WalletWise

"13 Tips on How to Deliver a Pitch Investors Simply
Can't Turn Down" (Part 2)
__Be laser-focused.
Many of you asked me this week to say a bit more
about "pitching," including what the word really means.
For an entrepreneur, a "pitch" is what you say and
present to potential investors to market yourself, your
idea and your business concept -- not just to inspire
them to invest, but to rush to be first in the queue!
Like I said before, our great reality shows on Kwesé
Inc are now the best place for African entrepreneurs to
see and hear from the best of the best in the world on
this topic... and also watch people who "fail" to get
investment (which is the majority). You can learn a lot
from them, too!
Today though, in response to your requests, let me
share the first of three parts of an excellent article
from Entrepreneur magazine, written by Neil Patel, a
young entrepreneur who gave me permission to
republish it (remember the importance of intellectual
property). It's called: "13 Tips on How to Deliver a
Pitch Investors Simply Can't Turn Down." Today I'll
share #1 thru #4.
I urge you to study and discuss each of these tips with
your friends. You can also use them to assess the
pitches and business approaches made by others on
Kwesé Inc shows like Shark Tank, Adventure Capitalist
and The Profit, because it will help you understand
what it takes to secure funding from investors, when
you get your chance. It's important not to treat such
shows as mere entertainment because they're there to
help you sharpen your skills!
Neil Patel's "13 Tips" are excellent, and I will republish
them all. But let me give you the most important tip of
all: Securing funding from investors who require you to
make a pitch, is won or lost long before you arrive to
make your pitch!
__It's going to be decided by the PREPARATIONS you
make in the months and weeks leading up to that
pitch.
In his article, Neil writes:
"Your pitch is the single thing that could either get
your business off the ground or plunge your idea into
eternal oblivion. It matters.
The rule of thumb for investors is that for every 100
investments they make, only 10 will go big.
Let me take that rule of thumb a step further. For
every 1,000 pitches an investor hears, he or she will
fund only 100 of them. Statistically, the odds for
success are not great. You can beat the statistics,
however, by crafting a pitch that turns heads and gets
funded.
What are the ingredients of an ultra-compelling,
irresistible, outstanding, and unforgettable pitch?
1. Take only ten minutes.
Timing is critical. The less time your pitch takes, the
better.
A brilliant idea means nothing unless you can distill it
to a few moments of sheer power. The more concise
you can be, the more effective you will be. Here are a
few timing pointers:
# If you say that you’ll take “only X minutes,” then take
at least one minute less.
# If you are told, “You only have X minutes to pitch,”
then take at least five minutes less.
# If you say, “One last thing” or something similar, then
make sure it’s truly the
one last thing.
# Move at a good pace. Don’t rush at the end.
# If you’re using slides, don’t get stuck on one slide for
more than three minutes.
Here’s the great thing about taking ten minutes. If the
investors are really interested, they’ll ask questions. If
they’re not interested, then you will have saved them
(and yourself) some time.
2. Turn your pitch into a story.
Storytelling is a scientifically-proven way to capture a
listener’s attention and hold it. Besides, it makes your
pitch unforgettable.
Investors are bored with spreadsheets, valuations and
numbers. If they want that information, they can get it.
What you can offer that no term sheet can convey is
the story and pathos behind your startup. Everyone
loves a good story, even the most data-driven investor.
So, tell your story and tell it right. You're bound to gain
attention, and the funding will follow.
3. Be laser-focused.
Investors' time is their most valuable asset. If you
convey a respect for their time, they will interpret that
respect as your ability to treat their funding with
respect.
Because time is important, you need to develop an
absolute focus on the core components of your pitch.
What are those core components? They're detailed in
the following tips.
4. Explain EXACTLY what your product or service is.
Show your potential investors a picture of, or give them
the actual product to handle.
Be careful not to drone endlessly on about your
product. Honestly, investors don’t really care about
your product as much as they care about the money
that your product will make. The sooner you get to the
good stuff -- the money -- the better. . ."
To be continued. . .
Image credit: Nature Picture Library. African fish eagle,
Chobe River, Botswana.Copied

What is your mindset when you see a challenge?
__Always look for the "game changer" (Part 2).
Remember what I've written before about the
importance of having the right mindset? Always looking
for the game changer... that's a mindset, too!
When we were planning to set up Kwesé TV, I asked
an expert what he thought would be one of our biggest
challenges.
"Getting licenses to operate in all these countries," he
said. "Maybe we have to go to court again?"
"No, we're not going to court on this one. No need," I
said emphatically. "We will operate where we have
licenses and use the YouTube solution elsewhere."
"YouTube solution?" he asked.
"Does YouTube need a license for their TV services on
the Internet?"
"No."
"So you mean if we offered the service, through an
App, we won't need a license?" This sounded
interesting.
"Well, if it's like YouTube, the only way they can stop
us is to shut down the whole Internet."
"I see. Can we develop an App like WhatsApp?"
"How many people in Africa watch YouTube?" I asked
my team.
"Almost 20m."
"I wouldn't mind a TV service across Africa, with 20m
customers," I retorted. "This might be the game
changer we need. Let's offer our service using an App,
and let people download like YouTube."
# What is your mindset when you see a challenge?
Immediately, I got a team to start developing the
Kwesé App. You download it just like WhatsApp, and
you can watch anything, just like on YouTube! The
Kwesé App has been downloaded in almost every
African country. Every day, thousands are downloading
this App.
Now I know some of you will say to me, "But data is so
expensive!"
"Don't worry, when we started cell phones it used to be
$3/minute. It will always come down."
But if I were to answer you as an entrepreneur, rather
than as a customer, I would say: "What an opportunity
for you!"
# What is your mindset when you see a challenge?
Some young guys came to see me from a West African
country, and told me they want to build WIFI hotspots
to enable people to watch Kwesé TV, using the Kwesé
App!
"Do you have a business model for it?" I asked.
"Yes, sir!"
"Wow!"
"Can I invest?!"
Mobile operators are now lowering their data tariffs so
they can cash in on the Kwesé App. It has happened in
Rwanda after just one month. Watch what will happen
over the next two years across Africa! People will
forget that they ever watched TV on a big screen.
# What is your mindset when you see a challenge?
A friend of mine called me to say he was watching
Kwesé TV in Nigeria, on a big screen in his house!
"How?!" I asked surprised. We are not yet in Nigeria.
"Some guy bought decoders in Ghana and sold me
one," he laughed. "This is Nigeria, my friend. People
are already making money on this Kwesé of yours!"
I laughed, too. Our decoders are probably selling at
Ikeja Market, and many other markets across this
beautiful continent of ours. Be smart but don't break
the law!
# We are a continent of entrepreneurs!
About my $10,000 competition a few weeks ago, you
will find the winner in the Kwese.Com website. (Shhh,
let everyone discover for themselves!) And if you didn't
win, study what I said and wait for the next
competition. Thanks for participating.
Enjoy!

Kwesé | TV for Africa | Live Sports| Series | Movies | Kids Television | Music | Kwesé | TV for Africa - live sport, movies, series and more