creating your succinct story - amazon s3...3 we’ll help you lift your game… escalator - the...

1

Escalator Service

www.growthmanagement.co.nz © 2010 Growth Management Consulting Ltd

CREATING YOUR

SUCCINCT STORY QUICK TIPS

V2.0

Mark Robotham

[email protected]

[email protected]

021 61 8850

BLOG: WWW.SUCCINCT.CO.NZ

http://www.growthmanagement.co.nz/

mailto:[email protected]


2

MARK ROBOTHAM

• Background – Electronics Design Engineer, International Marketing – NASDAQ - Silicon Valley, NZ bootstrap – GM Business Incubator – Wellington – Recent JAFA convert – Cyclist

• GM Escalator (EDANZ – Deloitte JV partnership)

• Founder Growth Management Consulting LTD (GMC) – Facilitator – Trainer – Public speaker – Strategy review & development – SuccinctStories.com author - coach – Business Advisory Service

• www.growthmanagement.co.nz +64 21 61 8850 [email protected]

MARK ROBOTHAM – “Survivor Of Growth”

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

91/92 92/93 93/94 94/95 95/96 96/97 97/98 98/99

Learning !

www.SuccinctStories.com www.growthmanagement.co.nz


http://www.succinctstories.com/


3

We’ll help you lift your game…

ESCALATOR - THE INVESTMENT READY SERVICE

Then we can help you find an investor

Escalator is a service specialising in helping you and your business become ready for investment. We’re independent, so our interests are to serve yours. We can show you how to make your business attractive to an investor. This alone can increase performance, as many of the businesses we’ve helped will agree. We examine your business from the ground up. When everything’s right, we can help you try and find a deal to grow your business that is best suited to you. Escalator Service is supported by New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, and there’s no charge unless a deal is closed.

www.escalator.co.nz

Need Capital :

1: Get investment ready

2: Find investor

Escalator Service

www.succinctstories.com © 2010 Growth Management Consulting Ltd

ASSESSMENT

IDENTIFY

GROOM

FUND

TRAINING

Targeted

Advisory Services (Groom – Deal Needs)

$8500

Deal

Preparation

&

Negotiation(max $11500)

Panel & Peer Review

Panel Review

GRADUATE

CLUB

(Top 25)

Pitch

ing

Esse

ntia

l

Gu

ide

to

Ca

pita

l

www.Escalator.co.nz Apply Now!

($2000)

CLOSECapital Investment, Strategic Alliances, Licensing

100% At Risk - Success Fee

CREATING GROWTH & CAPITAL FOR BUSINESS

Va

lua

tio

n

5 + 5 Gap

Analsysis

PREP

4

Escalator Service


VIEW YOUR BUSINESS FROM AUDIENCES VIEW POINT

300 deal opportunities

per year

1 – 5 Investments

NO

Should even you (founder) continue to invest?

Escalator Service


BUSINESS OR HOBBY?

$ Make Money! $

Best In World Passionate About

Are you 2 or 3 out of 3?

5

Escalator Service


GETTING YOUR STORY RIGHT!

Its not what you say,

Its what they remember.

And more importantly

what can they

be bothered to pass on!

Avoid the curse of knowledge

• You can not see yourself

• Getting your succinct story right

needs external help

Escalator Service


POWER OF YOUR SUCCINCT STORY

Goal: To concisely communicate “Your Story” in less than 3 mins

Your Story Talent

Investors

Customers

Operational

Decisions

6

Escalator Service


INVERTED PYRAMID OF INFORMATION

Information

Importance

Time

Variable

edit point

Most important fact

Detail that can be

removed if time

does not allow

Inverted Information Pyramid

10 -30 sound bites

Escalator Service


GRABBING ATTENTION

What is your attention grabber?

Sound bite #1

ECO-Block - Escalator copy.ppt

7

Escalator Service


PITCHES THAT DON’T WORK !

• Alienated the audience – Not matched to audience or purpose

• Left asking what do they do?

