The Pitch
Creating a Sellable Business Plan
Presentation
The Pitch
Investors are the primary audience
You must capture their attention in the first 60
seconds
An effective pitch is no more than16 slides
Delivered in no more than 8-15 minutes
Tell your story like a story
Help your audience get a picture in their heads.
Rehearse. Rehearse. Rehearse.
The Pitch: Table of Contents
1. Title Slide 12. Example: Funding
2. Market Problem Sought/Valuation Chart
3. Your Solution 13. Company Milestones
4. Business Model & Sales
5. Market Demand 14. Example: Company Milestones
6. Competition ChartRisk Assessment
7. Growth Opportunity 15. Risk Assessment
8. Management Team 16. Exit Strategy
9. Financial Projections 17. Rules for the Pitch
10. Financial Projections Chart
11. Investment Strategy & Use of 18. Key Questions to Answer
Funds
Resources:
Angel Capital Foundation Angel Resource Institute
Ohio TechAngels
The Entrepreneur’s Handbook
1. Title Slide
Introduce yourself and your title
Feature company name/graphics
Deliver your two-line elevator pitch
Share a brief company history
Year founded & 1-2 sentences: e.g. “We founded XYZ in 2008 as a
medical device company to commercialize uniquely effective wound
treatment appliances. We have a working prototype and have filed our
510(k) application.”
State why you are there
Spend less than 2 minutes on this slide
2. Market Problem
Clearly communicate the “problem” in the market and
lay the foundation for the following slides
Provide two example that relate to your solution’s
“unfair advantage”
Include these key points
How do you know there is a “problem” in the market…
What are the market needs…
The cost of the problem…
3. Your Solution
Discuss how your product or service solves the marketplace problem for
customers
Sprinkle in your personal experience from talking with customers
Do not get mired down in the technology
Focus on customer benefits
Include these key points:
Summarize your solution, emphasizing the
uniqueness of your product or technology
Match your solution to customers’ needs
Outline customers’ ROI, including the time to recoup
their investment
Describe protection for your product or solution
4. Business Model and Sales
Describe how your product or service
generates revenue for the company
Keep the explanation simple
Include these key points:
How do you charge?
What is your pricing strategy?
What is your channel strategy for reaching initial customers?
5. Market Demand
Quantify the market by size, segments, and sales
Avoid sky-high numbers
Characterize the key attributes of target customers
Show the urgency of the product or service needed
6. Competition
Create a comparison chart of competitors
Include large and small companies, those who are established
and better know as well as the up-and-comers
Acknowledge the risk of inertia and status quo
Describe what it will take for customers to change
from what they are using today
Describe your strongest barriers
to competition
vs.
Your
Product or Service Competition
7. Your Sales & Marketing Plan
Describe the company growth potential after initial launch
Direct Sales force? Channel Strategy? If selling through
distributors, who has managed such channel partners in the past?
What’s your typical sales cycle?
explain Client Acquisition Cost vs. Lifetime Value;
Why will prospects buy?
Who must get into whose office and say what how many times
before they buy?
Typical customer’s purchase approval process?
Is an off budget purchase decision likely?
Any seasonality due to budgeting?
7. Your Business Model
• Sell @ what price?
• Pricing Strategy; Disposables? Maintenance fees?
Contract expiry?
• Your recurring revenues?
• Leasing Option?
• How many of your products do they need?
• Accounts Receivable or Credit Card?
• Payment cycle/working capital model?
• Average account/sale size?
8. Management Team
Show the strength of your team as individuals and evidence
of how effectively you work as a team
Use concise bullet points to highlight key experience
Indicate full-time/part-time
Highlight Board of Advisors/Board of Directors
Include these key points:
Entrepreneurial experience
Years in target markets
Functional expertise
Experience with start-ups, acquisitions and IPO’s
8. Your Current Status
• Sales to date (in # of units, clients,
& not just revenue $);
• Strategic/channel partners?
• Highlight customers?
• Testimonials?
• Compare pipeline to sales needed
to achieve Cash Flow Break Even;
9. Financial Projection
Focus on the bottom line. How much capital is needed to reach
breakeven and profitability?
Match critical milestones to capital needs
Base projections on assumptions generated from market study
and analysis
Project realistic revenues
You must be able to explain:
Margins greater than the norm
Monthly Burn Rate
Extended periods of negative cash flow
10. Example: Financial Analysis
11. Investment Strategy and
Uses of Funds
• Form of investment
• How much are you looking for?
• what valuation?
• Use of Proceeds (not just how spent, but the
milestones achieved prior to next round);
• What future funding will be required, and when
• What non cash assistance do you wish from your
investors?
14. Example: Company Milestones Chart
15. Risk Assessment
Potential investors know that entrepreneurial companies
are risky
Share your risk assessment with potential investors as
honestly as possible
Segment risk by product, market, operation, finance, and
execution
Strike a balance between optimism and realism
16. Liquidity
Realistically relay the specifics of your exit options
Acquisition
Identify potential buyers and why they would be interested
Describe recent comparable transactions
Express any current relationships with potential acquirers
IPO
Describe recent comparable offerings
Be prepared to explain why your company could be an IPO
candidate
Rules for the Pitch
Allow a reference to arrange the meeting
Rehearse. Rehearse. Rehearse
Target the right audience—there are big differences between
partners, angels and VCs
Show up early and only bring key personnel
Business attire only
Use appropriate social skills, no off-color jokes
Know your stuff
Be enthusiastic but not annoying
Be courteous and respectful
Don't read to the audience
Use simple pictures, graphics and avoid extremely abbreviated text
Use 4 bullets per page, and 4 words per bullet
Let the audience know how your business makes money
Be prepared to answer questions
Be open to audience recommendations
Be Prepared to Answer these Questions
What problem does your company solve?
Who is the target user of the product or service offering?
Why would someone purchase your product or service?
What is the market potential for your company's product or service?
How do you plan to acquire and keep customers?
Who are your competitors?
What gives your company a competitive advantage?
What makes your business different or unique?
Does your company have proprietary intellectual property?
What is the planned “Use of Funds"?
When will the company reach break even?
What are the primary risks facing your business opportunity?
What is it about your management team that makes it uniquely capable
of executing on this business plan?
What are the exit scenarios for the founders and investors?
Words You Never Want to Say!
This is the best deal you will ever see
No one else does what we do
We are chasing billion dollar markets
Our intellectual property is solid
We don’t have any competition.
Big corporations are too slow to be a threat
Our financial projections are conservative
We just need a 1 to 2 percent market share to
meet our projections
Our margins exceed 10 percent
A big corporate partner is about to sign on
Key employees will join us at funding
Revenues are not out current focus
And the ultimate turn-off:
Several VCs and angels are interested in funding our plan
