Someone who is starting or continuing a business knows the importance of pitching. Sometimes, pitching to friends and family can be more complicated than pitching to strangers. Friends and family should be seen as one of your primary investment possibilities. Those can contribute to important connections, investment, and immediate business.
However, we have plans for entrepreneurs, to talk about your business with your friends, family, and community.
1. Customize your elevator pitch
Entrepreneurs should always have an elevator pitch ready for any event. People have an attention span of about eight seconds. It’s important to explain what your business is, why it’s important, your business model, your market opportunity, and your value proposition.
For example, when pitching to someone with no business background looks different than pitching to your wealthy uncle, so when talking to friends and family avoid using industry slang or acronyms that they may not understand.
2. Explore friends and family with relevant experience
Starting with those who understand your business or industry not only helps your pitch conversation but also provides business advice and guidance. Explore well-connected friends, family, and members of your community who have experience relevant to your business.
3. Evaluate financial availability and ask for support
Evaluate which of your friends and family could best support you. Don’t waste a difficult conversation on a friend or family member you know isn’t in the best place to support you. Carefully explain how you’ll use the funds and outline different milestones you anticipate reaching.
4. Document the funding
These relationships are the most delicate as they’re built on deeper, more personal grounds. Respect the risk and draw up a formal contract that holds everyone accountable. Don’t rely only on a handshake for any deal, particularly one made with friends or family.
5. Keep communication lines open
Stay communicating the status and success of your business to your friends, family, and community. Don’t limit your pitch to a one-time conversation. If they invested funds, keeping them updated is a must.
Consistently reporting about your business is a way to keep you remembered and open to referrals. Consider social media and email blasts as options to pitch your business and update your community.
6. Draft your business clearly
It’s essential to draft and communicate your business goals and potential success. While most friends and family won’t read your entire business plan. You should be prepared to deliver your executive summary regarding your target market, financials, and overall strategy. Having a precise executive summary adds credibility to your idea and showcases forward-thinking on your part.
Sharing your business plan with your friends and family not only increases the chances of gaining business from them but also equips them to be advocates and recommenders of your business.
Why you should pitch your business to friends and family?
Here are a few reasons why important to pitch to and seek the support of friends, family, and the community around you:
- They know and trust you
- They can bring in business
- It builds up the community
- It provides proof for other investors
How to announce your business to your network?
Here are ways you can introduce your business to your networks:
1. Make a list of everyone you could reach out to.
Email contacts, LinkedIn connections, and Facebook contacts. You might send this announcement message over email, in a direct message, or share a variation as a social media post.
2. Plan your emails. Plan
Reach out to 5-10 (or more) contacts each day
3. Send your emails and track responses.
To track your responses, keep a note of the date you reach out to them, note their response, and track any potential business it could bring your way, and note an appropriate follow-up date based on their response.
4. Meetups and gatherings
Develop a business plan to help your pitch
What’s the best way to develop and share your business plan with friends, family, and your community?
Sure, your friends and family may not be investors looking to give you millions, but they’re sources of support. It can also bring in new business and connections you would’ve otherwise never had. Bridge the gap, share your business plan, and start pitching your business to those around you.
About Finline!
Finline is an online platform for creating financial reports for getting bank loans and investments. It’s like ‘Canva’ but for financials. If you are an entrepreneur looking for a bank loan, you need to have a well-crafted project report. We, at Finline will help you with that. Our team will help you create a powerful business plan in ten minutes. That too in your language. Also, all public and private sector banks working in India accept our project report. Click to create your report.