Are you ready to pitch your business idea in under one minute?

You have one minute. One minute to convince someone with money to give you money for your business. Have you prepared?

Rising Entrepreneurs have an opportunity to directly pitch angel investors and venture capitalists at events like the Funding Post Investor Roundtables held all over the country.  Here are some tips to make sure you arrive prepared and give your business an opportunity to get funded.

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Attending a recent Funding Post Investor Roundtable and listening to about thirty pitches, it was clear some people had prepared, maybe some people had not or maybe some were just a little nervous.

In all cases, the opportunity was presented and available to anyone who wanted to get a business idea in front of potentially interested investors (for a fee).  Entrepreneurs signed-up to pitch for either one minute or five minutes, followed by questions from the investor panel. Watching the event and speaking to both investors and entrepreneurs, here are the key tips for entrepreneurs who want to try this next.

If you have one minute:

1. Show Them the Money!

Every entrepreneur must be able to explain how the business will make money. Funders are investing in enterprises that will bring returns, fundamentally the return on their investment. Without quickly stating exactly how this will be possible, you could lose the investors’ interest.

2. Explain the Problem you are Solving

Successful entrepreneurs find gaps in the marketplace. Consumers are searching for solutions to help them with their problems. You must be able to make it clear to investors how you are filling a gap.

Even if you are creating a new version of an existing product, you must be able to explain how your vision is solving the gap created within the existing marketplace. Make the gap and the solution clear.

3. Highlight why you are the person to solve the problem

Investors may quickly recognize the business opportunity, but since they don’t know you, you have to convince them you are the best person to solve the marketplace issue. Like most people, investors want confidence around their decision based on the information you are providing.

How did you come up with the idea? Who are you working with? Do you have advisors or mentors on your team?

You can convince them your business is ready to take control of your market, because you have the ability to exploit your advantage.

4. Clearly state the name of the company

Seriously, pronounce this one word or phrase, the name of the company, clearly for future recognition.  At least investors can remember you by that name. If they hear a great pitch, but not the name of the company, you make it harder to follow-up or find you in the program, and you will miss a great opportunity.

All this in one minute?

Yes, you can make these points in under one minute, but you have to practice. Put yourself in the investors’ shoes, would you invest in you after your pitch?  If you have doubts about how you sound, imagine how the investors feel.

Here’s how to prepare to pitch to investors:

Create your response to points 1 – 4. Write out and organize your points first, without thinking about time.

Read the answers aloud. Does your response make sense? Have you stated how you will make money, the problem you will solve and why you can solve it? If yes, you have the fundamental information together, now work on getting those details under one minute.

Time your response. Use the timer on your smartphone. Turn it on as you read your response, how long is it taking?

Based on the time, edit, edit and edit again.  Cut out extraneous words. Tighten long phrases. Use everyday language. Make the message short and concise.

Keep editing until you are under one minute. You’d be surprised how much time 60 seconds really gives you. Keep re-writing until you get this right. You will get cut-off if you go over one minute so leave the extra details out of the story.

If you have five minutes, all of the above plus:

The five minute presentations featured more detailed explanations of the business, and slide decks to support the information.

5. Prepare a solid slide deck

Assume the investors are going to ask you for your pitch deck. You want to incorporate all the information from points 1 to 4, plus the details behind all those points.

But stick to clear, concise details that people can understand. If you have a technical solution and want to attract a certain type of investor, you can tailor your deck to that language. For everyone else, make your points clear and straight-forward.

Include your contact information. Do not miss a chance to put your name, company name, website, phone number, e-mail, social media sites – all this information should be in your deck. You do not have to mention it, but make sure it’s there for investors to find later.

6. Speak to your audience, not to the screen

You are pitching to the investors in front of you, not to the screen behind you. You should know the information in your deck and not need to read off the screen to make your pitch. You do not have to read the slides verbatim. Speak to each point on the slides. But address the investors directly.

Questions from Investors

 Whether you pitch for one minute or five, you may get a question from an investor, any question.

At a minimum, you must be able to answer the following questions about your business:

How your business makes money

How much money you are asking for

Why you want money at this time

Your credentials and those of your advisors and mentors

Technical details related to anything you said in the presentation

Answer as many questions as you can.  If you absolutely do not know the answer, ask the investor if you can follow-up. This is a great way to ensure ongoing contact with someone who has expressed some interest in your idea.

Questions from entrepreneurs:

Does it matter how I’m dressed?

No one mentioned the entrepreneurs’ look as a factor. You are doing the presenting, so dress how you are comfortable. It’s only one minute so the information you deliver is more valuable than your personal look.

What if I’m shy?

Put on the investors’ shoes. You have asked for their valuable time and you want money for your business. You have to be able to speak about your business. If you are terrified, you may have another person make the presentation, but investors want to hear from founders so at least be in the audience for follow-up questions or one-on-one contact.

Summary

As an entrepreneur, you want the opportunity to speak directly to investors so you can raise money for your business.

Practice your pitch to investors. You may end up attending dozens of events before you receive one dollar. Look at those presentations as an opportunity. You want the practice. You want to be able to clearly state what your business can do. You want to hear the types of questions investors will ask. And you want the exposure to as many investors as possible. So keep attending events and practicing your pitch.

Know your audience. Read the program and have an idea who will be listening to your presentation. Watch for investors who have an interest in your field or industry. Even if they do not ask you a question during the event, you can follow-up afterwards, or offer to send more detailed information.

If you’re serious about taking your business to the next level and want to reach out to investors to participate in your world-beating idea, make sure you are prepared to let them know how ready you are to work with them.

You have a great opportunity to bring your idea directly to the people who have the money to fund it, take advantage of every second you get.   Good luck!