Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of pitching to investors, including angel investors and venture capitalists. It’s a fact of life when you run a venture-backed startup. It’s one of those things that no one ever tells you about raising money — once you start, you never stop.
It will take on average 4-6 months to raise money, so when you raise an early seed round (say in the $250k-$500k range) it won’t last long. That means the minute you cash that check, you’re out there again, raising more.
I’ve written about pitching investors before. And I’ve also posted some common questions investors will ask during the investment process. The points I made in both posts remain true, but here are some additional insights I’ve learned over the last few months of pitching, pitching and more pitching:
- Tell Your Story Quick. When pitching investors you have a captive audience. But they won’t stay captive for long unless you can hook them. And to-date I’ve seen two things that keep investors’ early attention on you versus their Blackberrys:
- An entertaining story on the problem you’re solving
- An entertaining story on the founders and how the company came together
Both of these points are about putting some context and relevancy on the upcoming pitch and discussion. If you make the problem feel real and explain it in an entertaining way it’s going to resonate much more strongly with investors. The same holds true with the history of the company. They want to hear about each founder’s strengths, background and how you were drawn together to create this new business. That has to be done in a relaxed, entertaining way.
Here are 3 slides I used recently in the beginning of a presentation from CIX where Standout Jobs was named one of Canada’s Hottest 20 Startups.
You don’t get all the context without hearing me go through the presentation, but the key is that I was illustrating very simply – at a high level – the problem we’re trying to address.
- Change the Pace Throughout. Whether a presentation is 5 minutes or 50 minutes (or anywhere in between), you need to change the pace throughout. Speed up when telling high level stories, which also allows you to go through more rapid slide changes to keep people’s attention. Slow down when you’re getting into the meat & potatoes, so people can digest the details. When I first started pitching I know that I did so with a very monotone pace. Everything was well timed, but there wasn’t enough variation.
- Sexy Slides Work. I know you’re not selling vaporware or snake oil, so I have no problem promoting slick presentations. You’re not trying to pull the wool over people’s eyes with “style over substance” but you need to make things look good. I’ve seen too many presentations where the slides were simply painful to look at; and you can watch people in the room tuning out almost instantly. No matter what you’re pitching – from cool consumer apps to ultra-complex B2B technology – find a way to make your slides sing.
Here’s an example of a slide I’ve used which I think works well. It’s nice looking, bold and has a few key points on it:
Side note: Don’t be afraid to play around with font sizes, colors and typefaces for things like slide titles. Everything shouldn’t be absolutely uniform.
- Don’t Over Emphasize the Product. Unless your product is dead simple, you won’t be able to go through all of its great features and benefits in a short investor presentation. Don’t even try. You want to highlight the key elements of the product, but ultimately investors are buying into the team (i.e. the founders), the passion, and the belief that you can execute on what you claim you can execute on. They love to see barriers to entry, intellectual property, etc. but they don’t want to become experts in your product after one pitch.
- End Strong. Most presentations leave the detailed financials to the end. Of course, investors want to know about your financial situation and projections, but ending just on that is pretty dry. Plus, they’ll be assuming that most of your projections are wrong anyway, especially if you’re at a very early stage. So find a way to end as strong as you can. In the last pitch I did, I listed out 4 key points I wanted the investors to remember. It was my, “If you leave here remembering only a couple things…here’s what you need to know…”
And recently, I got some interesting advice, which was to make sure the audience is drawn back to you at the end of the presentation and not focusing on the slides. You want them looking at you, making eye contact, and really getting a feel for your confidence and passion. I was told that the last slide should be as minimalistic as possible; even down to just showing your company’s logo. No matter what you do, end strong by highlighting the few critical things you want investors walking away with in their heads.
Pitching investors is hard.
I’ve met very few people who are really comfortable with it, and fewer still that enjoy it. I did not enjoy the process early on. But the more I pitch (and present in front of larger audiences), and the more I hone my Powerpoint skills and realize that I’m really just telling a story, the more comfortable and effective I become. And you do get better with practice. Good luck!
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I`ve worked with Startups, its consultants and investors alike, in Silicon Valley, Australia, Hong Kong and Delhi. I haven`t read through all comments so maybe it`s already here. But one thing I must say is, a lot of people actually found out how to pitch right, especially graphic designers and debaters take their fortune. But (thank God!) what VCs & Angels are leading to now, again, is the actual proof that you`re doing something and the team is actually capable. Sliding & hiding is good, but many of them want to touch & feel again. That, of course, makes it even harder for the “street” guys with brilliant ideas, but ensures quality of deals & innovation.
