Are You Pitching Your Business Naked?
You are if you don’t have a business plan first. Seriously: how can you boil it down to the core if you don’t know your basic strategy such as your identity, market, and focus? How can you set a scale to it without some idea of reasonable expectations in sales? How can you possibly talk...
By Tim Berry
10 Things to Know Before You Pitch to a VC
This is a TED talk, just released on the TEDblog yesterday, although it was recorded last year. David Rose presents it as 10 things you need to know before you pitch your plan to a venture capitalist. I think it’s more universal than just pitching to venture capitalists; it applies just as well to talking...
By Tim Berry
Using Video to Pitch Your Business Plan
I met with Emmett Kilduff, Founder & CEO of London based cmypitch.com [see my pitch]last week. Cmypitch.com is an online community for entrepreneurs and business owners. It has a focus on using video as a means for entrepreneurs to engage with prospective investors, and relevant service providers. This trend towards the use of video was...
By Alan Gleeson
Where’d You Get That Idea?
Imagine yourself in a conference room, presenting your business plan to potential investors. How do you answer the question: “Where’d you get that idea?” This comes to my mind today because of a post I read yesterday on Ask the VC. An e-mailer asked what it means when investors ask that question: Are they looking...
By Tim Berry
Business Plan Presentations Are a Bad Idea
Now that I have your attention, let me explain. OK, maybe you do need to create a presentation to go with your business plan. You’re looking for investors or competing for venture prizes, perhaps. Don’t do a business plan presentation. Instead, do a presentation, start to finish, about your business. The plan is one thing,...
By Tim Berry
Everyone’s a Critic
I’ve been doing some research lately on creating *good* PowerPoint presentations, particularly presentations for business plan pitches and also presentations to help teach business planning. What I’ve found is a lot of critics. Everyone knows what bad PowerPoint looks like. Everyone can point to a million bad presentations. From Seth Godin and his “really bad...
By Noah Parsons
