Page 20 - Start Up_Genesis

Marketing and Sales
As you market your business pitch, you must know the needs of your
investors, ensure you are able to meet those needs and bring value to the
table. Through your pitch, you are introducing your services to potential
clients and investors who know nothing about you. You need to convince
them to consider your business.

Competition
Every business has its competition, even the businesses that are not yet
born- their competition is already being developed somewhere. You must
list down your competitors and detail why your products/services are
different from theirs.

Business Module
Every investor who finds himself interested in a business always wants
to get his money back unless they are a philanthropist looking for social
impact as opposed to a return on investment. It is important to show
investors how you plan to regenerate your revenue. You should show your
list of various revenue streams and the timeline for each of them. How
will you price your products and what does your competition charge? You
must discuss the timeline value of customers and how you will keep them
engaged.

Financing
If you have already raised money, which I believe should really be the
case, you will now want to talk about how much, who invested and
what you did with it. If you haven’t raised capital yet, talk about what
you have accomplished with the minimal funding you had. If you have
personally funded your own startup, make it known. Investors like to see
entrepreneurs who have invested their own resources. If you are pitching
to raise capital, how much are you are looking to collect and how do you
intend to use the funds?

Other Points for Your Presentation
Always be ready for questions. Learn about your audience and anticipate
their own passion. Here are two talking points to get your investors
engaged and interested:
1. Include any press you have received on a backup slide.
2. List companies that sell similar products or services to yours and
come up with a strategy to beat them. This is how you gain competitive
advantage.
How you present your pitch to potential investors will determine whether
or not you impress them. The type of material and information you provide
must be detailed and concise. To practice, get in front of your family and
friends, present your pitch to them and accept feedback, no matter how
negative. Perfect your skill in pitching before you get in front of strangers.
Remember that they may not care much for you as an individual but are
interested in your products or services. Don’t sell yourself short.
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