We spoke to the winners to find out how they managed to create a successful pitch and inspire investors.
Preparing for the pitch
For Tim Breker from Vytal, one of the Berlin winners, the key to a successful pitch is not perfecting every detail, but finding a balance between preparation and spontaneity. It's important to practice the core messages, but also to remain flexible and authentic in order to adapt to the respective situation and audience, he says. Tim Kniepkamp from SuitcaseHe keeps an eye on the audience and improvises as the situation demands. He found the Start2 Group's preparation sessions particularly helpful in understanding the event's exact "vibe." Two or three dry runs in the office without a script gave him a feel for the pitch's length.
Important elements of an investor pitch
For Rick Hodgson from Emrod, who presented a pre-revenue startup, the most important element of his pitch was to outline a clear vision to convey the technology's potential. As an early-stage deep-tech company, Emrod needed to convince investors in this way. Tim (Vytal) adds that self-confidence and the style of presentation play a major role in a three-minute pitch. The content shouldn't tell you everything, but rather pique your curiosity so that investors want to learn more. At Vytal, previous successes, partnerships, and references made the difference.
Inspiration for the pitch
Everyone agrees that pitch decks from successful companies like Airbnb and Doordash serve as the best source of inspiration for how to present your story effectively and convincingly. Fritz Lange from 3D Spark He also sought feedback from investors to understand their perspective and adapt his communication accordingly. Tim (Suitcase), who stood on the podium in Munich, distinguishes between a reading deck and a pitch deck and has developed different slide layouts to be convincing depending on the situation.
Advice for pitch preparation
When it comes to preparing for a pitch, Rick (Emrod) advises emphasizing your startup's strengths and building your message around them. In the few minutes of a pitch, it's often impossible to comprehensively cover all aspects of a startup. Therefore, it's helpful to identify what will really resonate with the audience. He considers the number of investors who show interest after the pitch the measure of success. Rick also recommends using less text on the slides and making the pitch visually appealing. He practices his pitch ten to twenty times so he can focus more on speaking and interacting with the audience.
Fritz (3D Spark), who initially gave highly technical presentations as an engineer, has learned to tell the story as simply as possible so that even laypeople can understand it. A pitch is only the starting point for further discussions. Therefore, you should try to pique investors' interest and convey the value of your solution, rather than explaining the product in detail.
About Cashwalk
The CashwalkThe Start2 Group's event has been taking place for almost 10 years in Munich and at various locations, including Berlin and Darmstadt. Here, up to 30 selected seed and Series A startups have the opportunity to pitch to over 60 investors, build networks, and find investment opportunities.
The event differs from other pitch events in that participating investors are rigorously screened to ensure genuine investment interest. Furthermore, the number of investors is larger than the number of startups to increase the chance of receiving investment.
If you would like to pitch your startup at the 21st edition of the Cashwalk on November 7th in Munich and raise your next investment round, then register here for free.
