Let's Get Down to Business...

Official Rules of Engagement

 WELCOME TO

 THE PSU ELEVATOR PITCH/BUSINESS PLAN WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

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This Post explains the "Official Rules of Engagement." 

What is the Elevator Pitch Championship?

It's an opportunity for each team to earn extra-credit points.  The opportunity is available only to each team, not individual students.  It's not a mandatory requirement; competing in the championships is strictly optional.  The championships are a chance for each team to show off the hard work they've put into their business plans.  You'll get to do that by making a two-minute "Elevator Pitch" to an audience of your classmates and celebrity judges.

When

The competition is scheduled for the Course's 10th week. 

The Semi-Final Round will be on Tuesday and the Championship Round will be on Thursday.

High-powered Presentations for your Viewing Enjoyment

The University of Southern California's Marshall School of Business annually sponsors an International Business Case Competition.  Thirty undergraduate student teams from around the world travel to Los Angeles to compete.

The teams are given "the case" on Friday morning and have about 24 hours to analyze it and make a 20-minute presentation the following day.  And to make it even more interesting, the judges usually include the CEO of the company that's the subject of the case.

It's the largest and most prestigious competition of its type.  Below are three video excerpts from the 2008 competition showing the winning the team from the University of Auckland in action.  The case they had been given 24 hours earlier was a 44-page discussion of whether and how the Los Angeles Times could compete with digitized distribution channels.

Our Distinguished Alumni: On their Way to Fame and Fortune

Every now and then, we get to hear about the exploits of some of our alumni.

Some of them are on their way to the Executive Suite of a Fortune 500 company. Others are working at making the world a better place.

Then there are those who were infected by the entrepreneurial bug that bit them during our course.

If we were proud of them as students, think how we feel now when we see them out there dazzling investors, suppliers and customers with their energy and passion.

Here's the Kickstarter proposal (aka their Elevator Pitch) from "Cultured Caveman." In our Extra-credit competition, Heather and her team won a gold medal with their pitch about a Coffee Shop. Now look at what she's up to.

Hall of Fame

The extraordinary work of some of our students and their teams deserve special recognition.  Being selected for our Course's Hall of Fame ranks up there with getting an Academy Award or winning a Nobel Prize.  Here are some of our Gold Medal Winners and a few outstanding business plans.

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Our Gold-medal winners from Winter 2012 combined great business planning with even better presentation skills (and a dose of humor for good measure).  Best of all, they gave us a lesson in great teamwork:  Teams need leadership more than leaders and the Team always comes first.

 

According to our Spring 2011 Gold-medal winning team, there are two ways to get a good job in this tough economy.  First, get your business education at Portland State.  Next, and most important, hire them to match your skills with a great business.  That's why they're called, "Precision Placement."

 

 

The Gold-medal winning team from the Noon Section of Winter Term 2011 went the extra mile when they were challenged to do something to help their community.  High energy and even higher ideals were what the "Feed the Need" team was all about.  Congratulations on an outstanding performance.  I'll bet we'll hear more from this team of hyper-achievers!

 

The Gold Medal for the Two PM section of Winter Term 2011 went to a team that was "positively" fabulous.  Their high quality work and presentations "fit" them perfectly.  They never "paused" in their dedication to winning the gold. Congratulations to the "Pawsitively Fit" Team.   And the "very distinguished-looking gentleman" in the picture appreciated getting to spend a couple of days each week hanging out with these future business tycoons.

Fall 2010 concluded with another round of action-packed, thrill-filled elevator pitches.  The competition was fierce and the quality even better.  When the dust settled, the Noon Section's Viking List walked away with the Gold Medal.  Unfortunately, they didn't get their picture taken.  The Two PM Section winners - WeGo Bikes - didn't miss out.  What a photogenic group.  Nothing like a bunch of extra-credit points to bring out those smiles.



Spring Term 2010's winning team rocked the house.  Look at those winning smiles.  A bunch of extra-credit points and the Gold Medal gave them a whole new outlook.  Here's the Pets-a-Go-Go team.

 

 

From Winter 2010's Noon Section, this Gold-Medal Winning Team featured Hubert who was ably assisted by some two-legged future business managers.  Meet, what else, the "Howlin' Hounds."

 

 

The Gold Medal winners from Winter 2010's 2:00 PM Section made us wonder, "What's a Collar Cozy?"  When they finished, everyone wanted a cozy for their (pet's) collar.  Meet the Collar Cozy Team.

 

 

The Fall 2009 Noon Section included an "extra" who was a star performer and received his own Gold Medal.  Meet "Scruffy's" team:

 

 

The "Custom-Fit Cycling" Team from the Fall 2009 2:00 PM section won a Gold Medal but their favorite football team didn't win the "War for the Roses."

 

From the Spring 2009 section, here's "The Haven" team who also got special recognition for being the "Best-Dressed Team":

 

 

For your reading enjoyment, here are a few all-time great business plans submitted by some of our alumni:

Download Precision Placement

Download Pawsitively Fit

Download Choice Dog Care Business Plan

Download Scruffy's

Download The Green Bean Caffe

Download Collar Cozy

Special Achievement Awards

The Gold-medal winning team from Winter 2012 shared an amazing array of skills.  Their budgets always balanced and not a hint of channel conflict could be found. 