• Boring

• Too much and / or wrong detail

• Autobiography

• Why should I trust you ?

• Unbelievable …

Don’t forget:

“Passion and confidence”

Escalator Service


ONE MINUTE TEST

1. What is the product or service ? “Quantify customer VALUE”

2. How does the business make money ? – Business model

3. How big & scalable is this? – trends, gaps …

4. What is the barrier to competitive entry? – Your IP

5. Why believe you & your team ? – credibility

6. What’s in it for the investor?– exit

8

Escalator Service


THE PRODUCT YOU ARE SELLING… IS YOUR BUSINESS, NOT YOUR PRODUCT!

Product

Investment

Opportunity Business

Model

Escalator Service


THINKING LIKE AN INVESTOR WHY WON’T THEY SIGN MY NDA?

Is there a market for the product?

Can we make money from this?

Will people deliver?

Lets look at the technology?

NDA

9

Escalator Service


GREAT COMPANIES GET INVESTMENT

Exit OptionsProduct

Quantified Value

Barrier to Entry

Market

Business ModelMakes Money

PeopleCredibility, Culture

& Attitude

Scalable BusinessSystems & Partners

Exit

Investment

Ready

Realistic Deal

Compatible

Coachable

People Magnets

Effective Team

Simple Succinct Story

Measured Customer Value

Unique

IP strategy – Freedom To Operate

Validated Market

Sustainable Value

ROI

Simple Structure

Growth Market Validated

Can handle 1000x Production

Core Competencies Identified

Effective Partnerships

Potential Exits Identified

Negotiable

Realistic Valuation

Based on Logic

Escalator Service


VOCAL VARIETY

1. Quietly

2. Loudly

3. Sadly

4. Angrily

5. Happily

6. Powerfully

Out of the gate

And off for a walk

went Hairy Maclary

from Donaldson’s Dairy

Hairy

Macla

ry f

rom

Donald

son D

iary

© L

ynle

y D

odd

(re

pro

duced w

ith p

erm

issio

n)

10

Escalator Service


MESSAGE IMPACT

Body Language

Words

Voice

Escalator Service


NO VALUE PROPOSTION = NO BUSINESS

Cost

VALUE - GAIN

30%

VALUE

11

Escalator Service


ARE YOU SOLVING A TOP PRIORITY BUSINESS PROBLEM?

1

7

3

2

7

YOUR SOLUTION

Escalator Service


CRAFT VS PRODUCT VS BUSINESS

• Manufacture Power Tools

• Manufacturer

• Software Developer

• Watch Manufacturer

• Motor Cycle Manufacturer

• Making Holes

• Mice Problem

• Increasing Sales - Customer Satisfaction

• Fashion Statement

• Escape

• Electric Drills

• Mouse Trap

• CRM (software)

• Swatches

• Harley Davidson

Product Craft Business (essence)

12

MADE TO STICK STORIES

• SUCCESs

•Simplicity

•Unexpectedness

•Concreteness

•Credibility

•Emotional

•Stories

Find the Core

Get attention

Help people understand & remember

Help people believe

Make people care

Get people to act

www.madetostick.com

Escalator Service


CO

NTR

AS

T

http://www.madetostick.com/

13

Escalator Service


PR

OP

S

STO

RIES

Escalator Service


MY DIFFERENTIATOR – BARRIER TO ENTRY

• What makes me different ?

• What stops the competition?

