How to make a pitch presentation and get investment

Investors receive daily n + 1 projects for review.

How to make it so that your project touches the secret strings of their soul,
bypassed other applicants and received approval?
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In order to get an investment in your project, you need the “right” presentation.

There are many tips on how to make the “right” presentation online.
Below I post another one.
Its value is that it is the “inside view” - the Venture Capitalist’s wishes that
what in his opinion should be the "correct" presentation.

It's about the pitch presentation.

The original article in English is here: Perfecting Your Pitch By Garage Technology Ventures .

Improving Your Pitch Presentations

Countless articles, books and blogs have been written about the presentation of business plans and pitches to investors.
Despite the wealth of these tips, almost every entrepreneur misunderstands them.
Why?
Because most of the guidelines for pitching your company lack the most important thing: the purpose of your pitch is to sell , not to train.
Your task is to excite, not enlighten.

The pitching is to understand what your client (investor) is most interested in, and in the development of a dialogue that will allow you to get an investor’s head, heart and giblets.

If you want advice on pitching, you can ask him at VK (Venture Capitalist), but most likely you will not get a really good answer.
VCs have an analytical mindset and really give you a list of topics that you need to highlight.
They will not tell you what their innermost desires really are.
Mainly because they themselves can not express it in clear categories.
“I will know it when I see it” - probably the best that you can hear.

What is the investor most interested in?
In contrast to popular belief ...



Contrary to popular belief, a VC sitting at the other end of the table and imperviously looking at an entrepreneur setting out his presentation does NOT think: “will this company make a lot of money?”.

This is a simple question that most entrepreneurs seem to answer.
But they miss the very essence of venture investment.
What VK really thinks about is: “Is this company the best next investment for me and my foundation?”.

This is a much more complicated question, but this is exactly what the entrepreneur must answer.

(Note. Trans.: The fact is that, for obvious reasons, most VCs try not to invest in several similar companies, which then can / will compete with each other. Thus, if you invest in you, a little later on it will appear on its horizon really a grandiose project, and yours, in comparison with him, will turn out to be so-so, the VC will be forced to abandon the “grandiose” that other VCs will get. and be able to see the next “Google” or “Facebook to".)

To win the heads, hearts and imagination of investors, your pitch must be perfect in three things:

- tell a good, clear, easily retelling story - a story about an exciting new startup;

- to present your company as perfectly corresponding to what VC has already invested in before and what its company intends to invest in;

- surpass other entrepreneurs, investments in which his company is now considering.

The last two points are beyond the scope of this humble guide, so we will focus on how to tell a good story.

Tell a good story

Most articles about pitching are mostly true about the topic, even if they miss the nuances (sell, not clarify).
But do not take each pattern as if it is carved in stone.

Your story may require a minor, and maybe a fundamental change in the sequence of slides below.

You may have to show a solution before explaining the market.
Or, if you are in a crowded place, you may still need to explain at an early stage of the conversation why you are different from all others.
Or you may want to trump some impressionable names of famous customers and / or brands before explaining your product or your market.

The only thing you can’t do is stretch the number of slides to 20 (or 30, or 50)! In all other respects, let the specifics of your situation dictate the sequence of your slides.

However, it would be helpful to have some guidance.
Bearing in mind the above warnings, then the general scheme of your pitch:

Slide 1: Cover Slide

Company name, location, slogan, name and position of the presenter.
If several members of your team participate in the presentation, then place the names on the next slide.

The key task: everyone in the room should know the main idea and the value proposition (value proposition) of the company (including the target market), before you move on to the next slide.

On this slide should not be stated all and in full.
However, one or two sentences, verbally, reinforcing and extending the slogan, should give everyone sitting in the room an understanding of what follows.

A cardinal mistake: to start a presentation, having an investor sitting at the table, who thinks: “what do these guys actually do ??”.

Slide 2: Intro Slide: Team (Intro Slide: Team)

Three or four key company players.
For some reason, everyone puts the slide with the team at the end, but investors almost always want to know about it at the beginning.
Also, this is a common tribute to ethics - to make sure that all team members are represented.

But make it short, clear and to the point.
Now is not the right time to share the life story of everyone, or to provide summaries of all six members of the Consultative Council.

Focus on the most significant and relevant achievements of each to show him the winner.
In 10–15 seconds you should be able to give 3-4 offers about your workshop, which would tell the investor everything he wants to know about him or about her at the moment.


Key task: investors must be sure that there is a good core of the team, trustworthy talents who believe in the success of the company and are able to perform the subsequent stages (milestones).

