Introduction
Got that business idea that you know will fly high, but you aren’t sure how to get investors on your side? Trying to figure out the best way to promote and pitch your business can not only be difficult but intimidating as well.
Ensuring you have a smooth, comprehensive pitch for your business will go a long way in inspiring confidence in potential investors and getting vc funding. It demonstrates a clear objective that is achievable and that you have the required insight and capabilities to see your business or project through, too. This will encourage investors to see your business pitch as a better option that poses less risk for them and gives them confidence in you and your business.
Preparation is key
You can’t expect investors to be willing to sit through a long-winded explanation of your business model and proposal. They are busy people, after all! What you need to focus on is creating a compelling proposal that is thorough and brief. The best place to start is to identify what value your business provides for consumers and your investors.
If you can explain your business proposal in a simple but clear manner, it demonstrates to investors your comprehensive understanding and competence. Don’t be bogged down by complicated terms, and try to keep it simple.
Looks matter
Your pitch presentation decks and slides are very important to your proposal, as it serves as a major point of contact that investors have with your pitch. It is important to design your decks in a way that conveys information with ease and contains information that is useful to them. Resist the temptation to overload it with visuals and effects, as investors will find it not only offputting when you pitch to them, but will undoubtedly find it annoying when they refer to it afterwards. Do not fill it with too much information, either, as it will make it more difficult for investors to identify which metrics, statistics, or goals to focus on.
There are plenty of pitch deck templates online that you can use, but we highly recommend that you personalize it a little bit to keep it fresh. After all, you’re here to generate excitement, and that won’t happen with a template they’ve seen so many others use!
There’s no shame in rehearsing
Don’t let your pride get in the way of your pitch — it’s okay to practice and prepare beforehand, and doing so isn’t an admission of incompetence. Prepare a couple of pointers to refer back to, or even a whole script if that works for you. The worst mistake to make is to be unprepared for the pitch. Make sure your message is clear and that your delivery is smooth, and you’ll put yourself way ahead of many others.
Identify who you are aiming for
What investors always look out for is target market awareness. Being able to clearly identify your target market and what issues they are facing, means that your business pitch would be naturally tailored towards providing value to them. This would convince investors to think that your pitch is worth developing and looking into and that it would be sustainable for the long term.
Be objective when identifying your target demographic. It could also help to characterize a person of that target demographic, adding a personal touch to your pitch that can better help investors picture your target audience.
Your milestones and how you make money
Investors are people who play with risk, and they oftentimes do their best to keep that risk to a minimum when looking for businesses to support. The best way to inspire confidence in them is to share with them what you have already accomplished. Share the capabilities of your team that you built, contracts that you’ve already made, or sales and launches that you’ve already done. Sharing your team and their credentials is especially important, as no idea, good or bad, would run without a good team. Highlight what you have already done and how it is a solid base for the plans and milestones that you are setting out to achieve in the future.
Also, share with them your revenue streams and the model that your business is taking. Investors care about the money first and foremost, as they want to generate returns. Demonstrate scalability in your business model and the presence of market interest for your pitch.
How you will gain interest
How will your business garner interest and attention from the consumers or target audience that you intend to go for? What costs will it take to garner customers, and how feasible is it? What metrics do you use to measure the performance of customer acquisition? These are the kinds of questions that investors will have.
Take advantage of your access to your finances and calculate how much you can afford to spend on customer acquisition. Also, research which advertising platform you intend to use, and why that advertising medium is best suited to your pitch. If you can sell your customer acquisition strategy to your investors, you can sell your business to your customers.
Your competition and what it would take to surpass them
You’re very likely to be facing competition from other start-ups or companies who are trying to achieve the same thing that you want to. It’s important to identify your competition, along with their strengths and weaknesses and market share. You need to differentiate yourself from the competition and show investors how your pitch is a better alternative that is worthy of backing.
Also highlight why currently you are unable to surpass your competition, and what funding support can do to help you do better than your competitors. Be transparent with how much investment you currently have and the share percentages of your company. Do give figures on how much you are looking for in order to elevate your business.
Conclusion
Pitching your business to investors is daunting, and you may not succeed as often as you would like to. Regardless of the result, it is important to always refine your pitch further and identify what works and what doesn’t. Remember that the goal of your pitch is to not only source funding and support, but to build connections and to leave doors open for future pitches.
This content is a joint venture between our publication and our partner. We do not endorse any product or service in the article.
