Every Company Needs a Good Map

Last night I went to an event that usually recharges my batteries with entrepreneurial enthusiasm - a Business Pitch contest. For the most part, The 50+ presenters underwhelmed me. It is not easy to pitch a business. It gets more difficult when the time is limited. This contest is a 30 second pitch. That is the time you might have in an elevator to get someone interested in your business. It is very difficult. In my opinion, most of the presenters did not do well.

Why:about

• Most were nervous
• Many read their pitches from cards, papers or brochures
  
• A few walked off when they could not remember their memorized pitch
• Only a couple spoke with enthusiasm 

I suppose the number one criterion for me is when evaluating a presentation: Do I feel like I am excited about having that service, product, or solution, in my life?

What is wrong with each of the aforementioned issues, and how do you solve them...

(The picture is me in the Angels' bullpen - learning to pitch from a pro. I had no idea that I was doing it wrong. Once he told me the secret; drive with your legs. Once I made that change, you could hear the ball pop in the catcher's glove - the difference is amazing.)

Nervousness has several problems.

1. Conveys lacking skills: experience, presentation, leadership, or preparation
   
2. Undermines the message: people focus more on you than the subject
3. Betrays conviction: you must not love it enough to shout about it
   

Reading the pitch:

1. This does not convey lacking skills, it proves it
2. Proves lack of knowledge about the company, product, or service
3. Reading is terrible form. It is only 30 seconds, you have to be able to fill 30 seconds
   

Walking off:

1. No one is perfect but bold execution of a sketchy idea usually beats timidly presenting a well thought out plan.
2. It is only 30 seconds but it leaves a lasting impression
3. Who wants to fund a leader that runs from a challenge?
   

Enthusiasm:

1. If you don't like it why should I?
2. Everyone discounts the numbers, claims, and enthusiasm of founders by 50% (at least). Why give a low-ball level of feeling that will be cut in half?
3. Public speaking is difficult for many (not for me) and so you have to overcompensate for the fear you may feel. Rarely is a person faulted for presenting with too much feeling, unless it is false or the data are seriously flawed.
   

Very few entrepreneurs start a company where they do not believe that what they will be selling, providing, or servicing does not have value. That value is not always obvious to others. Investors like to hear about the PAIN, the VOID, or the DEMAND that this new company will solve, fill, or meet. This is the "thing" that causes people to want that thing in their life.

There are many needs hierarchies; I like Maslow's (see chapter 8 of Maps for Modern Magellans) 8 levels. As you work to build a business, focus on what needs you meet. Start at the bottom and move up. The more basic the need the easier it can be to convey that your company meets that need.

Thirty seconds is not much time. The best thing to do in a short time is to create interest to know more. Strike a chord, a nerve, or a vein but don't go for broke. Go for the next step. Guy Kawasaki, on page 59 of his book, The Art of the Start, talks about building the fantasy. That is: get them to see the vision. People will want to know more, once they see why. If they don't see why this is valuable then they move on in their heads and after that you just get annoying.

What number of practice pitches, test pitching, and pitching is needed to get really good at it? 

BTW - I wrote about this once before: Elevator Pitching, in case you would like to read more of my opinions on the subject. I used the same picture for that post too.