Monique Giggy, who runs all our startup programs (SU Ventures) here at Singularity University keeps putting our founders on the spot by continuously asking them to explain their business in front of her and their peers.
As (sometimes) obnoxious this might seem (and feel for our founders) — it is of fundamental importance for one simple reason: You often get only one shot at explaining your business to someone who might hold the keys to your success. Open weak, fumble through a bad pitch, take too long to get to the point (or maybe never get there) or don’t bottom line it in a concise manner and your chance to partner, sell or get funding might evaporate in a matter of seconds.
Don’t take it from me, take it from a master: Kevin Starr, director of the Mulago Foundationrequires his portfolio companies to describe their mission in eight (concise) words or less (here is how).
Getting your pitch down to a carefully crafted masterpiece generating the impact you want to see in the world is hard work — and more than anything it requires endless iterations which you test and test again. Which is the reason Monique insists on our founders giving her their pitch over and over again.
When have you last practiced your pitch? And how did it go?