1) What you say to investors 2) How you say it
We will work on this bit with you in the run up to demo day
How you currently communicate
“Here’s a tonne of detail about something that happened and it made us think this thing that was actually wrong, but it turned out to be right and so we then changed our minds, but actually the interesting this is what happened next….”
“So once we had been through that process we felt slightly more confident about a couple of things.”
“Which means that X is true”
What’s wrong with this?
“Here’s a tonne of detail about something that happened and it made us think X, but that was actually wrong, but it turned out to be right and so we then changed our minds, but actually the interesting thing is what happened next….”
“So once we had been through that process we felt slightly more confident about a couple of things.”
“Which means that X is true.”
“Why is this relevant? Is it because of X? Nope, seems like it’s because of Y….Oh nope, wrong again. What are they trying to tell me? Get to the point!....SO WHAT?”
“So what???!?”
“Ah I see, why did they bombard me with all that detail. What a waste of time!”
What the listener is thinking…. You say….
Some principles
The listener wants to understand… …as quickly as possible... …and direct the conversation as they see fit
Some principles
The listener wants to understand… + What you are doing + Why you are worth talking to
+ What you want from them …as quickly as possible... + “Is this startup worth my time?” + “Should I be concentrating, or can I think about lunch?”
…and direct the conversation as they see fit +”Once I know what you’re doing, then I know what questions to ask”
The best way to do this is using the Pyramid Principle
Top down, structured communication Quickly delivers the answer Allows the listener to direct the conversation
Start here!
Data Data Data Data Data Data Data Data Support
An argument Your key arguments
A clear statement
The point of the conversation
An argument An argument
Start here!
Build a pyramid before every conversation
Start here!
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
We can attract the very best technical talent
We build some of the most exciting startups in
Europe
We have the best LPs of any early stage fund
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
We can attract the very best technical talent
We build some of the most exciting startups in
Europe
We have the best LPs of any early stage fund
1 in 3 Cambridge Computer Scientists
applied last year
We get 1000 technical
applicants each year from
top ranking unis and
companies
We focus on investing in deep tech startups
Our Alumni have done
some of the biggest seed
rounds in Europe
Our LPs include
Europe’s top entrepreneurs
e.g., Alex Chesterman
We are working with some of the
most forward thinking
institutional investors
Start here!
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
“So tell me about what you’re building?”
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
We build some of the most exciting startups in
Europe
“That’s a big claim, how are you the top pre-seed investor?”
Start here!
An investor asks “so tell me about what you’re doing?”
We are building EF - the top pre-seed investor in Europe
We build some of the most exciting startups in
Europe
We focus on investing in deep tech startups
Our Alumni have done
some of the biggest seed
rounds in Europe
“Why are those startups so exciting?”
Support
Your key arguments
The point of the conversation
You set up the conversation – you already know ALL the answers
“How/What/Why?”
“What’s your proof for that?”
Start here!
Your go! Here is another example for a startup
We are set to be the world’s most lucrative and effective recruitment
platform
We use AI to find the best candidates wherever they
maybe
As no humans are involved in the process, we have 95% margins
We are already the recruiter of choice for
major retailers
Our patent pending
algorithms effectively
identify talent
We have 99% selection accuracy
compared to experienced
recruiters
Typical recruitment
costs $15k per a person and takes 15 man
hours
We have 5 major retailers signed up to the platform
We have already had
2,000 candidates
selected through the
platform
It takes 15 minutes with our platform and involves no human
labour
You can use this in all parts of your life
In emails, in phone calls, in checkins, pitching on stage, pitching in a meeting, to help you remember what to say, to synthesise meaning from data…
Relevance – change the message depending on who you’re speaking to Understanding – you want them to understand you Simplicity – only share details when asked
Listeners will trust your personal impact over your content
I’M GOING TO BUILD THE NEXT FACEBOOK!!!!!
I have consistently
out performed my peers????
I am in the top 10 developers in
the world
I am a cat
Listeners will trust your personal impact over your content
I’m going to build the next
I have consistently
out performed my peers
I am in the top 10 developers in
the world
I am a cat
Be the bear
“Researchers have even found you can make someone feel power just by posing them in a
dominant, expansive body position.
Like athletes, for example: Arms outstretch, back arched.
Even blind athletes have been known, upon victory,
to strike the same pose. They didn't learn it by seeing anyone do it. There's something
fundamental.”
Read more here
Voice
Contrast is a powerful way to make people listen e.g., Use speed followed by pauses and slow Use high pitch to emphasise something and to contrast against your normal voice
vs
Voice
When there is inconsistency between your words and your tone, listeners will trust your tone e.g.,
I AM NOT STRESSED!
!!!
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