• IP Strategy

USP:

14

Escalator Service


YOUR REVENUE MOMENTUM STORY

Making your numbers believable

• Existing track record

• Revenue streams

• Margins new /old business

• Existing contracts

• Burn rate – cash flow +ve when

MAKING THE BUSINESS BELIEVABLE

Escalator Service


BUSINESS MODEL

Core

Capabilities

Partner Network

Value

Differentiators

Value Proposition

Customer

Relationships

Distribution

Channel

Target Market

Revenue StreamsCost StructureFINANCE

INFRASTRUCTURE CUSTOMEROFFER

Customer Problem

Components of a Business Model

Return

(Profit)

Business model book: Business Model Generation –

Alexander Ostewalder & Yves Pigneur

15

Escalator Service


CoyX Business Plan - Overview

2010 2011 2012 2013

Markets

Sales Marketing

Product

Finance

Team

Operations

Risk

2008 2009

Develop - Launch Sustainability Global Expansion

xxxxxx

Get Investor

Call Escalator

Launch

Web Site

First 10 - Tier1

Paying

Customers

NZ

Cashflow

+VE

Australia

3 + 2 FoundersSalary for

Founders

REAL

Cashflow

+VE

Launch

Australia Site

Sign up 10

Aus Clients30

NZ Clients

Australian

Competitor come to NZNeed

early adopters

Fund Aus

Expansion

Sub

campaign

expand

Team

upgrade

infrastructure

Sub Aus

campaign

Research

next market

Office Lease

$1M rev$5M rev

www.succinctstories.com

MILESTONE CHART

Escalator Service


INVESTMENT

• Your Valuation Logic

Remember 30x rule

• When and how much?

• What am I going to use it for?

Investment:

realistic !!! Exit

16

Escalator Service


WHY BELIEVE ME?

• My biggest success - failure …and what I learnt

• My team & advisors …why are they on the team?

• YOU are the only person to Pitch YOUR Business

• Break prejudices

People:

Why did we choose them?

Escalator Service


PRESENTATION DELIVERY

DO

• Have a succinct purpose

• Take control

• Engage

– Open with WOW! - Stories

– Eye contact – 1 point per person

• Vocal projection- variety

• Break objections prejudice's

• Use stage – room

• Use non PowerPoint aids

• Practice speaking – get help

• Entertain!

It takes more than three weeks to prepare a good impromptu speech. - Mark Twain

DON’T

• Apologise

• Bore audience – wrong content

• Talk to screen

– read from screen

• Fashion

– show sweat, too hot

• Ask questions,

that do not change content

• Run over time ( 20 + 20 min)

• Play in the dark –death by ppt!

17

Escalator Service


DEATH BY POWERPOINT

• Create with post–it notes first

• Different screen vs hand-outs

• Manage Content (~2 min per slide)

– 1 diagram–picture presentation challenge

• Balance Professional Graphics – Text

• High contrast – simple templates

• Get drivers license

– Take control

– Space bar, F5, B

– File size

– Video and multi-media

• Banner advertising & contact

LESS IS MORE “Power point is only a support actor”

DIAGRAMS

NOT TEXT

Single Focus:

-Lead Story headline

USP:

Images: www crestock.com www istock.com

Escalator Service


BUILDING SOUND BITES

PRODUCT: Problem - Solution

One thought Business Model:

Cost, margin,

volume

Competition:

-Reaction

- Merger?

Milestones:

Simple diagram

People:

Why we choose them

Forecast:

Believable because… Growth strategy

Investment:

realistic !!! exit

PRODUCT: context segment

USP:

CUSTOMER measures success by…

QUANTIFY

18

Escalator Service


Succinct Stories

Recipe • 3 Min Version first

• Choose one lead story

• Sound bite construction

• WHAT – not how

• Contrast (before / after)

• SIMPLE and repeatable

• language of customer

• memory hooks

• be different !

• WOW opening - passion

• USP

• Customer Stories

• Quantify Customer Gain

• Acknowledge competition

don’t sell them

• People

• Business Model $$$

• Strategy and Revenue Momentum - Plan

• Real - valuation

Escalator Service


BOOKS

Patrick Renvoise

&

Christophe Morin

www.Salesbrain.net

Neuromarketing

(Value propositions & Presentations)

Chip & Dan Heath

Made to Stick

www.madetostick.com

Alexander Osterwalder

&

Yves Pigneur

Jon Steel

http://www.salesbrain.net/

http://www.madetostick.com/

19

Escalator Service

www.growthmanagement.co.nz © 2010 Growth Management Consulting Ltd

THANK YOU

Mark Robotham

[email protected]

