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𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗬 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗯𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗘𝗢 𝗠𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗲𝗹 𝗦𝗲𝗶𝗯𝗲𝗹: 𝗜𝗳 𝗬𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗽 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗢𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝟮 𝗠𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲𝘀, 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗗𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝘁 𝗪𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 Most founders struggle with pitching. They either say too much, confuse investors, or fail to highlight what really matters. Michael Seibel, former CEO of Y Combinator, has a simple rule: "𝐈𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧’𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐮𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝟑𝟎 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠." Investors don’t want long explanations. They want clarity. Here’s how to give a clear, compelling pitch that gets attention—and funding. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗧𝘄𝗼 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘀 𝗘𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗡𝗲𝗲𝗱𝘀 You don’t need a long presentation. You need two short, impactful pitches: 1. 30-Second Elevator Pitch – A quick introduction anyone can understand. 2. 2-Minute Investor Pitch – A structured version for serious conversations. 𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬-𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗹𝗲𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 Your pitch should fit into three sentences: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐲 𝐝𝐨? Keep it simple so anyone can understand. Example: “We’re Airbnb. We help people rent out extra rooms in their homes.” 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐛𝐢𝐠 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐞𝐭? Investors need to see the opportunity. Example: “The online hotel booking market is worth $100 billion.” 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞? Show progress or how fast you’re moving. Example: “We launched in January, growing 30% month-over-month with 10,000 users.” A strong elevator pitch is simple, memorable, and instantly conveys value. 𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝟮-𝗠𝗶𝗻𝘂𝘁𝗲 𝗜𝗻𝘃𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿 𝗣𝗶𝘁𝗰𝗵 This version expands on five key areas: 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝟑𝟎-𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐜𝐡. Get straight to the point. 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 – 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨 𝐛𝐢𝐠 𝐩𝐥𝐚𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝? Show why your startup is different. Example: “Hotels are expensive, and most travelers prefer a home-like stay.” 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲? Investors want to see a business, not just an idea. Example: “We take a 10% fee on every booking.” 𝐖𝐡𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐦? Investors bet on founders more than ideas. Highlight: Number of co-founders How many are technical How long you’ve worked together Example: “We’re a team of three, with two engineers, working full-time.” 𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠? Be specific. Investors want clarity. Example: “We’re raising $1M on a SAFE at a $10M cap, with a $50K minimum check size.” A strong investor pitch is structured, concise, and makes investors confident in your ability to execute. 𝗙𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗧𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 A great pitch is not about saying more—it’s about saying the right things. Keep it clear, get to the point, and leave investors wanting to know more. If you found this helpful, then follow Vishu Bheda for more valuable startup insights from the world's best founders!