The birth of a startup and its success are determined by several factors: the product/service that is proposed, the innovative aspect of the product or service and the quality of the working team. Fundamental are also the ability to know how to best present what you offer, find investors who will believe in the project, and a good dose of luck, which is definitely the only aspect that cannot be controlled.

What the word pitch means and how to prepare a speech in a few steps

The word pitch refers to the opportunity given to a startupper to share his or her idea in a time frame ranging from 30 to 120 seconds. This is a very short time where the startupper will have to express themselves in a concise, effective and convincing manner. The primary aspect of being able to present oneself in such a short time is to reorganize the ideas through the use of the brainstorming technique and synthesizing the salient aspects through diagrams or creating conceptual maps to organize the discourse and lead the interlocutor towards one’s intent. The next step in organizing ideas is to write slides. Slides should be readable, it means that it is always necessary to pay attention that every textual element is visible, that images do not overlap the text, that the text is not too dense, even leaving some breathing space to the slides by keeping some white spaces. The slides are meant to help you present yourself; each slide should speak to a single concept. The focus should be on oral exposition.

We asked Albert Sheeler, Latino entrepreneur and founder of SINSA Cosmetics SAS, a personal care products company, 5 tips for a successful pitch

• Begin to expose by starting with the problem. Every project comes from a need. Through a well- explained reasoning you should explain what the problem is and then lead to explain how and why your idea should solve it. It can also be very effective to present a demo. A practical example will help demonstrate that indeed the startup will solve a problem and satisfy a need for someone.
• Present analysis of the market where the product or service will be located. In order to create a successful pitch it will be necessary to explain to investors all the preliminary analysis done, illustrate the uniqueness and added value of the proposed idea. Present the business plan, the marketing strategy, the analysis of competitors and how to deal with them.
• Present the financial projections for the first 3/5 years, these are the aspects that most interest investors: describe the business objectives (not only monetary), but also those that you would like to achieve in terms of market positioning and target audience. It is also useful to include a timeline and to describe the distribution of shares and try to communicate how you intend to use their investment.

• Talking about the team is an aspect that many people overlook, but in reality it is fundamental. Introducing how the idea came about and introducing who worked on the project will make the presentation less impersonal, make the passion and affinity of the team members clear.
• Include a call to action, make it clear what type of funding you need, how you would intend to distribute the funds, and be prepared to answer questions.

If you want to start your own Startup, and you need assistance, you can contact Albert Sheeler on Instagram