VCs and Angel Investors have been long in the game of investment and have seen so many failures as well as successes.
It is not out of place to say that they may know when a business may end up as a failure or success even before they begin to pitch.
This is owing to the fact that they have experienced losses and successes, by far they know more about what you are bringing to the table, especially if you are a first time founder or entrepreneur.
Hence, it is advisable to start thinking like a VC even before pitching your business to them, begin by putting yourself in their shoes, view things from their own side of the table especially with the understanding that no one wishes to risk all to gain nothing in the end.
Here are 5 things to avoid when pitching to investors so as not to appear unprepared, naive and inexperienced before them.
Not Pitching the Right Investor
There is an investor for every startup, not all investors are interested in your kind of business, so do not make the mistake of pitching the wrong investor. It is important to make necessary research about the investor you intend to pitch, know the kind of businesses they invest in, their interest and what motivates them.
Pitching your business or startup to the wrong investor would be a waste of time and effort.
Freestyle Presentation
Pitching to investors is different from any other type of presentation. It is not some place you go to unprepared or sparingly dressed.
After months and months of waiting, you finally get the opportunity to pitch to an investor who might be interested in investing in your startup, there is every likelihood of excitement.
Also read, 7 Ways to make a perfect Pitch
Sometimes, the excitement could be your undoing because it could tamper with whatever you intend to present.
If at all there is something you must not do, never reduce your pitch presentation to a freestyle.
Be sure to have done your assignment before appearing before the investors; prepare your presentation, rehearse, record, you may even ask close relatives to score you when you make the presentation before them.
Know it like the back of your hand, do not make a mistake of replacing facts with guesses as it may water down your presentation.
Don’t Overlook Facts
Remembering your pitch is one thing, but how accurate it is, is another. If at any point of your pitch you happened to forget a salient point, rather than replace it with just anything, it is better you leave it be.
You might have succeeded in ‘wowing’ the investor, but if upon going through the material you present to them, they find something amiss or not accurate, then your image is tarnished and you have lost the investment opportunity.
Hence, it is expedient to know your facts, be familiar with them and be sure not to mix them up. Never overlook the facts in your pitch, it might cost you more than you could ever imagine.
Image Projection
As much as it is important to sell yourself and your business to an investor, it would be wrong to over do it. The time given usually is a short one, so it might seem impossible to impress your would be investor at such a short time, hence you are a bit anxious.
There is no need to be anxious, be sure to say your salient points in a very calm way while following a pattern and answer whatever questions may be thrown at you, that is how to impress them. Do not over sell your business, because they surely know when you are on a path to doing that and it is a turn off.
Conciseness
Go straight to your points and drive home your points in the shortest time possible. Investors are likely busy persons, long conversations could be a bore or time waste. It is therefore advisable to employ briefness while trying as much as possible to converse vital information.
If your pitch is too long, you bore your audience. Avoid making the whole process too long.
Putting the above into consideration would definitely steer you on the way to a perfect pitch.
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