Yesterday, we allowed startup founders to come up with their pitches and showcase their startup ideas live on our Zoom event. The session was great as we had around 37 startup founders joining the show and practicing their elevator pitches live. The Zoom session was hosted by Anshuman Sinha, co-founder of Startup Steroid and Chair of TiE SoCal Angels, an angel fund investing in early-stage startups. “Ideally, your startup pitch (elevator pitch) shouldn’t go beyond a couple of minutes. If you can’t convince someone in the first two minutes, then you’re not a good storyteller and you need to work on your pitching basics. Your pitching should be sleek. Don’t forget that an elevator pitch may not help you get funded for your startup immediately, but it can create a process through which you can connect with angel investors and foster a deep connection with investors,” — Anshuman Sinha. New to Let’s Talk Startup? It is an online startup meetup platform organizing weekly sessions discussing the complex topics of the startup world. Let’s Talk Startup is on a mission to solve the problems of startup founders one meetup at a time and build a stronger startup ecosystem. We had Amantha Bagdon on the show. She explained her startup journey and also mentioned her startup that currently works on an eBay model through which she helps various pharmacy stores directly source their medicines online from the site. She also stated that she was managing a small team and currently looking for a sales lead who can enhance her business. Our experts carefully listened to her pitch and advised her to bring out the numbers in her startup pitches so that angel investors can understand where she is in her startup journey. Besides, our mentor Anshuman Sinha also advised her to use the word “medication” instead of “drug” as the former is more pleasing to the ears. Public speaking can be a bit tricky when your target audience includes learned people and experienced angel investors, but as far as possible, use simple words and build a great story while pitching in front of them. Investors don’t have time, and they listen to hundreds of startup pitches seeking funds from them daily. They will only get interested in the impactful pitches. Here are some basic rules of startup pitching that every startup founder should know: clearly explain what you’re doing, for whom you’re doing it, where you are in your current journey, and what your vision is. Our mentor, Anshuman Sinha, also suggested startup founders mention their “runway” and “burn rate” in startup pitches, besides bringing out the numbers to make your startup pitch more interesting. We also had Mai Moore on the show. She briefly introduced her startup, adding, “Hello! Boss Me In is a purpose-driven organization led by diverse executive women to empower Gen Z by sharing our journeys, powered by CHIEF members. The mission is to empower young women to become agents of change for the Future of Work; solving the corporate issue of the great breakup with women in executive and middle management roles. We do this via moderated speaker panels, workshops, and mentorship. Bossmein.com helps ‘Boss Me In’ raise pre-seed $750k, and currently, we are looking for angel investors for our initial $100k raise.” Our mentor advised her to apply to TiE SoCal Angels as it can help her reach out to more angel investors.Then we also had Diwakar Kumar, CEO & Founder of SiteGuide, on the show. He also presented his startup pitch mentioning how his company SiteGuide helps startups build MVPs from scratch and transform them into successful business enterprises. Next, we also had Jerrold Shapiro, President of Floelle Inc., on the show. He also presented his elevator pitch in our chat section, describing his startup and what it does along with other necessary information. Overall, it was an exciting and interactive Zoom session in which several startup founders participated and got an opportunity to practice their startup pitching exercise live on the show and get constructive feedback on the same. How to Make Your Elevator Pitch Interesting: Key Takeaways Define the Problem Every angel investor would be interested in knowing how you are addressing the customers’ pain points. You can briefly explain the problems that your customers are facing, and then you should describe how you are addressing them. If your startup idea sounds convincing and forward-looking, investors might be interested in working with you. Make Your Pitch More Impactful Angel investors don’t have too much time. From the very start, you have to captivate them with your words, body language, eye contact, and presentation. Using storytelling mode can do wonders as it helps investors connect the dots and understand your startup journey better. You can recount some of your personal experiences and use an interesting anecdote to prove your point. Highlight Essential Details Whenever you pitch your startup, you should highlight key details, including what you are up to, the features of your startup product or solution, and the sizable target market you are aiming to consolidate. Introduce Your Team As a startup founder, it’s not enough to just introduce yourself and your startup. You should also introduce your team to investors and help them know the people with whom you are working. You can highlight the academic credentials or career track records of some of your core team members. In Conclusion While presenting your elevator pitch, never rush to finish it. Instead, try to conclude your startup pitch with a strong statement clearly mentioning how much funding you are looking for and what you will do with it. It’s not easy to master startup pitching. You should practice your elevator pitch at least twice every day to ensure that it includes all essential points without any ambiguity. A typical elevator pitch can be from 30 seconds to a couple of minutes. You can practice in front of a mirror and seek valuable feedback from people whom you trust. By following these steps, you’ll be well on your way to captivating investors and leaving a lasting impression in their minds. Don’t forget that you are not alone in this startup journey of yours. Join our weekly online Startup meetups to participate in our interactive Zoom sessions and share your experience and talk with experts. Check out the Zoom calendar for our upcoming meets.
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