Top 10 Tips for Pitching to Angel and Early-Stage Investors
We all love the drama and excitement of tv shows about venture capital, investing and pitching your company, but in the real world, pitching to angel investors and venture capitalists is about preparation and building relationships. To prepare for the real-world fundraising circuit, here are ten tips for pitching to angel investors.
1. Know Your Audience Inside and Out
Don’t waste your time pitching to angels who don’t invest in your space. Research the group and the individuals (if possible) before you approach them, then tailor your pitch to who will be there. It’s like dating; you wouldn’t bring up your extensive stamp collection on a first date—unless they're into that sort of thing.
2. Tell Your Story
While numbers, research and traction are important, investors will remember your hard work if they connect with your story. Build a compelling story highlighted by numbers. Think of it as trying to get someone hooked on your favorite tv show: you need an engaging storyline, not just episode titles.
3. Highlight Your Team
A company is more than the CEO/founder; it’s a team. Your angel investors want to meet your team and understand why they are best suited to execute your plan. If possible bring at least one other team member to the pitch meeting to showcase your top talent. After all, even Batman had Alfred and Robin.
4. Demonstrate Understanding of Your Target Market
Understanding the size of your addressable market is important, but truly knowing who your customers are is more illustrative during your pitch. Focus on details like their pain points, favorite social media platforms, and typical shopping behaviors. Show you have a deep knowledge of your customers— like you would your friends and family.
5. Show and Tell
If you have a product, demonstrate it; this is the time to show it off. Remember, even the best ideas can sound weird until you see them in action—like AI assistants or sushi burritos.
6. Avoid Reading from Your Pitch Deck
First, avoid too many words on your slides. Images, graphs, and charts are better at telling the story. Second, be prepared. Reading verbatim off your presentation can indicate a lack of preparation or nervousness. If you get nervous, can someone else do the pitch? If not, public speaking is an art and as a future business leader, you will need to master it. Learn it now before you pitch and it will pay off immensely later.
7. Know Exactly How Much Money You Need and What It’s For
Don’t ask for money for the sake of it; know exactly how much you need and where it will be spent. Include a buffer for contingency purposes. Things don’t always go as planned, and angels understand this. You’re not just asking for gas money—you need to know where the road trip is headed.
8. Respect Your Time Slot
Going over your time shows you can’t prepare or manage. If you are given ten minutes, take exactly ten minutes. You don’t need to cover every single detail in your allotted time; save some for the Q&A session. It’s like a good first date—leave them wanting more, not checking their watch.
9. It’s Okay to Follow Up
Sometimes an angel will ask a question that requires an in depth answer or supporting documentation. It’s okay to ask to follow up after with further detail and information, you’re respecting the time limit!
10. Always Have an Exit Plan
Once you’ve got them hooked on your story, show them what your product does, how great your team is, and what you are going to do with the money you raise. Be very clear about how the angels are going to make their money. Think of it as the end of a great movie—you need a satisfying conclusion, not a cliffhanger.
Angels choose to invest for a variety of reasons. While we can't promise that following these guidelines will lead to receiving investment, they will help ensure you are taken seriously and seen as a professional in your industry. Got any other tips for pitching to angel investors?