You have a great idea, a solid business plan, and a passionate team. Now you need to convince potential investors to fund your venture. How can you make a lasting impression on them with your presentation skills? Here are some tips to help you stand out from the crowd and persuade them to invest in your vision.
Before you design your presentation, do some research on your target investors. What are their backgrounds, interests, goals, and pain points? What are they looking for in a startup? How can you tailor your message to fit their needs and expectations? By knowing your audience, you can craft a presentation that speaks to them personally and professionally, and shows that you understand their perspective and value proposition.
I highly recommend everyone look into the Donor Cycle for philanthropy because it teaches so much about getting repeat investors and donors. By the time of your presentation you should have already gone through the identification and qualification stage. Your presentation should be used to cultivate interest and eventually an offer.
This is the first and the most important point to start. Your audience would like you to know who they are, what they've achieved and most importantly, what is their next achievement. This is your time to present the solution to help them achieve more.
Investors are not just looking for facts and figures. They want to hear a compelling story that shows why your idea matters, how it solves a problem, and what impact it will have. A story can help you connect with your audience emotionally, create a memorable impression, and make your pitch more engaging and persuasive. To tell a good story, use a clear structure, a catchy hook, a relatable protagonist, a relevant conflict, and a satisfying resolution. Show how your idea came to life, what challenges you faced, how you overcame them, and what results you achieved or expect to achieve.
Your presentation should make your investors feel like they’re going to be a part of something bigger. Bonus if you can tell your investors exactly where their dollars will go and how exactly it will impact the organization.
Visuals can be an effective way to make your presentation more attractive, informative, and memorable. They can help illustrate points, simplify complex concepts, and highlight key data. However, visuals can also be distracting or confusing if they are not well-designed, relevant, and consistent. To ensure you use visuals effectively, strive for high-quality images, graphs, charts, or icons that support your message and fit your brand identity. Avoid cluttering slides with too much text, colors, or animations; instead use white space, contrast, and alignment to create a clear and professional layout. Additionally, keep visuals simple, clear, and easy to read by using fonts, sizes, and labels that are legible and consistent. Incorporate colors, shapes, and symbols that are meaningful and appropriate. Lastly, align your visuals with your verbal delivery to match the tone, style, and pace of your presentation. Utilize transitions, cues, and pointers to guide your audience's attention and focus.
Visuals are one of the best ways to share a story, it allows your listeners to see your idea. It's also a fun way to get people involved, participate and vision. People relate to images, moments, and memories, therefore to make a lasting impression on investors using visuals in your presentation, prioritize simplicity, relevance, and consistency in your design is a great approach. Using clear data visualization, engaging images, infographics to convey your message effectively and pictures helps to deliver your idea.
During your presentation you should “speak into” your visuals as they aid greatly in your storytelling. When I say speak into your visuals I mean using your words to lead into the next image before you click into it. For example, saying “our company has helped kids in 70+ receive 3 meals daily.” That’s nice, but not very interesting. “Your investment will be used to help kids around the world receive meals native to their culture such as (next slide) Kroppkakor in Sweden (next slide) Blini in Russia (next slide) Ossobuco in Italy (next slide) in 70+ countries.” That’s more interesting and helps the investor visualize the impact of their investment.
No matter how great your content and visuals are, if you don't deliver them well, it won't matter. Your presentation skills can make or break your pitch, so it's important to practice and rehearse them until you feel confident and comfortable. To help you improve your delivery, try practicing your presentation out loud in front of a mirror, a camera, or a friend. Record yourself and watch or listen to your performance to identify your strengths and weaknesses. Rehearse in a similar setting as the real one so that you can familiarize yourself with the equipment, the room, the time limit, and the audience size. Anticipate any questions, objections, or technical issues that may arise. Additionally, pay attention to polishing your presentation skills such as your voice, body language, eye contact, gestures, and facial expressions. Use your voice to convey enthusiasm, clarity and authority. Use body language to show confidence and rapport. Use eye contact to connect with the audience and maintain their attention. Utilize gestures and facial expressions to emphasize points and express emotions.
Your presentation is not a one-way communication; it is a conversation with your audience. To engage and interact with them, start your presentation with a hook to grab their attention and spark their curiosity. Ask open-ended questions, polls, or surveys to invite their opinions, experiences, or insights. Use stories, examples, or testimonials that relate to their situations, challenges, or goals. Show them how your idea can benefit them or solve their problems. Throughout or at the end of your presentation, encourage feedback, comments, or questions. Address them politely and confidently and thank them for their input. By following these tips you can make a lasting impression on investors and convince them to support your venture. Remember, your presentation is not only about what you say but also how you say it; so be prepared, be clear, be confident, and be yourself.
Define timelines based on reasoning, rather than arbitrary numbers In your presentation, reason and justify your proposed timelines. A simple act, but goes a long way in building interest and creating faith.
R&D Manager | Multi-Disciplinary Innovator | Driving Novel Systems & Product Development
Ask yourself if you truly believe in the story you are presenting. If not, why that’s the case. Then go back, revise your assumptions, ideas, application, business case, etc to uncover the root(s) of your doubts. Once you are 100% convinced (in a good way) about your story, then present it. Now, it will flow more natural while projecting a mature/confident message.