One of these stages can be filling the team, so it is very important to convey that the initial team knows how to attract great talents to its project, and also has considerable skills and abilities in its field.
If the team is not yet complete, let it be clear before investors ask you about it.

Slide 3: Providing a solution. (Delivering the Solution)

You may need an extra slide to show how
Your decision fits into the value chain or ecosystem of your target market.

Do you supplement widely used technologies, or supplant them?
Do you change the way in which certain business processes are carried out, or do you simply execute them by exactly the same method, but faster, better and cheaper?

You are revolutionizing the current value chain.
Chain), or do you fit into conventional channels?

Who exactly is the buyer, and is this person different from the user?

Slide 4: Benefits / Value (Benefits / Value)

Mark clearly and, as far as possible, quantitatively, the three or four key benefits that you provide, and who specifically will take advantage of these benefits.

Will some customers / users / consumers benefit more than others or earlier than others?

These drivers should show your market entry strategy and roadmap of the product / service that you will discuss later.

Slide 5: The Secret Ingredient / Intellectual Property.
(Secret Sauce / Intellectual Property)

Depending on your decision, you may need a separate slide to convince investors that no one else can easily duplicate or surpass your decision (meaning this is true).

If you belong to a business sector in which intellectual property is important, then this slide is the place where your secret ingredient should be applied.

This is usually a certain combination of proprietary / patented technology, a unique team experience in this field and a unique partnership.
Reduce it to simple elements and definitions, free from jargon.

Do not lead the audience a detailed tour of the architecture of your product.
Instead, highlight elements of your technology that give you unique potential for leverage and scalability for your future growth.

If you do slides 4 and 5 well, then it will be easy to set the stage for ...

Slide 6: Competitive Advantage. (Competitive Advantage)

You may be good, but are you better than everyone else? Most entrepreneurs do not understand the objectives of this slide, which is not at all in listing all the shortcomings of competitors (no matter how fun it is).

Just the fact that you have really cool technologies does not mean that you will win.
You have to convince an investor that lots of people will buy your product or service, even if they have several options.

And do not forget that the status quo is often the toughest competitor.
- Most potential customers can reach without buying your solution or the solution of your competitor.

The best way to convince an investor that you really have a better mousetrap on the market is to have reviews of existing or potential customers who, in their own words, formulated why they bought or will buy your offer among other alternatives.

Use this slide to summarize three or four main reasons why customers prefer your solution and not others.

Many entrepreneurs have been trained to use a quadrangular matrix, which shows that they are in the upper right square, however, in the venture community, this has already become a joke.

Regular checkboxes are better, unless they are abused.

Make sure that your ticks reflect market demands, and not just the features of your product.

Slide 6.1: Matrix of competitive advantages. (Competitive Advantage Matrix)

Depending on how important is the analysis of competitive players in your market segment, you may need a detailed list of competitors by category, with their strengths and weaknesses, in comparison with your company.

It is preferable that you prepare this as a “pocket slide”, for use in case of possible questions.

Regardless if you present this slide, it is important that you do this “homework” by competitors and that you do not distort their strengths and weaknesses.

Slide 7: Go to the market strategy. (Go to Market Strategy)

The only most persuasive slide in any pitch is a long list of customers and strategic partners who have already expressed some interest in your decision (and it’s better if they have already joined testing your beta version).

Instead, too often, this slide is just a sample list of standard marketing and sales tactics.

You need to focus on formulating the unobvious, potentially explosive elements of your strategy.

Even better: make your comments in the definition of critical obstacles that need to be overcome, and show how you will bypass them.

If there is no long list of customers, and there is nothing particularly unique or innovative in your strategy, then drop this slide and clarify the components of the sales model when discussing your business model (next slide).

Slide 8: Business Model. (Business Model)

How do you make money?
Usually selling something at a certain price to certain customers.
But there are many variations of the standard scheme.

Explain your pricing, costs, and how you are going to be particularly profitable.
Make sure you understand the key assumptions behind the planned success and are ready to defend them.

What if you can't keep up the price?
What if making each sale takes twice as long?
What if your expenses do not decrease over time?

Many investors will want to check how deeply you understand your business model. Be prepared to formulate the sensitivity of your business to changes in your assumptions.

Slide 9: Financial Projections. (Financial Projections)

The two previous slides should fit together neatly in your financial projections for the next 5 years.

You have to show two or three key factors that affect revenues, expenses and growth (for example: customers, number of sales, new products, sales expansion, new markets), as well as lines on revenues, expenses, profits, cash balance, number the staff.

The most important thing to be conveyed on this slide is that you really understand the economy and development of a growing, dynamic company, and that your vision is based on an understanding of practical reality.

