Last month, leading up to Demo Day, we shared the core elements that every pitch should include. At Demo Day, we also heard advice from closing keynote speaker Tony Ma: “When you look at all great leaders, it’s about the ability to communicate your message and vision succinctly.”  

In the spirit of communicating your vision—and in celebration of hearing five successful pitches at Demo Day—we wanted to share a bit more advice about pitches. 

The “recipe” below can be followed to create a perfect 10-minute, impact-centric pitch. If you follow this recipe, think about limiting yourself to 10 slides, with roughly 1 minute allotted for each slide. Our recommended pitch “ingredients” are as follows: 

1. Title. Start by introducing yourself and what you’re working on. Set the tone early to carry you through the rest of your pitch. You could use a hook such as: 
   1. A bold statement
   2. A short story
   3. A surprising statistic
   4. A rhetorical question 
2. Problem. Explain the problem your innovation is addressing, and why there is a sense of urgency to solve this problem right now. Provide data and a story for a powerful message.
3. Solution. Describe your solution, making sure to connect how it can solve the problem. If you have any evidence of uptake or adoption of your solution, now is a good time to share it.
4. Value proposition. Share one clear, concise statement about the value your innovation delivers to your key user group. You can also talk about the key benefits your solution offers and why your solution stands out.
5. Impact model. Describe the change you want to create. Be specific and share a plan for how you will or are already measuring these outcomes.
6. Business model. Focus on your solution’s viability—how you’ll deliver value while also generating revenue. Reinforce how your financial growth will help you drive deeper impact.
7.  Financials. Highlight your financial projections over the next three years, making sure to share the assumptions that these projections depend on. Include revenues, expenses, and expected milestones. If you think your financial strategy will evolve over time, it’s OK to share this, too.
8. Competition. Prove how your innovation stands out from similar offerings. Explain your edge and reinforce your unique value.
9. Team. Showcase the people working on your cause. Emphasize their strengths and commitment and capacity to develop your solution. If your team currently has gaps, address these and outline a strategy for filling these gaps.
10. Ask. Share the amount of funding you need for the next phase, and explain how the funding will be used. Be sure to include milestones that the funding will help you reach. 

We hope this framework will help you the next time you need to succinctly communicate your vision!