better.
So I thought
I would share my comments with you. I don't have the entrepreneur’s
permission to disclose his details, so I revised my notes to speak to
generalities rather than specifics. I hope you will find them useful the next
time you go out on a limb to present your dream offer, venture or opportunity.
3. Start early to build your audience’s confidence and trust. As part of your intro, let us know a little more about your background, skills and experiences. Keep it short – but prove to me why you are the ideal person to be promoting the product/project.
4. Be very clear about the problem you're solving. Who will benefit from your solution, and how will it benefit ME? (My friend was actually very good at this. I just added this note now, because it’s such a common problem.
5. Can you explain your revenue model better? What is your price point, and how many customers/how much market share will it take for you to break even, or start making a profit?
6. You mention some quite diverse customer segments. How have you tested these markets to suss out their potential? If you haven't done those tests yet, why do you think this will work? Are there similar products/solutions that your target market already supports? There should be no untested theses in a pitch like this! No one cares about your guesses.
7. You mention you will be launching in a specific test market. Please explain why you chose this market, and what makes it the best place to start. I want to know you’ve put a lot of thought into this plan.
8. What is your plan for expanding beyond that first-mover market? When, where, how? (This demonstrates your confidence, as well as good planning skills.)
9. You briefly mentioned the names of some potential partners. The names alone mean nothing to me, and likely nothing to most of the people you are pitching to. Please give us a few words about each of them to explain why they would be such valuable partners.
10. Plus, tell us how these talks are going. Even if it’s just, “They seem very eager to work with us, as they see that we have the same goals and offer very complementary services.” Not telling us something like this makes me think your negotiations are not going well – or haven't even started. If you haven't begun talking with these partners yet, why are you pitching now? Start building those relationships, then pitch – when you have something other than hopes to go on!
11. You mentioned the names of some important advisors/supporters. You didn’t have time to tell us who they are and why they matter – so why tell us at all? Every aspect of your pitch should add value or position you as a winner who works with other winners. Please give us a few words that show why these people deserve my respect.
12. I think I get what you do and why you're doing it. But I sure would like to have heard a short, punchy mission statement that sums it all up in 10 words or less. Not only does it demonstrate your marketing savvy, it will cut through the clutter like a hot knife through butter.
13. You communicated a lot of good information in just a few minutes. But one thing I missed was “the voice of the customer.” Give us some idea of the feedback you've received so far. (It turns out my entrepreneur friend has done lots of interviews and collected some great quotes. Hopefully he will incorporate them into his next pitch. A solid testimonial is gold. Commitments to buy are even better.
14. (The presentation I saw was recorded on video, with a voice-over by the entrepreneur. Because Covid presents us from meeting in person. But it also puts an additional barrier between you and your audience. So this was my final note:)
Finally: in future videos or presentations, please work on putting more animation into your voice. You're a strong, passionate person, with a big heart. This video is very good, but it doesn't reveal the real you. Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse! And smile more often while you’re speaking. Even if people can't see you, they can still hear your smile.
Feel free
to share your best pitching tips in the comments below.
Tuesday, March 09, 2021
PitchSolutions: Your source for pithy pitching advice
Does your startup have just too much information to jam into one short pitch? Let me help you nail it!
That's not really an ad. It's the premise of my new focused Twitter channel, PitchSolutions. (Which Twitter of course decided to call @SolutionsPitch.)
Follow PitchSolutions for regular content on developing your startup pitch: who you are, why your business exists, what it's trying to do, how it's gonna get there, who's helping you, and why you are all going to win. That's a lot of stuff to cram into a five- or 10-minute pitch, but as a lifelong writer and editor (I was helping my mom mark high-school English papers when I was 13), I know you can get it done.
My tweets draw on my own experience as well as popular experts, book and articles to bring you the most useful intel. To get you fully up to speed, here are some of PitchSolutions' pithiest tweets since its launch last month:
9 Top Pitching Errors
1 Have no plan. What will you do by when?
2 Exaggerate financials
3 Forecast growth without evidence
4 Say you have no competitors
5 Ignore gaps on your management team
6 Focus only on positives
7 Dwell on problems
8 Read your slides
9 Care only about money
Source: "Nine things you should never do when pitching investors," by Ricky Pelletier
An elevator pitch is a longer, multi-sentence version of your basic short value proposition. Seth Godin: "The purpose of an elevator pitch is to describe a situation or solution so compelling that the person you're with wants to hear more even after the elevator ride is over."
One of the most challenging parts of pitch-writing is clarity. Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, emphasizes the importance of clarity: "If I can't get to an investment statement that's statable in 3-7 bullets, usually I won't invest."
From The Startup Pitch, by Chris Lipp
“Build a strong foundation for your presentation by asking three simple questions," says startup guru Guy Kawasaki.
* How much time do I have for my pitch?
* What are the three most important things I can explain?
* Can we hold all questions till the end?
Source: https://t.co/Hkj22IsZyb?amp=1
"Impress potential investors by coming well-armed with details about:
* exactly how their money will be spent;
* a complete budget of expenses;
* and projections that include not only what return they can expect, but over what timeframe."
Be thorough.
Be rigorous.
"The more you’re able to show you have a very well-thought-out business plan, the greater your chances of success."
Source: https://quickbooks.intuit.com/ca/resources/funding-financing/small-business-stand-out-pitches/
How to Pitch a Startup, by Martin Jones
coxblue.com/17-things-you-
Keep your pitch simple
Manage the timing of your pitch
Tell your story
Stay focused
Convey the unique value of your startup’s product or service
Let potential investors experience your product first-hand
(Part 1)
How to Pitch a Startup (part 2 of 3)
Be clear on who your target audience is and why
Know your numbers
Be prepared to support any claims
Be passionate and enthusiastic about your startup opportunity
Make sure you have a strong close
Present a solid startup pitch deck
How to Pitch a Startup (part 3 of 3):
Understand how to market your startup’s social value
Build a strong support team
Practice, practice, practice
Hire a professional to help you refine your startup pitch and presentation
Source: coxblue.com/17-things-you-
The most effective pitches begin long before you start talking. Start by knowing everything you can about your prospect.
Who are they, what are t
heir goals, how fast and how boldly do they move? What kinds of questions do
they ask? If you don't know all this, you're not ready.PitchSolutions Retweeted
Fundraising? Make a doc for investors, organized by how VCs "de-risk" startups.
In each section, derisk your startup!
-Founder Risk
-Market Risk
-Competition Risk
-Timing Risk
-Financing Risk
-Marketing Risk
-Distribution Risk
-Technology Risk
-Product Risk
-Hiring Risk
The seven elements of a great pitch:
* A plan.
* An attention-getting introduction.
* A story.
* A testimonial.
* A surprise!
* A call to action.
* A memorable finish.
If it's worth doing, it's worth doing right.
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