Pitching is storytelling

With strong customer validation we’re ready to raise money to build our product. My current theory on pitching to ...


With strong customer validation we’re ready to raise money to build our product. My current theory on pitching to investors is that you need to first tell a good story to get them engaged, and then you can get into the weeds of the business.

To prepare my pitch, I re-read Made to Stick, a classic and one of my all-time favorite business books. What I’m finding in early feedback is that storytelling is effective, but investors are also expecting a certain format, and you can’t stray too far from that.

Interestingly enough, this concept is covered in Made to Sticka schema represents a framework of the expected. Applying this concept to startup pitches, an investor might have a schema of what they expect to see in a pitch.

The key to a successful pitch — I would deduce — is working within this schema, but then finding a compelling way to create a surprise, or something unexpected, that will capture the investor’s attention.

It’s more art than science — time to get creative and tactical — both sides of the brain!


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