In light of the Young Social Entrepreneurs of Canada (YSEC)'s upcoming pitch competition, YSEC thought it would be great to share the perspective of somebody who’s had a lot of experience with pitch contests before. Below is the blog post I put together for YSEC.

So you’ve decided to enter a pitch competition? Let’s say you’ve clearly identified your business and covered the basics: management team credibility, problem, solution, target market, customers, marketing, business model (how you’ll make money), competitors, competitive advantage, demonstrated traction, funding amount, and how funds will be spent. Take it from someone who’s been both a judge and a participant in many pitch contests - whether you win or not, there are many benefits to participating.

1. Pitch competitions are a great exercise for opening your eyes to potential challenges, or identifying ways to evolve your business. Good intentions are not enough in social entrepreneurship. By helping your own business make money first, you will be able to achieve your social mandate in a sustainable manner. By continuing to bring rigorous business metrics, we can make social enterprises even more successful.
2. Pitch competitions have many winners. After the pitch, you’ll have more contacts for mentors, including peers and attendees in the audience. If you use the opportunity wisely, the competition can also be a marketing platform. We received our first angel investment in the off-hours of a competition. Whether it is a 30-second elevator pitch or a 20-minute presentation, a pitch is a such a short time frame for fully evaluating a company, so follow up with your contacts.
3. Remember, the judges are not your jury. A competition usually has a panel of expert judges that are required to pick a winner. Their expertise may be outside your sector. More importantly, what does any one panelist really know? The old story is nine out of 10 companies funded by venture capitalists fail. Even the experts gamble. Therefore, the customer is your only real jury. So on your next pitch, look to demonstrate market traction with your customers.

In conclusion, beware of assuming post hoc ergo propter hoc.* Do not believe the winning company pitched well solely because they prepared well. They probably won because they had a good business idea, which was reflected in their pitch. So, if you are a serious entrepreneur, my advice is to work on your business.

* Post hoc ergo propter hoc is Latin for after this, therefore because of this.

Photo credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/11139043@N00/1439804758/

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