The DoggyVana Team really shined in their Gold-medal winning Elevator-pitch presentation:  It was a multi-media event that dazzled the crowd.  Their Pitch's "attention-getter" was a video that communicated their message with humor, subtlety and creativity.  Watch it a couple of times.  It's worth it.  Enjoy:  Download Doggyvana

Winter Term 2011's Noon Section featured a team that proposed an on-line dating service.  Its target market was college students.

Their theme was "Higher Love for Higher Education." And they were known as "The University of Love" or the "U of Love."

Their Elevator Pitch came close to winning a Gold Medal for them.  But it was their video presentation that earned them a Special Achievement Award and a special place in our Course's history.  Here it is: Download Busvid  Enjoy. 

Putting a Little Spin on your 'Vator Pitch

Here's one more pitch that's worth a look and a listen.  I know your pitches will be better, but this one's pretty good.

Here are a few things I noticed.

First, our "pitcher" is obviously nervous and excited.  Those aren't bad things but he needs to control all that positive energy.  Speak slower, don't sound over-rehearsed and be conversational. 

He leaves out a couple of important points that his audience picks up.  He's got the product down and has identified a market segment but hasn't thought through every angle of his distribution channel. 

On a positive note, the pitch ends with a clear "ask."  There's no doubt about what he wants.  Would you give him all the money he's asking for?

Perfecting your Pitch

Here are some helpful hints for perfecting your Elevator Pitch:  Download Perfecting your Pitch.

Remember that an Elevator Pitch is only an introduction.  All the details of your plan can come later.  Your task is to make an impressive first impression.  Explain in simple, straight-forward language, why customers will switch to your product and stay loyal to it. 

Don't bury your future financial partners in numbers (yet).  Your job is to convince your audience that you and your team are the ones who can make this happen. 

Your pitch has to be equal parts of passion and confidence.  If you don't believe in your product, how will anyone else?  How will you convince them that you can be trusted to do the right thing (always).

What's an Elevator Pitch?

The scene for an Elevator Pitch sets up like this:

Imagine you're alone waiting for an elevator in the lobby of a skyscraper.  The doors open, you walk in and, just as the doors start closing, someone yells, "Please hold the elevator." 

You stop the doors and a familiar looking person comes in.  As the doors close again, he says, "Thank you for holding the elevator.  Let me introduce myself.  I'm Paul Allen, the world's fourth or fifth richest person, depending on who's counting.  I'm here today scouting possible investment opportunities.  And I've not seen anything yet that interests me.  Do you know about any great ideas that I could invest in?  It looks like we'll have about a three-minute elevator ride together." 

You look at the copy of your business plan you're holding and say, "Mr. Allen, it just so happens that ..."

An unrealistic scenario?  Maybe yes, maybe no. 

There will be a handful of times during your business career (and life) when you get an opportunity something like this.  You may not be face-to-face with Paul Allen (or in an elevator), but you'll have the undivided attention of someone who can make something happen for you.  What are you going to say? 

How can you quickly and concisely say who you are, what you do (or can do) and why you will do it better? 

That's the challenge of an Elevator Pitch.  Will you be prepared, when the elevator doors close, to pitch your idea in a thoughtful, coherent and persuasive manner?

Remember the goal of an Elevator Pitch isn't to close the deal.  Your goal is to spark interest; to get an invitation to come back, make a detailed presentation and then close the deal. 

But it's the first impression that you make in your Elevator Pitch that will get you that opportunity.  Are you ready to make your best pitch? 

Who's Batting if you're the Pitcher?

The usual audience for "elevator pitchers" are venture capitalists.

Your new business doesn't have any cash flows yet so the friendly local commercial banker isn't interested in loaning you the cash you need.

You've also exhausted all your friends and family and your bank account is drained.

So you turn to VCs who will want to own a big chunk of your business in return for investing the cash you need.  But such a deal may not be a bad one.  Without their money it might take 5 to 10 years to grow your business.

What if you could get there in half the time and the business would be twice as big?  Would you be willing to sell half the business to do that? 

As you're thinking about how to make your pitch to the VCs, remember that they're only one "batter" on a very long list. 

Aren't you also going to have to pitch to your suppliers, employees, vendors, landlords and customers?  Won't they need to be persuaded to take a chance on your business idea?  The VCs are only one piece of a big puzzle.  Who else will be stepping into the batter's box when you're on the mound?

Download this file and watch and listen to David Rose's pitching lessons.  Everytime he says, "Venture Capital," substitute, "Supplier or Customer or New Employee."  Enjoy:  Download DavidSRose_2007U (Be patient.  It's a big file - 49.5 MB, but worth it)

Make your Best Pitch

Signing up for the Elevator Pitch World Championships isn't a mandatory course requirement. 

It's an opportunity for each team to "present" its business plan and earn a bunch of extra-credit points and "prizes."  More than that, it's a chance to have some fun and show off what you've accomplished.  It took a lot of hard work to get it done; the Elevator Pitch World Championships are a chance to get a return on your investment.

The "Rules of Engagement" post answered questions about "What is an Elevator Pitch?" and "What are the Championship's Ground Rules?"  This post will help you "Make your Best Pitch."