The document provides guidance on preparing an effective elevator pitch in 3 minutes or less. It discusses that an elevator pitch is your only chance to get someone's attention and convince them of your idea. It recommends being prepared, focusing on the listener, starting with an attention grabbing introduction, emphasizing the problem your product or service solves and for whom. It also suggests highlighting your competitive advantage, business model, team, and asking for a specific next step like a meeting. The document includes an example pitch structure and emphasizes keeping it simple without jargon or technical details.

1. The elevator pitch
Preparing for your 3 minutes of fame
Peter Russo
Janinka Feenstra

2. Agenda
• Introduction: who’s who?
• COMS YTA process
• Theory of a good pitch

3. My name is…

4. COMS
Young Technology Award
• Process:
– Sunday: introduction to pitching
– Monday: 10 AM announcement of finalists
during plenary session
– 13.30-15.30 Lessons learned in Technology
Startups
– 16.00 – 17.30 Practice and improve your pitch
– Tuesday: 16.00 start finale (3 minutes)

5. Importance of a good pitch
• Sometimes, Your Only Chance
• Average VC Listens for Only 90 Seconds
• Process Forces You to Clarify Your Concept
– Usually You Understand More Clearly

6. We’ve all pitched before
• Situations for an elevator pitch:
– Birthday parties
– Networking events where you meet potential customers,
partners and investors
– Or during a phonecall with media
• The key to success:
– Be prepared
– Use the building blocks relevant for that specific situation
– It’s not about closing the deal, it’s about starting the
conversation!

7. Preparation
Think about:
• Who is your listener / audience?
– No jargon: make it easy to understand
• What do you need from them?
• What should they remember?

8. The first impression
• Enthusiasm and belief
• Likeability
• Getting the attention:
– Rhetorical question
– Joke
– Tell a short story that we can relate to

9. Stage attitude
• What you say and what the audience
hears:
– An audience’s opinion is based for more than
50% on how you say something, not what you
say
– Don’t be afraid of silence
– Dress to impress!

10. Building blocks
• Introduction
– Get our attention!
– Your name and your company name
– What are you looking for 90-seconds
• Which problem are you solving for whom?
• Your solution: product or service?
• What’s your competitve advantage?
• Business model
•Team
•Competition If you still have time
•Marketing/sales/distribution
•Status and timeline
•Summarize and call to action Always!

11. Customer perspective
of the problem
• Who is your customer?
• Your customer’s problem is:
– A pain he wants solved (priority)
– Relevant and important
– He/she wants to pay for it to go away
• How many potential customers are
experiencing this problem?

12. Your USP
• Convince the audience you have the best solution
– Happy customers
– Case studies
• Value proposition: your solution quantified:
• Saves money
• Increases turnover
• Saves time
• Is more accurate

13. Team
• Investors invest in a team, customers buy
from people
• Do you have an experienced team, an
absolute authority in the field? Tell us!

14. 3 minutes
• You won’t have enough time to tell us
everything (so don’t zoom in on the
technical details)
• Make the listener and the judges want to
ask you for more info
• No powerpoints

15. Try This Sample
• Our business will deliver ______ to _______. Until now, this
market has been underserved because _________.
• Our business was / will be launched on ____and we will begin
delivering product ______.
• Our business model involves ______ and we expect to reach a
breakeven level in the ___ quarter.
• We have put together a team led by ____ and _____, who
have ______. In addition, our Advisory Board includes
______.
• We have raised ___ thusfar and are now seeking _____ to
finance _______.
• We anticipate an exit strategy in year ____ through _____.
• I would like the opportunity to schedule a meeting to discuss
this with you in greater detail.

16. Questions?
• www.slideshare.net/kennisparktwente

17. Practice
• Giving feedback:
– Describe the behavior of the person pitching
and the effect on you as a listener
– What went very well
– What still needs some work

18. Good luck preparing!