

TED: David S. Rose on pitching to VCs - kleevr
http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/david_s_rose_on_pitching_to_vcs.html

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delano
These are my notes from the first 5 minutes (the rest is worth watching too):

Single most important thing that a VC is looking for when you're pitching to
them: you, the people. The entire purpose of a VC pitch is to convince them
that you will make them money. Angel pitch takes 15 mins, VC pitch, less than
30. You have to convey around 10 characteristics.

#1 Integrity.

#2 Passion

#3 Experience. "I've done this before.", where this means creating value. That
can be starting a company, other teams or organizations, etc...

#4 Knowledge.

#5 Skill. Technical skills, marketing skills.

#6 Leadership. You either have the team that has these skills or the ability
to inspire people to be part of your team.

#7 Commitment. Someone that will be there to the very end.

#8 Vision. Don't want a me-too company. You need to see where it's going.

#9 Realism. Before you get to change the world bad things are going to take
place and you need to be able to plan for that and have rational projections.

#10 You can Listen. You need to be coachable. The VC has experience and they
want to know you're willing to listen to it.

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rantfoil
Additional piece of advice: Pitch to lots of people who have not seen the
pitch before. You've seen the material a billion times! And you know it
backwards and forwards... but the downside is that it can be unclear what is a
logical step and what's an impossible leap. Pitching to friends who don't know
what you're doing is the best way to improve.

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DenisM
I noticed that some VCs insist on knowing your background (like this one)
while some say (like Kawasaki) says that they couldn't care less about you and
only care about the problem and solution.

The funny thing is that both are very patronizing about it, as if theirs is
the only true way.

~~~
davidsrose
If a VC cares only about the problem and solution, what does that say about
how much they want to invest in YOU? Not much. Most early stage investors
(like me) have no choice but to 'bet the jockey, not the horse', because we
are betting on YOU to take something that barely exists and go to the ends of
the earth to make something of it.

In a later stage deal, such as a private equity acquisition, we're investing
in the existing company: its cash flow, operations, customers, etc. The CEO is
less important, because we can get rid of him/her if necessary and put someone
else in. Is that the way you'd like us to think of YOUR deal?

~~~
DenisM
All I ask is to be easy on the poor entrepreneur about his choice of {himself,
subject} because he can't read your mind. :)

Myself, I'm not sure I prefer invetment in me or my idea. There are pros and
cons both ways.

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Frocer
I am surprised that David encourage you not to demo the product and just show
a screenshot... if I were an investor, I'd like to see what I am investing in.

It also go against all the other recommendations I have read -- they usually
recommend demo your product early if you have it.

~~~
davidsrose
My [very strong] advice is not to do a live demo DURING YOUR POWERPOINT PITCH.
You'll absolutely need to do a demo at a later point (perhaps even immediately
following your pitch presentation), but what we're talking about here is a
very specific piece of performance art: a carefully-tuned, 15-20 minute
presentation which is usually presented in front of a group (either a formal
group of angels, or a smaller group of VCs). For this presentation, you want
as much control as possible, where NOTHING can go wrong.

You can deliver 200% of the value of a live demo in a CANNED demo (or screen
shots of a demo). There is no time spent moving between screens, no chance
that a bad connection or temporary glitch will make you look like an idiot, no
chance that Murphy's Law will rear its ugly head.

Think of this as one of the [very important] communications pieces in your
arsenal. You'll also need an elevator pitch (60 seconds, max, no slides), a
business plan (so you know what your business is all about), an executive
summary (which is what the investor usually reads), handouts to leave behind
after your presentation (these are NOT your slides!), and, increasingly these
days, a short (5 minute) video, which can be uploaded to the angel's or
investor's web site if you're asked to submit your materials that way.

