The key to an engaging presentation and startup pitch for investors is to hook them right from the start. Venture capitalists are usually experienced enough to sense if your pitch deserves their attention or not right from the very start.
Jamba has the right kind of story to hook you right off the bat. They created a solution that helps people with disabilities find meaningful work and get employed by the right companies with the right kind of conditions to support their growth and development.
The Business Case
Jamba is one of those startups whose idea we immediately decided to support. When they reached out to us, they just got confirmation that they will be pitching Bill Clinton’s Foundation in Boston.
This was a huge opportunity for them. If they win, they get one of the grants provided by the foundation. Simply put, the stakes were high for the incredible team of Joana and Iva.
The Solution
We worked with Iva (one of the co-Founders) and wrote the whole story of the talk first. The main goal was to touch the jury and their hearts. That’s why we decided to start off with shocking statistics that make it impossible for you to stay calm after you realize what they mean.
From there we contrasted that with how things can be improved and how Jamba can resolve this deep problem for society and humanity as a whole.
We merged that with all the stats, numbers, and perspectives a startup has to present — traction, investment opportunity, roadmap, etc.
For the type of startup that Jamba is, the financial overview showed impressive growth in revenue and a good balance between expenses and net profit. After all, no matter how noble the idea, if the numbers aren’t there — investors are unlikely to pitch in.
The Design
Once we agreed on the story, our design team took over. We developed Jamba’s brand a bit further. Their illustrations had to be adjusted a bit more in terms of color and size so they could deliver the right visual message.
There was an on-going theme where we wanted to use different colors for the slides that point out the problems and the ones that introduced the solutions. So we went with dark-themed slides that show what’s wrong, and light-themed slides that showcase how it can be fixed.
At some point, we wanted to make a visual connection between the investment slide and the main problem. So we turned to a dark-theme again to connect the issue with the reason why Jamba needed this kind of financial investment. We wanted to make the word “investment” huge, not the amount they were asking for.
This way we showed that for a problem this huge, the most important thing was the investment and the participation of the foundation in this huge effort, not the 200k that had to be raised.
The Results?
With the help of this presentation, Jamba managed to become one of the startups that won a grant from Bill Clinton’s Foundation. One of the biggest achievements the 356labs team has been a part of!
This proves that knowing how to build the right kind of presentation the exact goals you’re going for is the key to achieving them.
