An Introduction to Pitching Investors

Before even getting to the pitch…
Rai sing venture capital is not appropriate for MOST businesses
Raising capital takes a long time (~6 months)
The odds are NOT in your favor
Do your homework

So what is a pitch all about?

Pitching = Storytelling

Pitching = Selling

Pitching = Conversation

Pitching is a skill onto itself PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE PRACTICE

hearts minds wallets

hook them FAST
elevator pitch
answers the question, “What we’re all about”
analogies work: “We’re the X of Y”

The 9-Slide Pitch Deck
Elevator Pitch
Problem
Solution
Market Size
Business Model
Competition
Go-to-Market Strategy
Team / Hires
Money / Milestones
http://www.slideshare.net/dmc500hats/how-to-pitch-a-vc-aka-startup-viagra-how-to-give-a-vc-a-hardon http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2005/12/the_102030_rule.html If Team = Superstars w/ past WINS (or critical domain expertise) , move to Slide #2 If there’s Proprietary Tech add a slide Financial Models should be included, but investors know they’ll be WRONG . Keep it simple. Doesn’t only have to be 9 slides , but don’t get lost in details

What are Investors Looking For?

Team
Confidence
Understanding
Progress
Lowered Risk

9 Tips for a Great Pitch

1. Know Who You’re Pitching

2. Expect to be Interrupted

3. Don’t Act Like the Smartest Person (even if you are!)

4. Speak Simply, Kill Buzzwords

5. Avoid Granular Product Detail but product demos are GREAT!

6. Sex Sells

7. You Don’t Know Everything and that’s OK

8. Consider it a Learning Experience

9. Have a Memorable Ending and that’s OK

Me Ben Yoskovitz [email_address] http://instigatorblog.com http://twitter.com/byosko

References Dave McClure: http://500hats.typepad.com/ Sean Ellis: http://startup-marketing.com David S. Rose: http://blog.ted.com/2008/09/10_things_you_n.php Me: http://www.instigatorblog.com/how-to-raise-startup-financing/ Pitching Hacks: http://venturehacks.com/pitching 12 Ways to Blow Your Investor Pitch: http://bit.ly/bHuH17 Andrew Chen: http://andrewchenblog.com/ Pitching to VCs: http://bit.ly/asfVLL How to NOT Write a Business Plan: http://bit.ly/5cqSrj Pictures provided by the great image site: http://shutterstock.com

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An Introduction to Pitching Investors

by Ben Yoskovitz

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