How many times has your muse visited you and generously bestowed upon you an inspiring idea for a new product? Granted, it’s probably not one of those things that happen every day, but when it does, wouldn’t it be nice to know what steps you can take? After all, that cartoon light bulb hovering over your head won’t stay there forever!
So here’s some inspiration on how to successfully pitch that product idea that will surely revolutionize life as we know it.
Before The Pitch
Before you confidently stride into the offices of investors and backers, ask yourself if your idea is original and is it practical. You also need to sort out who your idea is aimed at. Finally, you need to quantify the benefits and features of your product idea. These things are all part of the whole process of getting a new product submission ready to roll.
Okay, so now that you’ve examined your idea and found that all of those pertinent questions have been answered, here’s what you need to do.
Research Your Investors
Just like you wouldn’t tell a joke to a bunch of dog lovers that has a punchline where a dog comes to harm, you don’t give a light-hearted product idea pitch to a room full of ruthless, humorless, shark-like investors. Research the backgrounds of your investors, and see what things seem to mean the most to them.
Come Prepared
Part of this is covered in the Before The Pitch paragraph, but there’s more to this. Practice your pitch, maybe in front of a small group of friends or family. Know what it is you want to say beforehand, and come up with the answers to questions that investors may ask. In fact, if you try out your pitch on friends, see if any of them have questions, and make sure to write those down. If you project an aura of competence and knowledge, you’ll gain the confidence of a group of skeptical people who are reluctant to just throw money at anyone who walks in the door.
Be Enthusiastic And Confident
You not only have to radiate a sense of preparedness, you have to go in with guns a-blazing, ready to wow everyone in your path. Now’s not the time for modesty and self-deprecation. No, now is the time for excitement and confidence. If you don’t believe your product idea is the best thing to come along since sliced bread, then how on Earth do you expect a roomful of strangers to believe it?
Keep It Short And Sweet
People who ramble tend to lose their audience pretty quickly. Which is a shame if the core idea is actually a really good one; it just gets drowned in blather, and the audiences’ eyes glaze over. Congratulations, you just lost them. Keep your pitch short and to the point. Remember that investors are used to dealing with lots of people pitching ideas at them, and thus probably have very highly developed BS filters.
That should get you started on your way to seeing your idea become a reality. So polish up that idea, project an air of confidence, knowledge-ability, and enthusiasm, make your point quickly, and be ready to answer questions. Good luck!
