An expert look at the key features to make your pitch powerful and impactful and get the funding and support that would best benefit your scalable business.

1. How to expertly pitch
Incubators, Angels and
VCs.

2. 7 rules, if followed, should
aid any entrepreneur in
seeking their desired
outcome from a pitch.

3. Do your research01 Know your numbers
Start a lively conversationBe clear and concise
02
03 04
Be honest and humble
Be passionate.
Sometimes. Maybe
05 06
‘Warm up’ the meeting07

4. Rule # 1
Do your research

5. Do your
research
Research the incubator, angel investment club or VC firm and also
the actual attendees. Its more important when pitching for
resources, especially capital.
Know about your audience. Allow tailor speech for your audience.
Know about past of your investors. Search about types of
companies and size of deals are made by your investors. Avoid
using your investors as shotgun.
Finally, ensure the incubator or investors are a good fit for your
business and you are not simply using the shotgun approach of
‘spray and pray’. Seek out the one or two angels that would be a
huge value add on your board given their relevant prior
experience.

6. Rule # 2
Know your numbers

7. Know your
numbers
Must always know about your key figures. Swallow your pride and
educate yourself like you’re studying for an exam. Though your
organization may not prioritize or track a particular metric, it may be
very pertinent to one or more of your audience members.
If you are pre-revenue, make sure you have a solid understanding of
your SOM (Serviceable Obtainable Market) , TOM (Target Operating
Model) & TAM (Total Available Market).
Rehearse answers to tricky questions like: what if you can’t hit X #
of users in the next two years? Investors know you’re presenting a
best case scenario so make sure you model out a downside
forecast.

8. Know your
numbers
When pitching an angel or VC, you should at a minimum have all your
revenue related figures and KPIs top of mind: GMV (gross merchandise
value), MAU (monthly active users), CAC, customer acquisition cost and
so forth.
A robust knowledge will show good preparation and that you will handle
their investment with care and diligence. You will also pitch more
confidently, knowing you can’t get caught out by simple questions.
Don’t become a cautionary tale or fodder for water cooler gossip: study
up.

9. Rule # 3
Be clear and concise

10. Be clear
and
concise
Should be care of time limits. You will have around 20 minutes and you
need to make them all count. Remember that formalities and introductions
can eat up 1 minute and probing questions often much more. it’s important
that you can communicate the salient points of your pitch in 10 minutes or
less, relying as little as possible on the pitch deck.
The deck should simply be a skeletal guide or prompt, with very short
phrases that you can speak with more confidently. The deck should be
pretty and more explained.
Finally, you must be able to elucidate the essence of your business in
one simple and short sentence. Don’t feature dump, explain the benefits
are to the consumer and your chosen market.

11. If you get bogged down on one point, have
awareness of time and move past it; don’t
make the mistake of thinking that because
you’re being probed for 5-10 minutes on an
issue it pauses the clock, it does not.
Pro
Tip

12. Rule # 4
Start a lively
conversation

13. Start a lively
conversation
if you are not engaging your audience in your pitch, you will not
receive any investment. The trouble with using a pitch deck is that
it can easily become a crutch.
Engage your audience with the use of charts, graphs and icons in
your pitch deck. Ask questions from your audience to make sure
that they are understanding what they should be excited about.
Speak friendly. Make two way conversation with your audience.
This will help you to know about your interest of audience what
they are looking for and you can easily target that area in your
deck.

14. You can open your pitch with:
“Due to our limited time, I’d love to hear what
YOU would like to know so I can focus on these
areas”.
This will help you to know the interest of your
audience and you can engage them easily.
Pro
Tip

15. Rule # 5
Be passionate

16. Be passionate
Many investors have said passion shows that the speaker is fully
invested in the business and therefore will be able to weather the
inevitable impending storms. Passion convinces some of how
‘serious’ you are.
You can risk coming off as all bluster and no substance. Instead,
with a calmer demeanour, you project stoic confidence,
connoting a steady and unwavering hand at the helm.
Yes
No

17. Your energy level can also depend on whom you are pitching. High
energy and passion are usually more appropriate for pitching
incubators and angel investors as your company is usually at an
earlier stage. With less business maturity and ostensibly less positive
KPIs, angels may be swayed by a good story, told passionately. This
is not to say that angel investors are less sophisticated or ‘easier’ to
pitch to, certainly not. They just have a larger appetite for
speculative investments that are very early stage and have a solid
purpose or mission that the founder energetically rallies behind.
Important Point

18. Rule # 6
Be honest and humble

19. Be honest
and
humble
Incubators offer resources to get you to scaled up, whether via
mentorship, a network or education. Angel investors and VCs will
eventually account for some members on your board. These are all
fantastic resources with vast troves of experience to tap into for the
benefit of your company. Approach your pitch with that in mind. Make it
clear that you know your company isn’t perfect or a finished product
and acknowledge past or current challenges and failures.

20. When sharing challenges, ask for feedback and advice on the spot. The
people in front of you will have relevant experience and valuable insights
and you’ll gain the following benefits:
1. Your audience will be engaged and if vocal, may even signal that
they are already mentally invested in your success.
2. Your humility will present you as someone trustworthy, honest and
willing to adapt/ pivot.
3. Finally, if you walk away with no deal, you may still get a golden
nugget of wisdom that take you to the next level.

21. Rule # 7
‘Warm up’ the meeting

22. ‘Warm up’
the meeting
it’s not always possible to have an old friend sitting in front of you
as you pitch. However, you can easily scour your LinkedIn for any
mutual connections with the incubator, angels or VCs. Studies have
shown there is a higher likelihood of getting investment if you can
reference a mutual connection with the investors, however tenuous.
Common ground is a subconscious stamp of approval as people
do business with people they perceive to be like themselves. Even
if you don’t physically look like your audience, you can still benefit
from highlighting common experience and this will build instant
rapport. Imagine that a typical angel investment club or VC firm is
hearing 5 pitches back to back. 5 pitches x 20-30 minutes each,
totalling around 2.5 hours of pitches. If you reference a mutual
contact, former employer, alma mater or even a link to that
person’s hometown, it will pay dividends.

23. ‘Warm up’
the meeting
This tactic alone will not get you the deal but it will make your pitch
memorable. The purpose of the initial meeting is simply to get the
second meeting, not to close the deal on the spot. As such you want
to be remembered easily and fondly.
With all this in mind, bon chance with your pitches and remember
to stay positive and undeterred in the face of rejection. Keep
honing the pitch and learning from failures and you will eventually
emerge triumphant.

24. Website: fintexec.coach
Email: services@fintexec.coach
Phone #: +44 (0) 7877 876 559
THANK YOU!