You’ve built up your company’s profile, gone searching for investors and now you’re getting the chance to pitch. Nice work!
But here’s the catch: investors hear hundreds of pitches. So what can you do to make sure you absolutely nail yours and win that investment?
We’ve asked founders and investors about the most common mistakes they see during pitches so you know exactly what NOT to do.
1. Don’t forget about your elevator pitch
It’s easy to focus so hard on perfecting your pitch deck that you neglect your elevator pitch. But your elevator pitch is often your very first chance to grab an investor’s attention. This might be at an official pitch event, an on-the-spot introduction or literally in an elevator. Wherever you are, you probably only have 60 seconds to sell your idea.
Explain the problem and how your business will solve it. Don’t get caught up in the details. Be selective and figure out the key things you need to say to spark interest so an investor simply has to follow up and learn more.
The perfect elevator pitch is literally something you can do in the elevator. I was at a conference on level 39 and someone actually pitched me on the way down to the ground floor. They just about said everything in time.
The perfect elevator pitch is about 60 seconds. It says, in a moment, the key problem you’re solving, what you’re doing and why the person should follow up with you.
Anthony Rose
Co-founder and CEO,
SeedLegals
Focus on perfecting that short, impactful pitch first. It’s your key to opening doors and sparking interest. Remember, you’re not trying to close the deal in 60 seconds – you’re trying to get us interested enough to want to learn more.
Eamon Tuhami
Angel investor and VC,
2. Don’t sell the what, sell the why
Sure, you might have created an amazing bit of tech but if it’s not fixing a problem for your customers, no one is going to want it. You might geek out on the intricacies of your product but what an investor really needs to know is why you’re building it. Because that need means there’s a market.
So don’t use your pitch deck to explain exactly how your product works. Start off by telling your investor what the problem is and how crazy it is that this problem exists.
Now this is where your product comes in… say how you’re going to solve this problem and why you and your team are the best people for the job. Also outline the market size, any traction you’ve got and your five-year business plan.
Want to learn how to write a winning pitch deck? Get insider tips from a pitch coach on how to create the perfect pitch deck.
3. Don’t avoid asking for cash
You’re sending an investor your pitch deck because you need something from them. So don’t shy away from talking about money!
The last slide of your pitch deck should always outline what you’re asking for. Be clear about how much you are raising and what you plan to do with the money.
If you’re offering SEIS/EIS, make sure you say so! Many angels and VC funds will only invest if SEIS or EIS is on the table so get your Advance Assurance sorted before you start speaking to investors.
4. Don’t ask an investor to sign an NDA
Asking an investor to sign an NDA is a quick way to get an immediate no. Firstly, they’re receiving so many pitches that an NDA is too much effort. Rather than read an NDA and go back and forth with changes and lawyers, they’ll just move on to the next pitch.
Secondly, it could make them liable if they’ve already invested or end up investing in a company with a similar idea to yours. That NDA could get them in hot water later on and it’s not worth the risk.
Investors aren’t looking to steal your ideas and set up a rival business; they want to put money into great teams who can implement ideas. So forget about the NDA and get your pitch in front of them.
5. Never send someone else to pitch for you
Investor outreach and pitching might be the last thing you want to do. It’s incredibly time-consuming when you want to get on and build your business. But don’t even think about outsourcing it.
In the early days of your company, it’s your job to sell your idea. You need to convince team members to come on board and show customers that they simply have to have your product.
Getting your assistant to send cold outreach or sending an advisor to pitch in your place is an immediate red flag to investors that you won’t be able to sell your company and win customers.
You might want to be in the office building your product but the ability to sell your idea and take people along with you is an important skill.
Marc Cohen
Sole partner,
6. Don’t skip out validation
A common mistake founders make is to explain their great idea then skip straight to how they want to fund, build and sell it. They miss out a crucial step: validation.
Investors want to see proof that you don’t just think your idea is good but you have an audience that does too. This doesn’t mean you have to have built your whole app yet but talk to people, understand your potential users, collect testimonials to back you up. If you can, invest some of your own money into building a prototype to get some early testers and traction.
There are plenty of no-code apps out there even if you don’t have loads of technical skills.
This way you’ll be able to let the numbers talk. The more you validate your idea, the more hard evidence you’ll have to show an investor that there is a genuine market for your product.
I’m not impressed when founders say they need £50K or so to get a proof of concept built and then they’ll use that to get a pre-seed round. It’s not enough to say, ‘Oh, I’m not technical’ and leave it there. You may not have a computer science degree or be a trained programmer. Okay, you might not have a CS degree, you might not be a trained, you know, programmer, but there are so many no-code tools out there. It’s that easy now to do something of a basic quality that could get you to proof of concept stage with low capital requirements.
Jonny Clark
Angel investor and founder,
Not sure how to demonstrate traction? Read out top tips on how to show investors you’ve got it.
7. Don’t bluff your experience
Unless you’ve got several exits under your belt, you might be worried about convincing an investor that you’ve got what it takes. But don’t over-inflate your experience or team – investors will see right through it.
Focus on the expertise you have built so far and why you’re a team that’s going to work well together. You want to reassure your investors that, as founders, you’re going to stick together. Founder fallout can kill a business so if you’ve worked together previously at another company then there’s more proof you’ll work well together.
The mistake founders sometimes make is they put people on that team slide, making it look like they’re full-time when they’re not. Last year, I received two pitch decks from different companies. They had one person who was listed in both pitch decks in a role. I reached out to the startups, and neither knew that person was also working for the other part-time. So don’t over-egg your team or their experience. If you’re just out of uni and you don’t yet have an impressive track record, just say so.
Eamon Tuhami
Angel investor and VC,
8. Don’t pit investors against each other
Just like you shouldn’t bluff your experience, don’t try to pit investors against one another. If an investor is interested, it’s because they like what you’re working on. They’re not going to suddenly become interested just because you pile on the pressure by saying someone else is keen.
Don’t be arrogant and claim to have a lot of interest from other investors. Even if it’s true, this doesn’t make the investors you’re pitching to more interested.
Yana Abramova
Founder & managing partner,
9. Don’t be afraid to ask the tricky question
It’s okay to ask an investor, ‘So, are you going to invest?’
Your time is valuable so you don’t want to waste time chasing investors that are never going to write a cheque. Treat fundraising like sales. Keep track of who you’re talking to, what they might invest and how hot the lead is.
You can tell an investor is thinking seriously about your idea if they’ve asked for follow-up information, like taking a look at your term sheet or data room. But it’s also okay to be direct and push for an answer. As long as you’re respectful, it shows you’re serious and are working efficiently to qualify and close leads.
Be bold. Put us on the spot. Don’t worry about burning bridges. A quick ‘no’ is far, far better than a slow ‘no’. If it’s a ‘no’, remove them from your pipeline. It improves your bandwidth and lets you focus on real opportunities.
Eamon Tuhami
Angel investor and VC,
Still looking for investors Read How to find angel investors to help you stand out from the crowd and make new contacts.
10. Avoid promising an exit
Some investors want to talk exit strategy early on while others don’t. But you should be prepared for the question.
Whether you have an early exit in mind or plan to run your company for the next couple of decades, what’s important is you don’t commit to a prearranged exit. This locks you into selling your business after a set amount of time. But you can’t predict exactly where the business will be at that point. If it’s not doing well, then you’ll have to sell for nothing. Or if you’re doing great, you might be forced to sell before it’s worth even more.
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