A startup pitching to a giant:
- This will save you millions of cost!
- Your users are asking for it!
- We enable you to break into new markets!
- Your competitors already have something like this!
25 minutes later with 5 minutes left: “convinced?”
“Yeah sure, but we have a policy not to work with startups that might go bankrupt tomorrow…”
It is important to find out the major concern of the giant before pitching. When someone mumbles in a phone call that they have a policy not to work with startups, it is most likely not a side comment. Focus your pitch on this issue. Not explicitly, but in between the lines.
- Show your blue chip investor base
- Show the partnerships you have with very established players
- Show your positive cash flow
- Show your customer list
- Show them anything that might support the point
The real battle is here. Maybe it is a hard one to win, but at least you should try.