Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 10, 2010

An "elevator pitch" is a concise, well-practiced description of your startup and your plan, delivered with conviction and enthusiasm, that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator. A good elevator pitch is not just for an elevator discussion.

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Elevator Pitch Startup Distribution Channel 233

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 9, 2021

As a mentor to startups and new entrepreneurs, I continue to hear the refrain that business plans are no longer required for a new startup, since investors never read them anyway. Pitch your company, not your product. Written business plan. Successful startups are all about the right people with the right stuff.

Elevator Pitch 390

Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur Due Diligence Angel Investor 390

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 17, 2013

Additionally, you need to be able to communicate the essence that story and value to investors in a couple of sentences – your elevator pitch. After a good elevator pitch or initial presentation, investors will ask for your formal business plan and financial projections. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 265

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 265

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 27, 2020

As an aspiring entrepreneur, one of the most important things you need is a memorable “ elevator pitch ,” to communicate your startup value proposition and leave a great first impression on friends, investors, employees, and future customers. I recommend that a good elevator pitch is not just for riding with someone in an elevator.

Elevator Pitch 317

Elevator Pitch Intellectual Property Cost Technology 317

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2019

I recommend a ten-slide pitch to start, reviewed by friends and advisors, to be expanded to a ten-to-twenty-page business plan with opportunity sizing, cost and price details, competitors, marketing and sales strategy, financial projections, and resources required. Make sure your solution is defensible and unique.

Intellectual Property 235

Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch Harvest Technical Review 235

Up and Running

NOVEMBER 13, 2012

Whether you are trying to raise money for your business or just want to perfect your business strategy, a solid elevator pitch is an essential tool for achieving your goals. An elevator pitch can be delivered either verbally, ideally in 60 seconds or less, or as a one-page overview of your business.

Elevator Pitch 166

Elevator Pitch Forecast Oregon Differentiation 166

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 15, 2018

This should be obvious, but much of what passes for “a story” these days are things like elevator pitches or product descriptions that have no characters at all. It’s even acceptable to make up a place with a “what if.” Every story needs a main character. How prepared are you to tell your best story?

Elevator Pitch 211

Elevator Pitch Technical Review Boston Sales 211

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 10, 2012

Additionally, you need to be able to communicate the essence that story and value to investors in a couple of sentences – your elevator pitch. After a good elevator pitch or initial presentation, investors will ask for your formal business plan and financial projections. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 250

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur 250

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 20, 2016

In my angel investor mode, I often find myself flipping to the “management” section of a business plan, even before I read the solution description and opportunity. It starts with having a vision and an ability to get the message across in your elevator pitch, in a written business plan and one-on-one with potential investors.

Sweat Equity 152

Sweat Equity Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Software Review 152

Startup Professionals Musings

AUGUST 9, 2011

Additionally, you need to be able to communicate the essence that story and value to investors in a couple of sentences – your elevator pitch. After a good elevator pitch or initial presentation, investors will ask for your formal business plan and financial projections. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 246

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Early Stage 246

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 30, 2020

Develop an “elevator pitch” as an initial path to your goal. An elevator pitch is a problem-solution summary that anyone can understand in a sixty-second ride up to their office in an elevator. By the way, you now have an viable business plan – which puts you well on your way from a dream to business success.

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Elevator Pitch Incubator Matching Business Plan 347

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 2, 2012

After struggling to create your business plan for months, every entrepreneur likes to think that their document is inspirational and will reach someone who is smart enough to see the brilliance of the idea, intuitive enough to recognize their business acumen, and enthusiastic enough to offer the money required to make it happen.

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Elevator Pitch Technical Review Business Plan .Net 244

Startup Professionals Musings

FEBRUARY 13, 2022

They approach key potential investors way too early, trying to talk their way up the hill, with no supporting business plan, and before they have a support team around them. Keep your big guns, the business plan and financial model, in your holster but visible for backup. Napkins don’t really work as your business plan.

