As I am making slow but steady progress with my presentation app I have had a chance to sit on the other side of the table: being the one who pitches an idea, rather than my usual role as a presentation designer who gets pitched with business plans. Observations:
- Yes, not everybody loves your idea like you do (but all designers do)
- Most people form an opinion about your business without actually understanding/getting to what the truly great thing about it is
- Spending dollars on designers becomes a whole different thing when it is your own money
- When you live and breathe your own story, you actually do a lousy job pitching it to an outsider who has never heard of it. Having a pitch deck at hand (guess what, I do not have one) might actually be handy to slow myself down and take someone to the story that I assume to be common knowledge.
- People point out - rightfully - that it is not only about product, I need a market strategy
When listening to these people I hear myself speak when discussing client presentations. Funny. In any case, the process is making me a better presentation designer.