021 61 8850

More Training: www.InvestmentReadyTraining.co.nz

Apply for Capital Raising Help: www.escalator.co.nz 0800 822 748

Succinct Stories: www.succinctstories.com

Blog: www.succinct.co.nz – more pitch tips



http://www.investmentreadytraining.co.nz/

http://www.escalator.co.nz/

http://www.succinctstories.com/

http://www.succinct.co.nz/

Mark Robotham GM Escalator Service www.SuccinctStories.com www.Escalator.co.nz

“I didn’t have time to write a short letter, so I wrote a long one instead.” Mark Twain

Check that your pitch doesn’t work equally as well for your competitor?

Is your business standing out from the crowd? If your business is not firing on all cylinders – fix your pitch! Most businesses suffer from the “curse of knowledge”, deluded in their own belief that their marketing messages work – hell they understand them, why shouldn’t their potential customers?

Are your sales not what they should be? Are you failing to get interest in your investment pitch or perhaps your business is just not firing on all cylinders? Then there is a high chance your elevator pitch is not working. The trouble is you as the author, the one who has been working with this for years, is the worst person to craft an effective message to describe your business. You are leaving your audiences wondering “what the hell do you do, and why should I give a damn” Clarity of purpose – creates better results No employee comes to work with sabotage in mind, yet most business leaders are not providing their staff clarity around what the focus of their business is. Ask your business colleagues “what do we do?”‐ your elevator pitch. Ask your receptionist, bookkeeper, technical guy and CEO. Are the messages all the same? Are they all about an outcome that your customer will pay for? Most businesses fail to reach their potential due to of lack of clarity around what their purpose for being is, and more importantly not focusing on activities that add high value to their customers.

Take the Williams Formula one team mantra – “We make the car go faster”. Do I put part‐a in the car or part‐b? What makes the car go faster? Consider that with a smart elevator pitch everyone in your business is focused on the same outcome. Everyone is empowered to make smart decisions towards a common goal. For too long elevator pitches have been the domain of sales and marketing departments as sales

tools rather than core driving statements for the business and how it operates. Do all of your business (staff and customers alike) have a common view on what your business is all about? Smart pitches are the reason you get customers, investors, the best staff and your business achieves its goals. Take the time out to focus on your core message and elevator pitch: it takes time, focus and the power of the outsider viewpoint to craft an effective business pitch. Invest in getting some outside help in this important area of your business.

Tips for Powerful Pitches

- Open with an WOW statement that gets peoples attention

- Build your pitch with sound bites ‐ thoughts or points 10–30 seconds each

- Use the language of your target end customer - Focus on WHAT rather than HOW - Quantify customer value – using a customer’s

measure of success. If the outcome result is a change of greater than 30%, you have a true compelling need that a customer will pay for

- Articulate what makes you different ‐ Keep it Short (60 sec – 3min max) and succinct

Use memory hooks: - contrast ‐ life before and after purchase. - stories – relevant customer stories and

endorsements are proven to close deals 80‐100%

- props – Physical things to illustrate the point - Once you have your message, play with the

order of the sound bites to increase impact - Remember to stand out from the crowd you must

entertain and stimulate action ‐ If your product is technical, use a 10 – 30 sec “context” statement as an introduction, so anyone can understand relevance of your product or service

The Escalator Investment Ready Service is a NZTE funded programme that acts as an independent advocate and advisor, helping growth potential businesses prepare for and gain external capital investment. Escalator regularly runs 100% NZTE funded workshops on Pitching, How to gain Capital Investment as well as providing a capital raising service. Register online at www.escalator.co.nz Mark’s Blog: www.succinct.co.nz Twitter: @mrobotham

GrowthManagement.co.nz

creating your succinct story - amazon s3...3 we’ll help you lift your game… escalator - the...

Documents