Whether you’re an employee pitching your boss, a salesperson pitching another company, or a startup creator pitching venture capitalists, you need compelling skills to pitch your work and create your brand.
Alongside your techniques, make sure your material is presented in a professional way. Focus on layout, design, and even the technical delivery as well.
IN-PERSON PITCHES
In the age of COVID, there might not be in-person pitches for some time. But when they come back, you should be ready:
BE EARLY — You probably won’t start your pitch at the scheduled time, or even within the time, but that’s no reason to try to show up on-time. When you’re early, you’re relaxed, and when you’re relaxed, you’re at your best.
BE PERSONABLE — An investor or buyer will be a lot more receptive to someone they like than someone they don’t. Be friendly, and don’t think they only care about the business side of things. Be direct and act like yourself, not some slick salesman.
BE HONEST — If a potential buyer asks about the risks involved, they may already know what those risks entail, so don’t beat around the bush. Be direct with them and they’ll see that you mean business.
VIRTUAL PITCHES
The first rule of a virtual pitch isn’t anything like the rules of in-person events.
Rule #1 of any pitch or pre-pitch scenario is: USE A VAULT ROOM.
What’s a Vault Room? And why can’t I just send an email or a PDF?
A vault room is an incredibly secure digital space that allows anyone of your choosing to view your content, and more importantly, prevents bad actors from accessing that same material.
If an investor sees the material you’re sending over, and it’s not protected or concealed, then that means you don’t think the material is valuable, so why should they? When you use a secure digital vault room to protect your presentation files, patents, and business plans, it shows you’re serious.
Organize the vault room with the following items, and send the link to your potential V.C. once they’ve taken interest:
-FINANCIAL EXPECTATIONS: How long until your company breaks even? What other companies are like yours that have succeeded? What other companies are like yours that have failed, and why is your business different?
-VISUAL CONCEPTS: If you’re going to sell a product, what does it look like? What do potential customers think of your product? What do you like about your product?
-INVESTMENT TERMS: If this was Shark Tank, what would you be offering, and what are you willing to negotiate on? Are you prepared to part with some position of ownership, and what percentage of profits do you hope to retain or re-invest?
Vault Rooms – A Leading Virtual Data Room Provider
Vault Rooms has served private equity firms, investment bankers, accountants, banks, brokers, and more, for the past 13 years. Invest in your company’s future by investing in your company’s present.
We provide our clients with 24/7 access to their entire history of files, with round-the-clock support. In addition, our clients are protected with our use of two-factor authentication and Digital Rights Management security protocols.
