What are some effective ways to avoid interruptions and distractions during your pitch to investors?

Paul Graham of Y Combinator says in his essay "How to Convince Investors" that founders think of startups as ideas, but investors think of them as markets. An early-stage company needs to be a convincing experiment worth taking bets on, whereas growth-stage startups need to demonstrate how the experiment worked. Having laser-sharp focus on your user and problem you solve for them will help you get a clear sight of your market and this clarity will obviously help you in crafting a pitch that conveys your startup's essence.

A good investor pitch is a conversation not a presentation, where the investor clearly understands your business and gets excited about its potential. Don’t pitch investors with a slide deck. Introduce yourself and the company concisely so that they understand what you do, and what stage you are at, and make sure to make it as exciting as possible. Have a deck on hand with prepared talking points in case the investor wants to dive into a specific area of the business or prefers a presentation. Prepare your environment and your day around the meeting with the investor so you can go into it calm and confident. If you’re stressed out and nervous it’ll read like you’re not confident about your business and don’t believe what you’re saying.

Good preparation is everything! Your pitch has to be spot on and you need to be prepared for lots of awkward questions. Use as many opportunities as possible to pitch: in front of your team, your friends and at events. Then you will be experienced and your pitch will be on point.

Un buen pitch activa todo: cabeza, emoción y acción. Cuando lo diseñes, asegúrate de que estás incorporando las tres perspectivas: - Por qué lo que dices sentido - Lograr que se genere una conexión emocional, simplemente porque a la gente le importa lo que propones, le emociona y le motiva - Movilizar hasta llegar a la acción: recordar que el momento de apoyarte y generar un cambio es ahora.

People often get caught in the gearing and full plumbing of the solution they are building - most the time investors don't have as in depth clue about the space you are building into. Unless they are a former operator in the space. TL:DR Structure = Past, Present, Future. So best thing is to think about your startup as a narrative in a story, begin with a little context of how you came to unlock the problem (ideally covering the problem, why you, and leading into the solution) Next highlight the fact you brought your creation into the world, and then focus on successes achieved to date. From customer feedback, revenue, growth numbers. Lastly where you want to go next and what you are looking to build which comes to this funding round.

It looks overwhelming, but do not underestimate the power of a pitch practiced from start to finish. It is amazing to see how the founders are prepared. Dont let the confident of pitching everyday or often, cloud your judgement regarding practicing. Try in front of a mirror, put the timer on, practice the slides turning and be ready for any possible inconvenience.

Record yourself and hear yourself back - ideally getting the timing to no longer than 5 minutes for the pitch. Allow for Q&A time which can show off your deep knowledge.

Investors are only human and therefore everyone is different. Be self-confident but not arrogant. Always behave politely, you don't know who has which contacts. Don't make promises you can't keep, be reliable.

Prompt follow up is the single best way to stay active in the conversation, VS becoming reactive or passive. Organise actions in the meetings and follow up with any criticals. Then set a reminder for a couple days then a week later to continue to keep the point in mind.

Acredito que aqui o mais importante é combinar com a audiência que ao final da apresentação haverá espaço para que todos possam tirar suas dúvidas!

You might not get long or even a chance to set your position in the room. But if you do get shown to an empty room put any distracting views out of your eyeline, and also ideally out of the eyeline of the incoming individuals. General rule of thumb better you sit infront of the window facing externally than internally, where investors potentially can see their colleagues and potentially get distracted with mental notes outside of your pitch.

¿Interrupciones en tu pitch a inversores? Antes de que te pongas nervioso, hazte estas preguntas clave, inspiradas en las palabras de Grant Cardone: - ¿Estás 100% convencido de tu idea? - ¿Conoces realmente lo que buscan tus inversores? - ¿Sabes qué necesitan y cuál es su escenario ideal? Si titubeas al responder, ahí puede estar tu gran oportunidad de mejora. Enfocarse en estas cuestiones puede ser la clave para mantener a todos enganchados, desde el primer hasta el último minuto de tu presentación. Recuerda, no solo se trata de vender tu idea, sino de conectar con las necesidades y expectativas de quienes te escuchan. ¡Vamos, que se puede!