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Companies invest millions in fancy CRM systems but forget to train frontline employees on customer service.

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Marketers create multi-channel campaigns but forget to make sure their website works properly on mobile.

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Founders (especially those in tech) spend the majority of their pitch explaining their solution… but forget to explain the problem they are solving. 

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I’ve oversimplified, but you get the jist: it’s easy to overlook the basics when you’re so focused on the solution. 

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We watch a lot of pitches at Unsensible. We’re the mature age students at pitch comps (that’s our team there in the front row). And we see a lot of early-stage founders through the doors of our Pitch Pit. Spending too much time on the solution instead of answering the more basic questions VCs ask is one of the most common pitfalls for tech founder pitches.

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So step away from your slide deck and go get a pen and paper. Then answer these three basic questions as simply as you can. Do it well and you’ll be on the fast train to fund raising town, or customer town, or whichever town you’re trying to get to. The point is, you’ll get there quicker.

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First question. 

What problem are you solving?

The more specific, the better. You want to hook your audience with something they can relate to. This is what everyone’s talking about when they tell you to start with a story.

Problem statement checklist

▢ A relatable example or anecdote to hook the audience

▢ Insights about the market to show deep understanding

▢ Data to demonstrate this is a big and important problem to solve

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Example:

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Vague

"Cybersecurity is becoming more important for businesses in Asia."

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Good

"Large financial institutions in Singapore are spending an average of $10 million SGD annually on cybersecurity measures, yet remain vulnerable to 65% of common data breaches due to disconnected security systems."

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Better

"Last year, Nova Bank experienced a significant data breach despite investing $12 million SGD in their cybersecurity infrastructure. The breach occurred because their fragmented security systems failed to detect a key vulnerability, leaving sensitive customer data exposed. Our analysis shows major banks in Singapore typically spend $10 million SGD annually on cybersecurity, yet still face an average 65% risk of data breaches. CISOs from leading Singaporean banks all pointed to the lack of integration between their security tools as the primary problem."

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Next question.

Who are you solving it for?

When you've built a powerful technological solution, it's tempting to showcase every potential application. But you end up losing focus and confusing your investors about who you’re trying to target. The more specific you are, the more credibility you build. It also makes it easier for investors to envision your go-to-market strategy and initial growth path.

Ideal customer checklist

▢ Define your ideal customer by different parameters, e.g. size, industry and geography

▢ Detail the customer's pain points and why the current options are inadequate

▢ Name some examples of ideal customers

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Example:

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Vague

"Delivery in Southeast Asia is complicated."

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Good

"Small to medium-sized e-commerce businesses in Jakarta, Indonesia, face average delivery delays of 3-5 days and lose approximately 15% of sales due to unreliable last-mile logistics."

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Better

"Last quarter, 'Toko Ceria,' a popular online handicrafts store in Jakarta with $300,000 in annual sales, experienced a surge in customer complaints and lost repeat business due to frequent delivery delays and lost packages. They spent a significant portion of their week resolving these issues and issuing refunds. Our research shows small to medium Indonesian e-commerce lose an average of 12% of their yearly revenue because of inefficient last-mile logistics. Store owners in Jakarta consistently report existing delivery options are too slow, lack tracking visibility, and are often unreliable."

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Final question.

Why are you the right team to solve it?

A particularly important one for early-stage startups. If you’ve successfully established there is a problem worth solving, you still need to convince investors (or potential customers and partners) that you’re a safe bet.

Team checklist

▢ Highlight unique insights, experience and expertise that give your team a competitive edge

▢ Link your team’s personal passion and commitment to the problem you’re solving and/or customer you’re targeting

▢ Show a diverse and complementary set of skills

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There you go. Three seemingly simple questions for a punchy pitch.

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Now obviously there are other questions to answer - I know you knew this. So once you’re confident you’ve covered the fundamentals, head over to our startup handbook to see the list of questions VCs will likely ask and get cracking.

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