Investors are the lifeblood of early stages and maturing businesses. They inject much-needed funds to fuel new projects, research, development, or hiring goals.
However, finding and winning over great investors (the sort who are supportive and won’t micro-manage business operations at the expense of progress) means that you need a great pitch.
Quality investors aren’t going to agree to put their capital into any old business. You need to be able to win them round with both the originality and viability of your business model, as well as some proof of concept or projected earnings to validate that you’re the real deal.
Investors are looking for a significant return on the investment they are making in your business. They need evidence that your business can give them that. Usually, this all starts and ends with a pitch.
A good pitch is your ticket to more conversations with investors, and it’s all you’ve got in those first initial meetings with people whose profession is to size up and decide which businesses are deserving of their money. So, how do you start?
A Numbers Game
Results should sit at the core of a pitch. Investors need to see statistics to prove that your product or service is in demand. Proof of retaining customers now and how you’ll grow your customer base in the future is important information that investors need to see.
You’ve got to prove to them that your company is hot, and only getting hotter. The art, however, is to avoid overselling and projecting future targets that you won’t be able to hit. You have to be a part of this is also being upfront about your business. Complete transparency is vital to starting an investor-business relationship on the right foot.
Think Like The Investor
A nice tactic is to do some reverse thinking as you prepare a pitch. Imagine the things that an investor might object to, or find unconvincing. It’s key to be critical here. Use professional tools and expert guides to help you. The more first-hand knowledge you can get from experts in a given field, the more confient and reliable your pitch will be.
Platforms like SeedLegals can help you create a compelling pitch page that you can share with investors via a link. They also offer expert advice on doing funding rounds and getting investor-ready.
Financial, strategic or logistical tools and guides can help you build detailed plans on what you want to do with your investment, and increase and investor’s confidence in your proposal. Investors are going to be easily attracted to a confident, well-thought-out pitch. The fewer concerns they have at the end, the better.
Networking
Brand awareness is hard to come by as a small business in a competitive industry. It’s your job to get your name out there. A pitch coming from a company that an investor has heard of before – perhaps at the type of events listed in this Verizon article, or other media sources will benefit from an established sense of familiarity.
The road to finding investment doesn’t begin and end with the ‘perfect pitch.Investors are specific about what they look for, and every investor is different. Make sure that your pitch deckgets the basics right, though (you can get some great tips from this Forbes article).
The overall goal is to present the essence of what you intend to build. Sell investors on your ambition, and belief in your product, and let your idea speak for itself (both in the pitch-deck and how you talk about it). With that in mind, you can stay true to yourself and your business – something that becomes priceless as your brand grows.
