How to Write a Product Pitch to Win Over Potential Investors or Clients
When pitching your product or service, you have a limited amount of time to impact your audience. Investors may see hundreds of startup pitch decks every year and studies show they spend under 4 minutes on average viewing each pitch. Clients might not have the same level of experience with pitches but are equally pressed for time and options. That’s why every business owner needs to ask themselves a question: How do I keep my audience interested? During your product pitch, you should engage the prospect and convince them they need what you’re offering. It is also important to strike a balance between persuasiveness, empathy, and understanding your audience’s needs. In this article, we offer 7 steps to follow for writing a script for an effective product pitch.
Carry Out Your Research
Writing a successful product pitch is about communicating your product’s unique advantages in a clear, concise manner, but before you pen a single word, take a moment to think about who you’re pitching to. Investors and clients have different priorities; while investors might be more interested in the financial prospects and scalability of your product, clients are likely to focus on how it can solve their specific problems. Do your homework research the audience you want to reach and tailor your pitch directly to them.
Define Your Unique Value Proposition
What sets your product apart from the competition? Your unique value proposition (UVP) is the cornerstone of your pitch and this should be an opening for your pitch. It succinctly describes the unique benefit your product offers and why it’s superior to other solutions on the market. UVPs must be compelling and clear.
The opening slide of a product pitch for a company that offers services to businesses and individual contractors. Through their UVP, you can immediately understand what they specialize in.
Back It Up With Data
After introducing your product, provide your audience with solid numbers to prove its value. Include relevant data and statistics to support your claims about your product’s effectiveness, market demand, and growth potential. However, avoid overwhelming your audience with too much information. Select data that strengthens your pitch and contributes to the narrative.
Ask Questions
By asking engaging questions, you give your audience a chance to share their own experiences and views, creating a stronger bond with your content. For instance, rather than just making statements, you might pose questions like, “Have you considered the impact this could have on your everyday life?” or “How would resolving this issue change things for you?”. Questions will turn ordinary pitching into something more dynamic and personal.
“Ask questions the other person will enjoy answering” © Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People.
Show, Don’t Just Tell
While writing your pitch remember where you can stop and switch your audience’s attention from words to visuals. Whenever possible, demonstrate your product in action. A live demo, video, or pictures can make your pitch more engaging and help your audience visualize the benefits of your product. Seeing is believing, and a visual element along with a compelling design of your presentation can significantly enhance your pitch’s impact. Here we gave a comprehensive manual on how to craft a presentation for your pitch deck easily and effectively.
Include a Strong Call to Action
What do you want your audience to do after hearing your pitch? Whether it’s scheduling a follow-up meeting or investing in your startup, make your call to action clear and compelling. A strong CTA guides your audience towards the next steps, making it easier for them to engage further with your product. Be specific about what you’re asking for and why it’s in their best interest to act.
Example of a ‘Call to Action’ slide from the initial company presentation of Facebook, when it was still called “The Facebook”.
Even if your CTA is as simple as “Contact Us” as in the example, do not forget to remind your audience how your service can be beneficial. Write a strong conclusion highlighting how people can find you online or offline to ask their questions or propose a collaboration.
Practice Your Delivery
A great pitch is as much about the delivery as it is about the content. Sometimes, written text doesn’t sound right, so it’s important to read it aloud to ensure your speech isn’t overloaded.
Practice your pitch many times so you can sound natural and be on point, passionate, and powerful with your words. Watch your tone, pace, and body language. A well-made good pitch can catch your audience and be very memorable.
Following these steps not only makes your pitch more attractive but also greatly boosts your chances of establishing valuable relationships and winning the support you aim for. Remember, the purpose of your product pitch is not to directly sell your product or service but to raise awareness of your business. An immediate reaction or outcome may not always occur, as the strategy behind delivering product pitches is designed to develop long-term relationships.
