Pitching Your Idea -- Beyond the Basics

As a consultant who's mostly worked with larger brands, I had a bit of a learning curve when I started working with startups to pitch their ideas to investors.  So I read the articles, watched the videos, and made note of the "10 slides" every pitch needs.  And frankly, still fell on my face a few times.  It was only after a bunch of practice runs, as well as a lot of conversations with VCs and other startups, that I've felt competent enough to share some lessons I’ve learned along the way.  This is by no means the definitive list of how to pitch to a VC, but by going a little deeper than what shows up on the first two pages of a google search, I'm hoping you'll find it useful.  And while it's geared toward startups pitching VCs, most is useful for pitching ideas of any kind ... to your boss, team, peers, potential customers etc.  If you have additional suggestions, please add them in the comments or message me directly.

1. Tell A Story.  Use narrative to create an emotional connection with the audience.  Go beyond the idea and the detailed facts and make it something they can get engaged with.  The story can be about the founder, the idea / tech, and/or how lives will change because of it.  Slides are there to amplify and explain, but are not a story unto themselves.
2. Know the Audience.  While working off a (largely) standard deck, tailor each pitch to the specific VC you’re talking to, taking into account their background, where they play in the fundraising space, their knowledge about the industry / tech / etc, their history with similar offerings, and/or their perceived biases.  Do your diligence. And in the meeting, speak to them, and read their body language to tailor the pitch as appropriate – going as deep in some sections, staying high-level in others, and skimming (or skipping) things they already know.
3. Simplify.  Make it easy to understand.  Show the tech.  Do the math. Don’t use arcane jargon.  Make it easy to follow.  Fewer slides.  Fewer words.  Less complexity.  
4. Focus.  The objective of the first meeting is to get a second meeting.  It’s less about getting a “yes” than to not get a “no.”  The 2nd/3rd/4th meeting is where “I like it” may turn into “yes,” so strip it down to the core elements that are needed for that particular meeting.  If there are add’l questions, you can always discuss more (and have extra slides in the back pocket if needed).   
5. Think Opportunity, Not Problem.  Solving problems is helpful, but has limited upside growth, while opportunities can be boundless.  And opportunities tend to leverage positive language, which lifts a room up (while negative language can bring it down).  Think about the upside -- Better Experience.  Happy Users / Customers.  More Sales.  Lower Costs.  More Profits.  Etc, etc, etc.
6. Us, Not Them.  Depending on the audience (see #2 above), it’s ok to reflect (respectfully) on companies / competitors who have come before, but keep the conversation focused on you, and your differentiation, not them and their shortcomings.  Too much talk about others just surfaces risk and uncertainty (and loses focus a la #4 above).
7. Now is the Time.  Create a sense of timeliness and urgency.  Explain why this is an idea that makes sense now, why it couldn’t have been done before, e.g consumers weren’t ready, the tech didn’t exist, it needs the scale of the cloud, etc.  
8. Investors Want Returns.  VCs may want to change the world, but their business is based on ROI -- giving a company $X Million with the goal of receiving $YYY Million back.  An exit requires a transaction – add’l fundraising rounds, M&A, IPO, etc.  VCs are often more reluctant to back companies that claim to only need 1 round before they’re done raising money.  It doesn’t mean it’s not a good business (in fact, it might be better), but it could mean that it’s better suited as a lifestyle business (and thus a loan) rather than a high-growth venture-backable business.  
9. Growth Over Profits.  To get returns, VCs want to see growth, which drives increased valuations.  This requires aggressive topline goals.  Think stretch not sandbag. From a profitability perspective, it's essential to understand the business model (and know how profits will happen), and even better if the business can achieve profitable unit economics, allowing profitability to become a "choice."  But near-term profitability may be more of a turn-off than a turn-on.  As one VC said to me, “if you're projecting profitability in 18 months, you’re not thinking big enough.”  
10. People More Than Ideas.  Product (the idea); the market; the business model are binary – table stakes.  They are boxes that must be checked, but ultimately VCs are placing bets on people, not ideas, and intangibles play a big role.  And the people factor is amplified the earlier you are in the lifecycle. 

And probably most important, remember that as a venture-backed startup, multiple rounds of financing is the norm (and so is hearing "no" -- a lot -- along the way).  Cultivating investors is as much about the relationship as it is the transaction. It's a long-term process, and a “no” could really mean "not now."  As the opportunity allows, build and maintain relationships with investors.  Connect with them; share updates; send them betas to look at; talk to them at conferences & events.  You’ll be back in the market sooner than you think (for more money, with a new idea, at a new company), and it’s good to have a network to start with when the time comes.

ps.  Oh yeah, and don't misspell "analysis" when writing on the board :-)