Your financial indicators should tell your story in numbers as clearly as you tell the story in words.
Investors do not focus on the accuracy of your numbers, they focus on the consistency and integrity of your thoughts.

Slide 10: Financial Needs / Milestones .
(Financing Requirements / Milestones)

From your financial indicators it should be clear what your capital requirements will be.

In this slide, you should outline how you plan to receive funding.
How big each round of investment will be and how long it takes to complete each round. And make a binding of funding - to your immediate and medium-term stages (milestones).

You should also include your key achievements to date.

These stages should be linked to key indicators in your financial projections, and they should provide a clear and clear picture of your product launch to the market and plans for market expansion.

In essence, this is your operational fundraising plan.

Do not waste time providing a table "spending money".
Investors want to see indicators of achievement, not indicators of business activity.

they want to be sure that you are requesting the amount of money you need in order to lead the company to significant steps.

Slide 11: Summary Slide. (Summary Slide)

This slide is almost always wasted.
Most entrepreneurs simply give three or four indications of how great their investment proposal is.

Usually, these are the same words that investors hear from many other entrepreneurs, like: “We have great opportunities and we will be winners! „

Your key task on this slide is to consolidate the core value proposition (core value proposition) of your company in words that are memorable and unique to your company.

If the venture investor present at the meeting will have to give his partners a brief description of your company, these are the words you would like him to use.

This is a good place to fix your slogan, or mantra - a short phrase that reflects the essence of your message - to investors.
The best approach to creating your briefing slide is to imagine that this is the only slide you can ever show.
If you had to do the whole pitch - in one slide (in 30 size font) - then this is exactly this slide.

Well, now we have a good overall plan for the pitch of your company.
But remember, it’s about selling your investment offer, not about filling out the form.

Do not focus on using this or any other template.
You should be aware of those issues related to your company where investors are most focused on. It is on these issues that you should focus on.

Make sure that in your presentation you have covered all the predictable “hot questions” as far in advance as possible, even if this means a violation of the slide sequence discussed above.

More tips on effective pitching

How do you turn a pitch from a monologue into a sale?
Make sure that every key point of the presentation connects with your audience.
Keep your text very, very short.
In fact.
You are welcome.

If possible, use graphics and images.
And engage your audience. Ask questions.
"Do you think this market opportunity is interesting?"
"Have you seen someone solve this problem?"
“Do you think that CIOs (CIOs) will be interested in a solution like this?”

You can get quite tough responses, but you will know much more about what is happening in the investor’s head, and you will involve them in your presentation instead of letting them play under the table with their “BlackBerries”.

Some additional tips for improving your pitch performance:

* Make sure everyone in the room is presented.
Entrepreneurs rarely ask investors to introduce themselves.

Although it is accepted to be familiar with the biography of each investor (if it is available on the Internet), it is quite decent to ask something like: “What investments have you considered recently?”

And if there are any other people in the room, it is appropriate to offer introduce yourself and give you some information about yourself.

* Do not use the good old “Mission Statement” on the overview slide. In the venture capital industry, “Mission” has also become a joke.

As well as declare: “Our forecasts are conservative.”

Focus on the statements about the value proposition of your company to be clear, clear and unique.

* Prepare good use cases.
Sometimes, no matter how simple and clear the product is described, what the investor really needs is a concrete example of how people will actually use it.

In some cases there will be several different examples of use. You will have to explain them to get your point across.

* Rush names. Early and more often.
If you really have big names associated with your company - customers, partners, team members - do not keep them secret for the first nine slides. Make sure that the investor finds out about them at the beginning of the presentation.

But be prepared for the fact that the investor can contact each of them, both with an individual and with the company. So, if you intend to show off the Names, it would be nice if they were real.


* Make sure you are able to tell the whole story in 10 to 15 minutes.
Even if you have a time margin, the total presentation time should not exceed 20 minutes.

You want to have time to involve investors in the presentation and to discuss issues or doubts.
If you think that you have additional critical moments that need to be voiced, prepare “pocket-sized” slides that you can pull out into the light when such questions arise.


* Entrepreneur: average pitch - 38 slides.
Investor: the average range of attention / capacity of the skull - 10 slides.

Draw your own conclusions.


* Learn how to control the course of a meeting without looking inflexible or
worried.
Watch and listen. Body language and questions will tell you whether you can postpone a moment of discussion, or you should immediately contact it.

If you allow your audience to take control of the meeting, you will probably end up creating a confused and incomplete opinion about your company.

But, if you do not touch the "hot" questions early and efficiently, investors will not hear anything that you tell them.

* Do not lie.
You may think that this goes without saying, but if you are enthusiastic about your creations, entrepreneurs tend to cross this line too often.

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