How do you pitch a venture?

Here are the steps, and the likely questions you have to address to get funding, at each stage of the venture development process. The farther along you are, the more likely you will achieve investment.

1. Good product/service idea
Key questions: Is it a solution to a job users are trying really hard to get done? Who is the competition? Will they fail fast?
Most important point to make: About your market insight.

2. All-star team
Key question: Has the team succeeded in the past? Do they have special knowledge or skills in the area? Are they committed to the idea?
Most important point: Why the team you have assembled is the right one.

3. Breakthrough technology
Key question: Who owns the patents? Are there any good substitutes?
Most important point: Barriers to entry.

4. Prototype product/service
Key question: What will it take to launch a working product or service?
Most important point: Show a prototype or engineering resumes.

5. Working product
Key question: What does the product do? What’s the launch plan? Who’s on the marketing team?
Most important point: Live demonstration.

6. Micro-scale results
Key question: Who is the customer, and how do you know? What is the potential market size? What are the business economics?
Most important point: Lessons learned.

7. Promising results
Key question: Can you monetize that traffic (or drive traffic to that profitable destination?) Do you know why you’ve achieved those results?
Most important point: Revenue potential.

You can see that few individuals possess the necessary range of skills to accomplish all of these steps on their own. You need deep thinkers who conceive the vision - you, plus those who can get the innovation really to work, and those who communicate the advantages of the innovation so it is used.