Ideas are great. Ideas change both the direction and the face of our world. They are where new realities are made. Printing presses, the internet, bleach-free recyclable fast-food containers, electronic dog-treat dispensers, iPods, Niké’s Pump shoes, self-drive wheelchairs: all of these were once an epiphany in someone’s brain. But ideas without execution are useless. And execution requires investment – time or money. But, in order to acquire that investment, others need to buy into the ideas, understand them and, most importantly, realise why they are such a big deal. That’s what a pitch is – the 5 minutes that will decide your future.
At LaunchLab we are exposed to a smorgasbord of ideas, from which we have to pick the most important. This is not easy. It’s especially difficult when the pitcher does not understand how help us, the audience, realise their value. Based on our experience, and the experience of thousands of experts such as Innovation and strategy MBA Lecturer, Van Der Spuy Brink, here are our suggestions to make your next pitch a bang, and not a whimper.
- Solve for x:
Context is really important when making decisions. But an outsider to your company or idea, will not immediately understand your context. Why is your idea so valuable?
Far, far too often, pitchers go straight into their solution, without first establishing what problem it solves first. What’s a band-aid without a cut? Who needs a parachute when their feet are on the ground? First establish some form of problem, and then tell us how you are solving it.
- Feel the pain:
As an expansion of point 1, the more you can help the audience identify with the problem you happen to be solving, the more likely they are to need a solution. Who needs a bandage more? Someone who pricked their finger, or someone with a bullet wound? Make them feel as if they have been shot. The more I don’t want the problem, the more I will demand the solution.
This is also critical because people still make decisions emotionally – believe it or not. We do not buy our cars for fuel economy, and we do not buy clothes for their utility.
- Keystone message:
What is the ONE thing your idea does (or does better than existing competitors)? Got it? Good. Now stick to it. A pitch is not the time nor place to get lost in the details – and that is exactly what will happen. The more information you try and present, the more it muddies up the key (read: defining) point, and dilutes your argument.
People need to buy-in vertically. First, we need to buy in at the top – the big idea. If we are sold here, we’re happy to move down and hear about the details that help make that big idea possible. (Detail is better for a conversation, just so you know). Keep this in mind the next time your audience’s eyes get a little glazy.
- It’s not about you:
This is critical. Your pitch has very little to do with you, and everything to do with the people you happen to be talking to. They are the ones who hold the future of your venture in their hands… What do they need to hear – and how do they need to hear it – in order to decide? Try and put yourselves in their shoes and ask yourself, at every step of your preparation, “Would I care about this if I was them?” If the answer is no, or even ‘not sure’ – drop it, or reframe it.
- People do business with… :
… people they like. Almost every single investor will agree agree that they will invest in people over product. Good people will make a plan, and make things happen. You can bank on people. As we said above, a great idea with lackluster execution will still fail and choosing people who we believe will never settle for mediocre is a much safer bet.
Avoid arrogance. Praise your team (where relevant). Humanise your business. Be passionate! Make them like you, and you’ll win their hearts and, hopefully, their capital thereafter.
- A lick o’ paint:
It’s 2016, and it’s easier than you might think to avoid the ‘ugly’ presentations we have all been exposed to for so many years. Put the effort into a touch of design, because unattractive, boring presentation slides will not do you any favours… With the amount of free designer templates, free stock photos (you can even find copyright-free images through Google’s Image search) and royalty-free icons, it is easy to make your message look good.
You wouldn’t wear a burlap sack and your flip-flips to a business meeting would you? Help your presentation to look as professional as you do.
Pitching opens doors. Pitching is power! The life of your business is dangling on a string and every time you hear ‘no’ or ‘we’ll think about it’, that string frays a little more. We really hope these tips help you in your next pitch because, if you are reading this, the chance is you’re trying to change the world, and you have an idea that may do just that.
The LaunchLab provides access to a unique community of campus-based entrepreneurs as well as an environment where start-ups can test new technologies and business models without corporate restrictions. We bi-annually run a programme called our Ideas Programme which extends across all universities in the Western Cape, tapping into student and non-student entrepreneurs as well as communities of innovative thinkers and creators.
For further insight on our ideas programme, have a look at the programmes that were previously run: www.launchlab.co.za/breakthroughinnovation
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