Startup Competitions: Funding Through Pitching
Startup competitions are good opportunities for raising funds that are available to startups. All participants take part by submitting their business plans or presenting a working sample of their products. The most outstanding projects or business plans get advanced until the competition's penultimate stage, where a winner is selected. The idea or business plan must be presented in an engaging pitch, in an understandable manner, that sells the idea to anyone worth the investment. By definition, startup competitions reward the perceptively best idea or business plan pitched by individuals or teams. The reward may be in cash or in kind, a certain amount of money or appliances, tools and equipment, as compensation for the winners in their category.
Things to consider while planning: stick with competitions most directly relevant to your industry, niche or focus. Organizers attract established entrepreneurs who are willing to help develop entrepreneurs that are coming up. Find a nearby competition, no matter how small, to reduce the expense of transportation. Aiming at massive competitions with a broader reach can get tedious, unlike securing a place in a local competition; even though the reward might be high, the chance of winning makes it a gamble. Go all in at the start to show your team's credibility, and show that you will yield high returns. Perfect your pitch by including all the necessary ingredients, but do not be excessive and thus damage your chances.
The advantages: participants stand to take home sensible money if they win or place. It creates an opportunity to network and gain experience. It gives opportunities to broaden your talent pool, as you get to meet other talented people in your field. The media attention that follows most of these competitions can bring your company into the limelight. And the competitions offer a rare opportunity to market your product or service to interested parties without paying a single marketing fee. Proof of concept is all you need.
The disadvantages: competitions demand participants' time and attention for weeks or even months. Travel costs, rent and other expenses add up when you travel to meet sponsors and financiers. And the startup community is kindly tolerant of failure, but its capacity to ignore ill-conceived ideas isn't unlimited, so be prepared for the prospect of a genuinely tragic showing.