Living Entrepreneurship Blog / Babson Entrepreneurs

What Makes a Good Pitch

The Babson Entrepreneurship Forum (BEF) is the flagship student-run forum of the year. This year the BEF celebrated its 15th anniversary and as part of their celebration, they hosted a Live to Pitch event. Over 40 startups across Boston applied, but only five ventures were chosen to compete live in front of an experienced panel of judges. The winner received cash and in-kind services.

Live to Pitch

Live to Pitch

This year’s judges were Dane Callow of Boston Harbor Angels, Margo Layton Cole of Breakaway and Wan Li Zhu of Fairhaven Capital. As investors, all the judges have heard many pitches from entrepreneurs. After the contestants delivered their presentations, the judges shared some tips on what makes a good pitch:

  • Use your first slide to say what you’re doing and who you are
  • Why are you the person to execute? Include this when talking about yourself/team.
  • Address sizable market opportunity and your go to market strategy
  • What is your product? Make a clear how you providing value in your customers
  • Include financials, investors like to see returns and that you’re thinking about an exit strategy.
  • Investors are investing in people – show your passion

If you are looking to pitch your startup to an investor, think about it from their point of view. With just a short amount of time, what are the key factors they are going to be looking for? What will make you stand out amongst the others? With these takeaways, you can take your pitch from good to great.