1. Pitching To Angels
#Winning

2. Understand Your Target
Audience
•
You have the
first ninety
seconds to get
their attention.

3. • What Moves Them?
I. They are motivated by more than profit, they want to help, and be
a part of something bigger
II. They are inclined to say “no”. Your deal isn’t the only deal they are
going to see.
III.They know their industry really well, and will try to frame things in
terms of it
IV.They don’t know everything, even though they have been successful

4. Why?
• Why does your organization exist?
• What “pain point” are you solving?
• Why do you get up in the morning and go to work on a pointless start up making no money
when you are perfectly talented enough to go work in corporate America and make a nice
living?

5. Inspire Them
• Example: The Coop is a co-working space where start up companies
can come and work. Want to rent a desk here?
That doesn’t inspire, get your attention, or tell you
why. It tells you a lot of facts about “The
Coop”
What if I say: The Coop is changing the culture of “work”. Ideas
are exchanged, collaborations happen and the results
change the world. Want to rent a desk here?
See the difference?

6. Is it
• This pain point--->do a lot of people have this problem? How big is
the market?
Most people say that they are attacking an $X Billion dollar market and will get X% of it. (ho hum)
Angels Ask:
Why Aren’t You Getting It All?
In the Pitch, Show How You Can Get it All. Make Them Believe You Can
Get it ALL
Due diligence and conversation after the pitch will allow you to elucidate in finer detail about your strategy to get the market
percentage points at a time. (Your “Go To Market” strategy)
Anyone can get 2-4% of the market. It’s getting to 15% that makes your company different from everyone else.

7. How?
Talk About What You Believe
Tell them how you are going to execute your business.
Appeal to their gut-connect with them emotionally, not with facts and figures.
“People don’t buy what you do, they buy why you do it”
Facts and Figures support Gut Feel-but they are not the most crucial thing to your presentation.
Have command of them and in your backpocket. But tell everyone why no one can live
without you.
This is the part of the pitch where you begin to connect with someone in the room. This is where your relationship starts. (Be
likable, smile) This is where they begin to get a real good sense of who you are-and they follow you, instead of you
chasing them. The worm turns in this segment.
You know your business and why it exists better than anyone you will pitch to. This should give you confidence.
• People begin following you here

8. Why You?
Inspire them!
They might like your idea, but they are investing
in YOU
If they invest only in the idea, You are expendable. They will wait for someone more compelling
with a similar idea or they will pass altogether.
Have a Closing that Creates the Need For A Deeper Meeting-Don’t end
with the Numbers
Your final slide should be your company logo-The focus needs to be on
YOU
Leave them with 2-4 key points you want them to remember
most of all they should remember you

9. TIPS-- shhhhh.....keep it a secret!
• Keep it Simple. Not a lot of jargon and fancy pants terms.
Clear Slides: talk about what’s NOT on the slide-People can read.
Graphics and Charts are Easy to Understand
Use Body Language to connect, move around, nod your head when you want them to agree with
you
Get them to dream! (Inspire them) Leave some things open ended so they fill in the blank. The
Empty Suit analogy. (Create an empty suit, and they will fill it)
Clean Slides: Some Sexiness to them-not boring, but not too over the top
In the narration on execution, continually focus on why the customer needs you-not sales forecasts
Don’t speak in a monotone........

10. Online Support
• Practice Practice Practice. Don’t do this cold. Get friends to grade you.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qp0HIF3SfI4 (video you can’t miss)
pointsandfigures.com (my blog)
http://www.inc.com/guides/2010/10/how-to-pitch-to-angel-investors.html
http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2005/12/the_102030_rule.html
http://www.slideshare.net/BryanStarbuck/alliance-of-angels-pitch-deck-template
http://blog.guykawasaki.com/2006/12/the_entrepreneu.html#axzz0oDwLJTQM