I could understand if the market growth potential to be a concern, but there were zero questions about the business model. This annoyed me because I spent the most time on the financials and justifying costs and market growth and making what I felt were realistic growth projections.
Did I do such a good job at explaining how we'll be generating revenue that questions didn't need to be asked? Were the revenue models understood when I introduced them? What about how I intended to spend the funding for the seed round? The only question that touched on financials dealt with how my financial projections would be impacted if the initial market focus was made more narrow.
I did receive a question about barriers to entry and how I intended to keep this going. My honest answer was there was zero barrier to entry and I was depending on being first to market.
The other two questions were on the selection of the company name. Two of the panelist thought that the name would a) segregate half of the population because they wouldn't understand it, and b) branding of such a name would be costly because of the consumer would have to be educated.
So what did I learn from this presentation? I learned that as a team, we didn't prepare enough for the presentation. I don't think we understood our audience well enought to anticipate where they'd focus their attention. We didn't practice questions and answers. We didn't do ourselves justice.
Also, I don't think I have the stage presence to connect with the audience. Sure I can do presentations, but I can't sell the message effectively -- perhaps the 7 minute limit is harsh, but a good salesman could have done it in 30 seconds.
No rest for the weary, we're pushing forward,
-john
1 comment:
John you did a good job presenting, but it was apparent that you did not feel that you were doing as good a job as you were.
You showed the willingness to build a theme around your presentation instead of just presenting a product. There was a ton of improvement from the first time to the second time. You can be a great presenter if you get the right practice and mindset. You have the skills. There needs to be a little more practice with the "what else can you sell me?" questions. There always has to be something else up your sleeve. People with open checkbooks need to burn the money on something.
There are some things your presentation did not have, but that can be added. More important, you have some things that very few startups do have. You have a belief, you have staff, you have tested a prototype, you have flexibility, and you have a lack of arrogance.
Beyond that, you have a perserverance that will reap rewards in the future. You are willing to give to other people. From what I saw of the successful panelists that heard your speech, they are also willing to give to others. That has helped make them successful and it will help you too. That is perhaps your greatest asset.
- Loaferman
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