ClearPitch42
The Ultimate Elevator Pitch Template
1.INTRO
is my Xth startup.
I/we have co-founders and/or people on the team.
The HQ is in , and we were founded months ago.
2.OVERVIEW
We’re focused on (target audience),
that helps/solves (problem),
by offering a (solution).
If you have time left or think it’s relevant, two optional additions are:
We are different/better than because of (competition).
The time is now because (market).
3.CLOSING
To date, we’ve had (traction)
ie. Revenue, funds raised, active users, PoC’s > LOI’s > signups > surveys, etc.
My ask is .
If you’re in the early-stages of building and don’t have any traction, replace with:
My past experience is in which is why we’ll win. (relation).
Using this ClearPitch42 format, each pitch will be - yep you guessed it: 42-seconds, which is 8-9 glorious lines that cover the basic information the listener needs to understand you, the startup, it’s stage, and your ask.
Only then, will you need to dig into the other areas that are of interest to the listener/investor, such as: why you started the company, what you were doing before this, how you and the co-founders met, your long-term vision, go-to-market strategy, competitors, etc.
Example • Melanie Perkins, Canva
1.INTRO
Canva is my second startup.
I am one of two co-founders and have one full-time developer on the team.
The HQ is in Sydney, Australia, and we were founded two years ago.
2.OVERVIEW
We enable people who have no design experience, to create professional designs using expansive pre-made templates.
Canva has combined a simple-to-use web interface, Adobe InDesign and Google Docs – which will disrupt the desktop publishing industry.
3.CLOSING
To date, our 3,000 users have been spending an average of $300 a year.
My ask is $1.5M, that will help us get to 3M users prior to our Series A.
Why was this made?
I read and listen to about 120 pitches per week. What I love is that all the ideas and the people behind them are unique – what I don’t love is that everyone has a different pitching format.
Sometimes, I’m yearning for more information, and other times I’m waiting for it to stop. Not because I’m impatient, or a bad person - neither is the investor or the friend you’re pitching - but because we know you’re super passionate and can speak for hours on it, we want to understand the core details so we can learn if we can be helpful as early as possible.