You can’t practice a startup pitch too many times, including the post-pitch Q-and-A.
The Q-and-A is one of the most popular topics in pitch workshops conducted by Nathan Gold, founder of The Demo Coach. Gold produced a how-to video series utilized by startups that are preparing to present at 1 Million Cups at the Kauffman Foundation.
“I get people to rehearse the questions they will receive and the answers they will give just as much as they rehearse their pitch,” Gold said. “You can predict probably 80 percent of the questions that you’re going to get, maybe more. And the more you present, the more predictable they’ll be.”
Gold also wants his charges to understand that, no matter how well prepared they may be for questions, it’s impossible to anticipate every one. Which is why they have to be ready for the “IDK” or “I don’t know” questions, he said.
“You have to be able to look at somebody and say, ‘Well, that’s an interesting question. I’ve never been asked that before. I don’t have an answer for you right now,’” Gold said. “You have to build a bridge between the ‘I don’t know’ and getting back to something you do know.”
Another great way to hone your own startup pitch is to watch other startup pitches, Gold said, like those at 1 Million Cups.
“It’s a wonderful learning environment, not just for the two presenters onstage,” he said. “But it’s an amazing learning environment for everybody in the audience.
“You can learn so much by watching other people present. You can realize, ‘Oh, that metaphor he just used, wow, that’s perfect. I could use that.’ They’re not trademarked or copyrighted, so when you hear how somebody else explains how their business works and you get an idea for your business, that’s learning. That’s tremendous. That’s not something you can learn from a book, necessarily.”
Most of all, “test, test, test” your startup pitch, Gold said.
“You know the lean startup methodology?” he said. “You do the same thing with presentations. You build it, you take it for a test drive, you learn from it, and you modify it and take it for another test drive—until you get the reaction you want.”