I am an investor. We fund early stage-start-up ventures, existing Ventures and
do total completion and investment expansion projects. Leverage walk-in equity
on discounted commercial or residential purchases by employing our funds for
down payment & closing costs. Qualify for better Rate & Term based on a
lower LTV but still achieve high CLTV or $0 down financing. Funds available
for acquisition, rehab or carrying costs including CASH-OUT! Advance equity
fund disbursement based on verifiable walk-in equity. No income, asset or
credit requirements. Seasoned Funds for reserves and earnest money also
available. Brokers welcome!
Contact us for start-up funding, commercial RE Finance, seed capital, early
stage start-up ventures, Joint Venture/Partnership investment with liquidity
from our part, Loan, Mortgages. We can fund excess of $10M.
Send us an e mail on jscapitalinvestmentinc@gmail.com
Jerry Smith
[...] process (at least until we see whether Obama wins the election). Most new businesses are turning to Angel Investors if they are willing to exchange equity for capital, or turning to business credit cards to get a [...]
Great article, time to Powerpoint my Rainforest ECO story/proposal now…
Great article, time to Powerpoint my Rainforest ECO story/proposal now…
Great article, time to Powerpoint my Rainforest ECO story/proposal now…
Your comments are very intresting and thought provoking. You did not highlight the length of the presentation necessary nor did you suggest the number of slides that will be most effective. Can you offer any direction regarding these matters.
Your comments are very intresting and thought provoking. You did not highlight the length of the presentation necessary nor did you suggest the number of slides that will be most effective. Can you offer any direction regarding these matters.
Your comments are very intresting and thought provoking. You did not highlight the length of the presentation necessary nor did you suggest the number of slides that will be most effective. Can you offer any direction regarding these matters.
My lovely wife “Michelle” and I are trying to raise the necessary capital to produce and distribute our new active apparel products. Michelle and a close friend of the family came up with the idea from watching our kids play together in the neighborhood. Shortly afterwards we created a sample product, tested it and received promising results. Overjoyed with the outcome we started searching for investors, which is when the problems began. We tried to get a start up loan from the bank and the SBA but received poor results. The reason they gave was we are a new start up company in the middle of a recession. Our business plan along with the test results prove that our products will do well in the open market. Additionally, in the 1st year of being in business we can create over 100 new jobs in the United States alone; we just don’t have the resources to get there. For this reason, we are asking for your help to sponsor or contribute to our company’s start up process. Our immediate goal is to raise enough money to take part in the ASR 2010 tradeshow and to produce enough products to fill the initial order requests from the show. If we can get to the trade show then we will have obtained access to companies in our industry all over the world. In exchange for your help (with your permission) at the tradeshow we will display the names of everyone who helped to contribute to our company’s success. In closing, we are a legitimate company based in San Diego California, so this is not a Trick or Scam. Because of time restraints, we are physically pursuing and asking everyone we know for help. If you would like to help through contribution or sponsorship we have set up a paypal account. You can send your contributions to our account at paypal account then click on the send money to and typensp@switkle.com. We are not begging; just trying to bring our vision to the world stage. Under Armor did it with great success and we can to.
Sharing website : http://www.keyiflepaylas.com
Sharing website : http://www.keyiflepaylas.com
Very goog sharing…
Language : Turkish(Orginal), Arabic, English vs…. ( Google Translate System )
OBTAIN YOUR FINANCIAL LOAN HERE:
Adriana Jackson loan lending firm is granting all loan seekers the opportunity to actualize your dream.
We offer both Personal loans,Commercial loans,Real estate loans,Mortgage loans,Debt free loans,Agricultural loans,Project/Forclosure loans,Educational laons etc to any interested person.
Have you been turned down by banks or other lenders because of your low credit facility?Adriana Jackson lending firm is Available to assist you financially.
If you need a loan of any type,contact us through the below email address for your loan request.
jacksonadriana42@yahoo.com
Thank you for this valuable information. My business partner and I will be pitching our company (http://www.scoutingnation.com) to possible investors.
Good luck with your pitch Michael!
Thank you for this valuable information. My business partner and I will be pitching our company (http://www.scoutingnation.com) to possible investors.
Thank you for this valuable information. My business partner and I will be pitching our company (http://www.scoutingnation.com) to possible investors.
Thank you for this valuable information. My business partner and I will be pitching our company (http://www.scoutingnation.com) to possible investors.
Good luck with your pitch Michael!
Good luck with your pitch Michael!
Good luck with your pitch Michael!