Elevator Pitch 316

Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Venture Capital Business Plan 316

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 22, 2013

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. The reality is that angel investors are humans, and personal traits often make or break the relationship, even before the investment is considered. Listens before answering questions.

Technical Review 273

Technical Review Intellectual Property Angel Investor Elevator Pitch 273

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2020

As an advisor to new hardware entrepreneurs, I often hear the myth that a business plan is no longer required to find an investor, if your idea is good enough. You may have heard that venture capitalists in Silicon Valley no longer read business plans. Description of the business entity you plan to form.

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Business Plan Product Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 423

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 20, 2021

Don’t do cold calls or email blasts of your resume and business plan to potential investors. Don’t send your unfinished business plan unsolicited to every VC or investment group you can find on the Internet, just to see if they like the concept. Don’t forget your enthusiasm, and have fun, but remember your manners!

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Accredited Investor Elevator Pitch Entrepreneur SEC 357

Startup Professionals Musings

MARCH 18, 2012

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. The reality is that angel investors are humans, and personal traits often make or break the relationship, even before the investment is considered. Listens before answering questions.

Technical Review 294

Technical Review Intellectual Property Angel Investor Elevator Pitch 294

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 10, 2020

Over the past 20+ years, as an angel investor, former venture capitalist and private equity investor, and serial entrepreneur, I have seen and written, a wide variety of pitch decks and business plans. Beyond discussing facing adversity and overcoming obstacles, many of them have shared their business plans with me.

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Business Plan Elevator Pitch Equity Private Equity 124

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 7, 2013

Here are some key action items that may give your business some visibility: Start with an investment-grade business plan. This means build a plan that hits all the hot buttons; problem/solution, executive team, competition, business model, reasonable financial projections, and what’s in it for the investor.

Venture Capital 252

Venture Capital IPO Elevator Pitch Initial Public Offering 252

Startup Professionals Musings

NOVEMBER 4, 2011

They must amplify your “elevator pitch” to investors, as well as key points from the business plan and the financial model. Prepare an investment-grade business plan. Every entrepreneur needs a professional business plan for their own use, whether they intend to seek investor funding or not.

Intellectual Property 249

Intellectual Property Angel Investor Technical Review Elevator Pitch 249

Startup Professionals Musings

JUNE 26, 2015

Few investors these days have the time or patience to read a full business plan, so a better way to catch their eye is with a tightly written and well formatted two-page executive summary. I see too many executive summaries that are simply heavy-duty customer pitches, or lightweight visions of the future.

Intellectual Property 120

Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch Angel Investor Technical Review 120

Up and Running

MARCH 31, 2021

In fact, right now there are three crucial areas of business that are capable of withstanding that first elevator pitch: healthcare, technology, and education. These are sectors of small business that are in high demand. . Start your business now, get to know your industry, and research the history.

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Small Business Angel Investor Technical Review Elevator Pitch 116

Startup Professionals Musings

JULY 3, 2010

Additionally, you need to be able to communicate the essence that story and value to investors in a couple of sentences – your elevator pitch. After a good elevator pitch or initial presentation, investors will ask for your formal business plan and financial projections. Lack of clear objectives/goals.

Software Review 239

Software Review Due Diligence Elevator Pitch Startup 239

Up and Running

SEPTEMBER 15, 2014

Don’t think for a minute that any serious investor would ever read a summary memo, or watch a pitch, much less read a business plan, when it looks like it’s being sent in bulk to multiple investors. That idea dates back to the 1980s when people imagined that VCs were looking at business plans coming in unsolicited.

Software Review 124

Software Review Due Diligence Venture Capital Elevator Pitch 124

Up and Running

MARCH 30, 2015

Here’s how I sort through these different terms, in the context of angel investment, business planning, and business plan competitions. The business pitch. When I say pitch or business pitch I mean the short presentation startup founders make for angel investors or venture capitalists.

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Elevator Pitch Lean Oregon Angel Groups 60

Both Sides of the Table

MAY 28, 2018

There’s a quick litmus-test conversation any early-stage VC will have with the founder and it’s one that you should be as prepared for as your elevator pitch. Let me check my plan.” So it’s incumbent on you to know what a smart business plan and use of cash looks like. Founder: “$250k / month.” Annoying, I know.

