15 Tips for Creating an Incredible Startup Pitch

A N E X PE RT S E XC H A N G E G U I D E

Tips for Creating an Incredible Startup Pitch

15

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15 TIPS FOR CRE ATING AN INCREDIBLE STARTUP PITCH

1 LEAD WITH THE NEED

Grab their attention!

The beginning of your presentation sets the tone for the rest of the

meeting. Investor skepticism can be easily mitigated by immediately

establishing that your product addresses a gap in the market.

If your pitch doesn’t articulate both the need for your product and how

your product f ills that need, we have two words for you: hard pivot.



2 KEEP IT SIMPLE

Your presentation should be easy to understand, well organized and free

of complicated numbers or highly technical terms.

Going into detail about your development platform takes time away from

demoing your product (and will likely bore your non-technical investors).

Often, big numbers confuse listeners when not paired with proper

visual representation, which leads us to our next tip...



3 VISUALS MATTER

If your market research includes big numbers, compile that data onto

a clean, professional piece that you can pass out to investors while

you’re speaking. This is your chance to show you’ve done your research

and are a polished presenter.

At the very least, make sure you write out the largest numbers in your

presentation deck so your audience can visualize the data as you

discuss it.



4 CUSTOMER VALIDATION

By the time you’re ready to make a pitch, be sure you have received

feedback from potential customers.

Tell your investors how you incorporated customer feedback into your

overall product development, they’ll want to know the product has an

addressable market.

Perhaps the biggest piece of information to include: how much potential

customers say they would pay for your product. Investors will ask that

question regardless, so you might as well offer up the information.



5 DEFINE A BUSINESS MODEL

This sounds like a no-brainer, but many people think that an interesting

product is good enough, and f inding ways to make money can come

later. Unfortunately, that’s only true for a select few.

The more money you make, the more money lands in the pockets of

your investors. Advertising revenue or charging $1 for an app is better

than nothing, but you’ll need to think long-term. Investigate how your

company can generate recurring revenue or target enterprise clients

with deep pockets.


6 KNOW WHEN TO SHUT UP

After you’ve given your pitch and investors are done asking questions, it’s

probably okay to interject one more thing about your product you left out

of the initial pitch. However, it is not ok to introduce f ive more things you

want them to know. If there is that much more left for you to say, your

pitch was probably lacking in the f irst place.

Your best course of action here is send a follow up email and hope for a

second meeting. For the next time, be sure to revise your pitch to include

those additional items, you’ll thank yourself later.



7 DON’T GET DEFENSIVE

Investors are going to ask questions and make comments about your

product – that’s their job.

While you might not like what they have to say, it’s important to keep

your voice at an even tone when responding. Be sure to evaluate if it’s

even necessary to respond to their comments, sometimes it’s best to

just listen and take notes.

If you don’t have an answer to their question, don’t try to evade it (they will

see right through you), simply say something like “I didn’t come across that

in my research, but I’ ll be happy to follow up with you about that via email.”



8 TALK ABOUT MARKETING

Marketing can often be considered a dirty word, but the truth is - it matters!

One recurring question we heard at various Startup Weekends was “How

do you plan to get your product in the hands of your customers?”

Think long and hard about this question beforehand and be sure to

incorporate an answer into your pitch or be ready to give a thoughtful

response when asked.

A good place to start is to investigate the marketing strategies of

potential rivals or companies with similar business model, chances are

their tactics will be learning lessons for you as well.



9 BR AND YOUR PRODUCT

Sure, you have a logo and a website, but have you thought about the

type of personality your product or company might have? This greatly

inf luences how your customer base will interact with your brand.

If it targets enterprise clients or c-suite executives, you might need to

stick with a professional tone. On the other hand, a product focused on

students could use more playful language to describe its features.

Identifying your product’s voice and personality should be a fun exercise

in understanding how to differentiate yourself from the pack.



10 USE HUMOR

Public speaking is commonly listed as people’s biggest fear. As the

presenter, it’s your job to overcome this fear! However, with your livelihood

and big idea on the line, the situation can become all the more terrifying.

Harness your fears to your benef it - it’ll give you that conf idence boost

you deserve.

Often, incorporating a few (appropriate) jokes into your pitch will help put

you and your audience at ease. Laughter really is the best medicine!



11 DISCUSS THE LEGAL STUFF

This is particularly important if your product has deals with sensitive data

or could directly compete with a litigious group of people. Do your

homework before opening yourself up to criticism from potential investors.

Identify potential issues early on, do your research and inform your

investors of why legal problems won’t be a problem. Trust us, they won’t

touch your product with a ten foot pole if they think otherwise.



12 ESTIMATE GROW TH

Yes, this is different than talking about your business model.

Investors want to know how much money you think you could sell your

product for and how many people you think you can get to use your product

within the f irst 6 to 12 months after launch. They may phrase a question

about the latter by asking “How many people do you think you need to have

using your product to reach critical mass?” Think hard about your answer,

run some numbers and be realistic.



13 LEVER AGE SOCIAL

Would your product integrate well with Facebook connect?

Do it!

Are you planning to market your app via specif ic social channels?

Tell potential investors about it!

Riding the coattails of a well-established social audience that likes to

share new products is a big plus in the eyes of many investors.



14 HAVE A TARGET

When it comes to a target audience, the more niche, the better – especially

if you business model includes a plan to make money by selling advertising.

Be sure to give specif ic details about your target audience and show

potential investors why that audience has an unfulf illed need for

your product.



15 MOVE PAST YOUR MISTAKES

Fumbling over words might happen. Presentation glitches can get the best

of everyone. Getting tongue tied is inevitable. But rather than break up

the f low of the presentation to apologize, just keep going.

If you need to restate something, restate it, but say you’re sorry and don’t

admit to being nervous. Believe me, investors already know that.



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Tips for Creating an Incredible Startup Pitch

15



Small Business & Entrepreneurship

15 Tips for Creating an Incredible Startup Pitch