Okay, I have the business idea, now what? How do I present my idea so I can find funding?
If you are having difficulty securing financing for your business, if you want to attract new capital from investors, read the article to start preparing for the presentation of your business plan.
Business Plan Presentation
When we seek funding for our business idea, at some point we must proceed to present the idea or our business plan to potential investors, creating
- A comprehensive, interesting and persuasive pitch deck and/or
- A documented and detailed business plan .
What is a pitch deck and what is its relationship to the business plan?
A pitch deck is a concise proposal that presents the key elements of a business plan to potential investors. Our goal is to get the potential investor thinking as quickly as possible:
“Oh, what a wonderful idea! I could make money on my investment”:
Once we gain the attention of investors, we will need to present our proposal in detail through a business plan.
These two tools should communicate effectively:
- the value and uniqueness of our idea,
- the credibility of the team that will implement the idea
- and mainly the potential return on investment.
Effective presentation in 3 steps
How will we succeed in effectively communicating our idea to investors?
- With proper preparation
- With the impeccable presentation
- By following up and maintaining communication after the presentation.
1. Preparing the business plan presentation
The most important part of the presentation is the preparation.
Research for suitable potential investors
The first step is to research potential investors, identify their investment preferences, and target those most likely to be interested in our idea.
Adapting the presentation to specific investors
Once you have found the right investors, it is useful to look at their past investments to understand their priorities and goals. For example, if an investor or VC prefers businesses that support sustainable economic and social development, you should highlight this aspect of your venture.
Gathering the necessary presentation materials
During the presentation, we should have available all the information (financial forecasts, market research, etc.) that will highlight the uniqueness of our idea and the potential of the business. By carefully gathering this material and being able to respond to every possible question, it will create the conditions for a relationship of trust between us and the investors.
Practice presentation skills
Practicing presentation skills is an important part of the process. It will allow us to become more familiar with the presentation material, feel more comfortable, and identify potential problems and weaknesses.
2. The presentation
A successful presentation guides the audience along a specific, prescribed path, a journey with a beginning, middle, and end. This journey can be easily achieved through storytelling. We start with what our audience already knows very well in order to arouse interest and attention. Then we describe the problem we want to solve with our business idea.
In general, the structure of a presentation includes
The introduction
Here is our opportunity to make a great first impression, to grab the audience’s attention so they will pay close attention.
- What are the main points of the business plan?
- What are the unique points of the business idea?
Business idea and target market.
At this point we should clearly explain how the business idea will meet the needs of the market.
Business team
In this section we should describe our team – our qualifications, skills and experience – in order to create the appropriate climate of trust.
Investment plan
One of the key elements of the presentation should be the investment timeline. Even if the venture is at its beginning, we should present the timeline for when the investment will yield a profit for the investor and how it will be realized.
3. Maintaining communication.
After the presentation is complete, we should maintain a channel of communication with investors. We can achieve this by sending a thank you letter, where we have the opportunity to briefly present our business idea and the benefits for investors. And of course, we should respond promptly and consistently to any questions that arise.
How a business coach can help you present your business plan
Entrepreneurs and founders seek the assistance of a business coach to assist them throughout the presentation preparation process to create an excellent first impression. A business coach can provide assistance at all stages of preparation.
- To assist in the appropriate selection of investors and in the adaptation of the presentation.
- To guide the entrepreneur in effectively communicating the business idea, financial projections and potential return.
- To prepare to address investor questions or concerns.
- To create a virtual presentation so that the entrepreneur can get used to the conditions.
- Provide feedback on the presentation style: body language, tone of voice, and use of presentation tools, identifying any problems that need to be eliminated and advantages that need to be emphasized.
- To boost confidence and reduce anxiety during the actual presentation