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Burn Rate Valuation Pre-Money Valuation Dilution 247

Up and Running

APRIL 11, 2011

They call it the elevator speech, or elevator pitch, and it’s a good exercise. I was there last Thursday to hear these two pitches , two of the best from 16 one-minute pitches at the University of Oregon’s New Venture Championship. Tim is the originator of plan-as-you-go business planning.

Elevator Pitch 73

Elevator Pitch Oregon Cofounder Business Plan 73

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 9, 2012

Modern investors love to first read a two-page summary of your business plan, formatted like a glossy marketing collateral sheet, with text well laid out in columns and sidebars, and a couple of relevant graphics. This one had better grab their attention, or they won’t look further.

Business Plan 244

Business Plan Elevator Pitch Viral Lead Generation 244

Startup Professionals Musings

APRIL 7, 2023

They will look to your business plan for cash flows and specific return on investment projections. In all cases, your goal must be to explain how the investment will help you scale up the business and become more profitable sooner. These must remain focused on scaling the business.

Elevator Pitch 228

Elevator Pitch Salary Angel Investor Viral 228

Startup Professionals Musings

OCTOBER 27, 2010

I’ve noticed that some entrepreneurs seem to have no trouble attracting investors, while others with a great business plan struggle with it. The reality is that angel investors are humans, and personal traits often make or break the relationship, even before the investment is considered. Listens before answering questions.

Angel Investor 241

Angel Investor Technical Review Intellectual Property Elevator Pitch 241

Growthink Blog

AUGUST 13, 2013

And, as you might imagine, I''ve spent a lot of time discussing business plans and strategic plans internally. Enough so that among other things, I use the acronym "BP" for business plans and "SP" for strategic plans. Elevator Pitch An elevator pitch is a brief description of your business.

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Business Plan Elevator Pitch Conversion Metrics 107

Up and Running

JUNE 21, 2012

If you’ve been putting off writing your business plan, you are not alone. Writing a business plan can seem like a daunting task and an easy one to avoid. An easy way to start is with a one-page business plan. Business Model (how you make money). But, it doesn’t have to be. Your Solution.

Business Plan 167

Business Plan Elevator Pitch Business Model Customer 167

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 4, 2020

Unfortunately, most elevator pitches, product descriptions, and marketing messages are abstract, and include no characters at all. Don’t expect your storytelling to be a substitute for basic business plan content, including competitive analyses and financials. Weave a real person throughout your message.

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Elevator Pitch Restful Audience Technology 363

Startup Professionals Musings

SEPTEMBER 23, 2010

They must amplify your “elevator pitch” to investors, as well as key points from the business plan and the financial model. Prepare an investment-grade business plan. Every entrepreneur needs a professional business plan for their own use, whether they intend to seek investor funding or not.

Angel Investor 224

Angel Investor Intellectual Property Technical Review Elevator Pitch 224

Startup Professionals Musings

JANUARY 26, 2012

An "elevator pitch" is a concise, well-practiced description of your startup and your plan, delivered with conviction and enthusiasm, that your mother should be able to understand in the time it would take to ride up an elevator. A good elevator pitch is not just for an elevator discussion.

Elevator Pitch 283

Elevator Pitch Startup Differentiation Distribution 283

Austin Startup

JANUARY 2, 2018

Whether it’s a thirty-page business plan, a ten-page pitch deck, a five-minute presentation, a one-page executive summary or a twenty-second elevator pitch, your primary goal is to answer the question, “What does your company do?”

Elevator Pitch 54

Elevator Pitch Startup Technical Review Cofounder 54

YoungUpstarts

AUGUST 25, 2019

You might have an elevator pitch prepared for your business. These terms are often confused, and tend to serve as afterthought additions to your company’s business plan. If you’re writing out a business plan, or if you have one already, you may see your vision and mission statements as unnecessary.

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Elevator Pitch PR Forecast Advertising 154