Investment Pitch Conclusion

If you’ve followed all the steps so far you should be ready to give a presentation to real investors.

So congratulations and good luck but also realize it really shouldn’t have anything to do with luck at this point.

You’ve prepared.

There is a process you have independent validation from your own eyes and from other friends family colleagues that you’re giving your best presentation now no matter how good your presentation is investors have to say no.

99 percent of the time they get pitched all the time.

That’s okay.

At least you’ll know it’s not because you gave a poor presentation or they didn’t understand your business it just didn’t fit the profile of what they’re looking for.

That’s OK.

But also realize here’s a secret.

All great presenters it doesn’t matter if they’re entrepreneurs seeking money politicians or leaders in civic life.

Great speakers use every single speech they give as a mini focus group to make the next speech even better.

Now obviously if someone comes up to you and says Great presentation I love it my partners and I want to invest.

We’ll be drawing up term sheets and delivering it to you in the morning.

You know your speech worked.

You know your presentation was successful but quite often someone will say Hey great presentation.

Don’t think it quite meets our investment profile but thanks so much we wish you luck.

Now you don’t really know what that means.

They might be thinking wow these people are losers their idea is horrible they’ll never make any money.

You don’t really know and it’s not the investor’s job to be your presentation coach.

I would recommend you politely thank them for their time.

Thanks so much.

Hey if you don’t mind me just asking two quick questions.

What did you like about our presentation and do you have just one suggestion on where it could be improved.

Listen to both answers because there may be something you really liked an answer to a question after the presentation they really like that you move that into your presentation next time but they may also say I still just don’t understand your marketplace or I just don’t understand what would keep Google from coming into this market because it seems like such a logical product extension for that use.

That objection has a point in your next presentation doesn’t mean you’re going to go back to that same person who said no and badger that person.

But if this one investor has a concern that you didn’t address maybe others will so modify your presentation to add that concern.

A speech should grow it should develop not get longer but it should improve to use a favorite word of the high tech industry.

You should go through various iterations just like your prototype should get better your product should get better your Web site should get better.

Your new business pitch should get better and better and better.

Here’s another tip you’re giving a presentation.

I would highly recommend that one of your co-founders go with you discretely hit record on the cell phone so you can listen to it afterward.

You should listen if not watched every single pitch presentation you give because every so often there’ll be that interruption 12 minutes in where an investor asked you a question and you answered it beautifully.

You need to listen to that because it may be that that’s something you should say in the first two minutes of your presentation.

If that’s what investors are thinking so you can always learn.

You may have seen comedians do this at comedy clubs really good comedians even successful professionals will often audio record every single comedy set they do because they want to listen to see what got the laugh.

Now you’re not looking for laughs but you are looking for times where there was agreement questions concerns.

This will make your speech better and better.

So good luck with your presentation I hope you raise all the money you need more important.

I hope you build a big business because the presentation skills you use here will only help you get more clients more partners perhaps go public one day because being successful in business is quite often a whole series of successful pitches.

Good luck.