the art and science of the startup pitch
TRANSCRIPT
The Art and Science of the PitchSylvain Carle
John Molson Startup Conference, March 7th 2015
@froginthevalley [email protected]
Pitching Context• Tweet pitch• Handshake pitch• Email pitch• Demo Day pitch• Phone/Skype pitch• Fundraising pitch
@realventures
30s 2 min 3 min
5-7 minutes 10-15 minutes 30-45 minutes
Common elements of all pitches• Intro: first name, company name, catchy line
• The opportunity, the market, the competition
• Why you, why now (insights), Team
• Long term value proposition
• Brief description of your product/service
• Go to market strategy
• Progress (traction), Roadmap
• What you need to accomplish all of the above
@realventures
Pitching Context• Tweet pitch• Handshake pitch• Email pitch• Demo Day pitch• Fundraising pitch (seed round)
@realventures
Getting to pitch• Research investors• Understand fund dynamics (partners, deals)• Ideally get an intro from another entrepreneur• You will pitch 40 times to find the right match• Iterative process. Longer than you thought• Pitch at every possible opportunity (events)
@realventures
Preparing your pitch• Work in text only, one line per slide• Make sure you have all the elements• Experiment with the flow• Practice, practice, practice• Not about memory, about understanding• Your pitch is your blueprint• Different support/format for different contexts
@realventures
Delivering your pitch• Board room setting• Have one person setup, the other chatting• Presentation but mainly conversation• It’s about the dream: pitch what you will become• Questions: don’t be defensive
• If you don’t know, just say “I don’t know”• I will get you the answer as a follow-up
@realventures
After the pitch• Review notes (from co-founder not presenting)• Good questions should go back in your deck• Have backup slides as support material• Follow-up a few days after the pitch• A quick qualified no beats a long maybe• Second pitch to all partners when it goes well• Term sheet if it goes very well!
@realventures
The Art and Science of the PitchSylvain Carle
John Molson Startup Conference, March 7th 2015
@froginthevalley [email protected]