Be to the point, don't arrive late and look neat.
These are some elements of the perfect pitch.
I'll talk about how you can present yourself to an investor
with Gertjan Tienkamp of the crowdfunding platform Geldvoorelkaar
Roy Spit, director of Qredits and Claudio Gerardi, owner of Fietseria.
Claudio. -Hi, hello.
Hello. How did your presentation go? Did it go well?
For me, it was easy to get a line to follow.
So: where do I have to put this, I have to find the right info.
And how did it go? Where you relaxed or stressed?
No, I was a bit stressed, but...
At the end I was sure that the idea got good walue, value, sorry.
Okay, so that relaxed you a little bit? -Yes, that was my calm point.
How did you prepare exactly?
I wrote down a business plan, which was not big. Just three pages.
I put in the business plan some numbers about provision.
I also included some picture of the bike because at the time people
couldn't imagine how pizza bike look like.
Then, also I added something about my private life
which was my income at the moment, which job I was doing on the time.
So that was very complete.
What important tips did you receive from the Chamber of Commerce and Qredits?
I received a lot of important tips from these two entities.
The first one, and the most important, was a right form of business plan.
From the Chamber of Commerce I received marketing research
which was specific for my field.
Moreover, I received tips on how to deposit my trademark
because that was my biggest problem:
How to protect my idea, as such a new idea.
They helps me a lot.
So, they direct me to another association, which is the BOIP.
They help me also on how to edit the trademark deposit.
Okay, and did you also get tips like, did you have to be a BV or not?
Yes, this was another important question on the time.
Because I was working as a ZZP'er.
And I asked if for the Fietseria I should make a BV.
But, luckily, they suggested me to continue on that way.
Then if the Fietseria would get value
then you can transform it in a BV.
Yeah.
And Roy, what does a good presentation consist of?
Well, let's say we visit all our...
Or most of our applicants.
When it's an existing business, we visit them at their business.
When they're a start-up we visit them at their home.
So, it's very important for us to visit the applicant in their own environment.
What we see, I wouldn't recommend to open the door in your sleeping outfit...
Do people actually do that? -People do that.
So, clean up the house and make a cup of tea or coffee.
And add pictures like Claudio did. And let us feel that you really want to do that.
Not that you're on social benefits and you say:
'There was nothing else I could do, so let's start up a business.'
We have to feel that you fit the business that you want to have.
So, that's actually the main advice I can give.
Be yourself. -That's a good tip.
Do you have anything to add to that?
At crowdfunding the presentation is online and you present to investors.
So, an investor decides in five minutes if they're going to invest or not.
The story has to be very clear and simple.
If you have a very difficult or complex product
then make a video, add some pictures.
In that way an investor can easily and quickly decide whether they want to invest.
Is it about the entrepreneur's likeability? -Yes, it's very much about the likeability.
Investors at crowdfunding
are about profit and are about
the returns on their investments but also: is it a nice entrepreneur?
What's the background, what's the motivation behind it?
And, eventually, do I have a good feeling with the guy I'm going to invest in, or girl?
And you get goodies as well, right, when you...
Yeah, we do advise to use incentives
like a discount or a part of the product
you're willing to offer to your investor.
Netherlands Chamber of Commerce has also lined up practical tips for pitching.
Personalize your presentation, every investor is different.
Explain why you want to start your business. What's your passion?
Stick to the essence of your story.
Practice your pitch with friends or acquaintances and/or in front of the mirror.
Keep it short and simple.
Gertjan, in what way does a digital presentation differ from one in person?
A digital presentation, you can't discuss or get a reply to your investors.
So, the story has to be very clear, very simple, like you just said.
But also must not raise any questions.
What makes your bike unique? -What makes my bike unique?
My bike is unique because it's the biggest bike on the market.
The biggest pizza bike on the market.
You can find bike capable to bake 200 pizza.
Only getting your bike, cycling around, stop on the spot.
Put up your structure and then you can bake 200 pizzas.
The structure is a tent as well? -Yeah, it's a handcraft tent.
All the system, I have built it on my own.
Wow. -The only help I got for the structure
was from a welder
and from my father. -Very good. That sounds unique.
Roy, when entrepreneurs present their plans at Qredits
which is most important? Is it the numbers, the story or the entrepreneurs themselves?
When we have the plan and we've read it, we want to know who's the entrepreneur.
Who's the man or woman behind the plan. So, the entrepreneur comes first.
We get curious because we want to know who's the man with a plan for a pizza bike.
A fietseria. That's the most important thing.
So, the story and to know the story we have to meet Claudio.
Or we make a video call, that's also very common.
To speak people on a WhatsApp.
And then the numbers. You talk about the numbers, you talk about the financial plan.
I really would recommend to also put some effort in the financial plan.
Because we see a lot of people telling a lot about the story
but they don't have the skills to write a financial plan.
And how do you actually find out who you can work with or not, Gertjan?
Well, a good entrepreneur knows what he's talking about.
He knows his market, he knows his branch, his bike. He knows everything.
It really comes with passion and convincement in their story
and their business plan.
What if you're not so good at pitching? What then?
At Geldvoorelkaar we help the entrepreneur
to get a good pitch for the investors.
So, videos, pictures and a really nice presentation.
But I think it's not a very difficult way
to get some help if you're not really that good in it.
Do you agree? -Yes, it's not the main thing.
What we want to do, is to meet Claudio in his own environment.
If he's a good pizza baker, and if he has the right skills like hospitality to sell them.
And pitching is... I think for crowdfunding it's more important than for us.
But I think you also help people with writing a pitch, that's not a problem.
Let's be honest, for a bricklayer
it's not the most important thing to have a good pitch.
If you are a consultant, we look at how you pitch yourself, but that's another thing.
Just a small part of the market, it's very important to have a good pitch.
You give tips for that as well? -Exactly.
Do you want to know from entrepreneurs who want to start a business in the Netherlands
why they want to do it here?
Yes, we will always ask them.
We want to know why they're here, do they have relatives or family over here?
What's the reason they come over here?
Because we also want to know, what's the risk that they go back with a loan?
We ask these questions and we want to have straight answers.
Did you practice your presentation, Claudio? And how did you do it?
Yeah, I practiced my presentation
but only on the numbers side of my business plan.
Because for the rest, it was quite natural for me.
Because I built up from the first screw my bike.
I'm a pizza lover. Pizza is something in my blood. You can say it like that.
So that part wasn't difficult for you. -No.
What would have done if you hadn't succeeded? Did you have a plan B or C?
Yes, my plan B was just to go back to my old job.
Start to do a pizza again, and pay back my debts.
That was my B plan.
Sounds like a good plan B. -It is.
Thank you so much for being here and sharing your expertise and experiences.
You're welcome.
We've come to the end of this webinar. Thank you for watching.
For more information please visit business.gov.nl.