The Art of the Pitch
January 20, 2013
Forget “I think, therefore I am.” For entrepreneurs, the salient phrase is “I pitch, therefore I am.” - Guy Kawasaki “The Art of the Start”
A Pitch is a Story
Do Your Homework
Get Organized
Start Strong
End with an Ask• Ask for the Money• Ask for the Sale• Ask for the Job• Ask for Advice/Mentorship• Make an Ask
Finish Early
Own the Stage• 2 minutes before you go “on”• Smile• Breathe • Make Eye Contact• Pace Yourself• Be Authentic• After: Ask for Feedback
Practice, Practice, Practice
• Practice EVERYWHERE• Practice the Q&A• Put together a Pitch “Gauntlet”• Find a Simon• Video tape yourself & review• Visualize Yourself NAILING the
PITCH!
Stupid Stuff Matters• A Picture is worth 1000 words• Font size minimum = 30• Watch font color versus
background• Just say no to animations • Exception to animations: bullets• One level of bullets
3 minutes - The Format3 minute pitch – timed5 Slides• Slide 1: Who You Are• Slide 2: The Problem• Slide 3: The Solution• Slide 4: How You Make Money• Slide 5: The Ask
5 minutes - The Format5 minute pitch – timed8 Slides• Slide 1: Who You Are• Slide 2: The Problem• Slide 3: The Solution• Slide 4: The “Magic”• Slide 5: The Market• Slide 6: How You Make Money• Slide 7: The Team• Slide 8: The Ask
Other SlidesOther Slides you might add for Investors:• Competition• Financial Projections & Key Metrics• Accomplishments to Date
Sales/Partners Pitch:• Slide 1: Who You Are• Slide 2: The Problem• Slide 3: The Solution• Slide 4: The “Magic”• Slide 5: Sales Model / Current Customers• Slide 6: Competitive Analysis• Slide 7: The Team• Slide 8: Demo• Slide 9: The Ask
Resources•“The Art of the Start” – G. Kawasaki• The Canaan Pitch Deck (slideshare)•Andrew Stanton TED Talk
The End
Questions???