Here's the Pitch: How to Pitch Your Business to Anyone, Get Funded, and Win Clients

CHAPTER8

Pitch Materials

The Executive Summary and Pitch Deck

“Less is more.”

—Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, Architect

The Executive Summary

In our fast-paced world, investors rarely read business plans, and clients are not interested in lengthy presentations. Even if you have a great elevator pitch, most investors will ask to see your executive summary before meeting you. It's your door opener and in many cases the first impression you give to the recipient. This means it is often the most important document in the pitch process.

Less Is More, but Not Easier

An executive summary should be a two- to three-page distillation of your business plan and no more. Given that the document is a summary, it logically follows that you should ideally create it after you have completed your business plan. It's difficult to summarize what you haven't written.

Although investors tend not to read lengthy business plans, it is still worth creating one because the process of building forces you to focus on many issues that are easily overlooked when you are running at full steam trying to launch your start-up. If you have a management team, you should involve them in the creation process, as your document will be addressing all major areas of your business.

Do not make the mistake, however, of assuming ...