This event is open to anyone in the Start It or Build It cohorts of the Venture Program.

Often, you only have 30 seconds to grab the attention of a prospective customer or investor. Having a strong elevator pitch – one aligned among all the members of your team – is critical toward helping investors, customers, prospects, and employees understand what you do.

This workshop will include a discussion of the elements necessary for a perfect elevator pitch, as well as pitch practice with your peers for real-time feedback.

Please do the following homework before the workshop:

1. Draft your pitch! According to Y Combinator, your elevator pitch should be easily digestible, “… like baby food.” In other words, it should be clear, succinct, and get right to the heart of what you do and why it matters. It may be helpful to use Techstars’ elevator pitch template: “For {customers} that have {problem x}, we {what you do!}” While it’s not necessary to stick to this exact template, try to stay close to the key terms: What is the problem? Who are the customers? What do you do to solve that problem?

2. Watch this Techstars video for more detailed info on this template.

3. Bring your pitch to the workshop!

This session is for team members participating in the i-lab’s Venture Program. Registration is available via the i-lab portal (click below) or through the program calendar. If you are a Harvard affiliate who would like to join this session or if you don’t have access to the i-lab portal, please email i-lab@harvard.edu.

Register here: https://my.innovationlabs.harvard.edu

Looking for an easy way to get to the i-lab? The new SEC Direct line brings you from the Quad and Harvard Square to the Science and Engineering Complex stop, a 1-minute walk from the Harvard Innovation Labs. Find more details here.