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Pitch
With Purpose

April 2022
 

THIS MONTH'S THEME: PITCHING

If you can’t grab your audience’s attention and compel them to join your vision—no matter how innovative, well-thought-out, or potentially profitable your business solution is—you’ll struggle to launch and grow your business. Whether you like it or not, pitching isn’t going anywhere in the startup ecosystem because it is one of the most direct and effective ways to tell your entrepreneurial story. 

As the competition for stakeholders’ attention continues to grow, it’s critical to pitch with purpose. It takes more than a dozen beautifully designed slides that explain what your product or service does to be successful (don’t get us wrong, your slide layout is important, and there are resources below to help). The most successful pitches are exciting journeys that leave backers, from investors to the top talent and everyone in between, wanting more. 

Silicon Valley investor and marketing expert Guy Kawasaki puts it like this: “People are going to make an instant decision about your pitch.” Delivering a compelling pitch that helps people make that instant decision in your favor requires understanding your audience, telling a story, and practice . . . lots and lots of practice. 

So in April, we’ll explore both the science and art of pitching and help you craft a captivating, purposeful story that wins your audience over. 

Our free events and curated resources will help you:

  • Build a captivating pitch presentation that communicates your solution’s potential
  • Understand how to adapt your pitch for different audiences and outcomes
  • Learn strategies and techniques to improve your storytelling skills
  • Take the stage and receive feedback about your deck and presentation skills

APRIL EVENTS

Pitching: Get It Together

Led by Nadyli Nuñez, Ascender’s Executive Director, this interactive presentation helped startup founders understand the different components of an effective pitch presentation and how it changes based on who it is for.

Event announcement for Not-a-pitch pitch practice session on April 19, 2022

NOT-A-PITCH Pitch Practice

Following our April 12th session, all participants were invited back for an opportunity to take the stage and put what they learned about pitching into practice.  Each presenter received feedback on their pitch from our team and the audience.

APRIL RESOURCES

> Listen to our 2021 chat about business pitches and persistence with Pittsburgh founders George Cook & Gaby Isturiz.
Video

> Pay attention to these 5 tips when pitching your startup to investors.
Article

> Explore this list of the 7 components of a powerful pitch if you’re unsure what to include in your presentation.
Article

> Use this 150-second pitch tool to collect your thoughts and put together a quick draft of your pitch.
Tool

Choose from dozens of head-turning slide deck templates.  
Templates

Watch this video from Y Combinator if you want investors to pay attention to your startup.
Video

Check out this other great resource to help you craft the perfect pitch deck. 
Templates

Make sure your pitch deck includes these 11 slides.  
Article

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