Things to Look Out for in a Pitch to Potential Investors/ Incubators/ Funders

1.     Body Language

Look Professional. Pitching begins at the Entrance (the moment you walk into the room). Stand and sit up straight, good and open posture, feel confident. Make sure your body language matches up with your pitch. Smile and shake hands confidently. Give and receive compliments politely. Be the most likable person – pitching is never successful if you are not likable.

 

2.     Visual

Prepare a few simple slides for presentation. Include only keywords and graphics.

Don’t put too many words in the Presentation. Do not read from the slides.

 

3.     Speak 

Practice your tone – not too high pitch, nor monotone. Speaks slowly and confidently. Try to limit your accent – get a voice coach if necessary. Bear in mind that most people can say 100-120 words per minute. Keep your presentation to no more than 15 minutes.

 

4.     Story

Prepare a short story if possible. A story that relates to how and why you are starting on this project. Be interesting, relevant and to the point. A story can make a boring business interesting.

 

5.     Simplicity

Be simple – do not give everything to people in one go. Give people less information so that they would ask for more. Think of it as a movie trailer instead of the actual movie. Keep it to a few sentences so that your audience can paraphrase and repeat to others. Use Metaphor and Analog to help people to remember it.

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