Funded

Chapter 6. Building the Pitch

Your pitch is the story you tell about your team, market, product, and traction. It is how you describe what you do, why it matters, and why investors should invest.

Your pitch will take a number of forms throughout the fundraising process. It includes how you present your brand online, via email, and in person.

You can’t expect your product or your numbers to speak for themselves. You need to know how to tell your story. No matter how good your company is, if your pitch is bad, you will have trouble getting funding.

Is your pitch well thought out and well designed? Are you professional? Are you able to inspire others to join you on your mission? Entrepreneurs who are good at telling their story are showing that they’re good at business and at sales, thereby increasing investor confidence in their companies.

In this chapter we will build your pitch. We will cover:

• How to clean up your brand before you start pitching

• How to build an elevator pitch for your startup

• How to build a pitch deck

Cleaning Up Your Online Brand

First, let’s talk about why your personal brand and your company’s online image matter in a fundraise. As we’ve noted, for early-stage companies, investors generally have very little information on which to base their decisions. For this reason, investors look to assess the caliber of your team and your company by taking in as many data points about you as possible.

The first things an investor will see when you contact them ...