Entrepreneurship
Pitch, please!
Entrepreneur Faizan Syed shares pitching pro-tips for Red Bull Basement applicants.
Someone wise once said ‘life’s a pitch’. By that, what he or she must have meant is that we spend our lives pitching and selling our ideas, convictions, thoughts and beliefs. When it comes to the world of entrepreneurship, individuals are often enthusiastic about their unique ideas but rarely is anyone good at crafting a perfect pitch that may convince the potential investors to buy into it.
Digital agency East River's Founder Faizan Syed was one of the speakers, along with Airlift cofounder Ahmed Ayub, at the Red Bull Basement Karachi launchpad on Saturday, October 17, 2020. While Ayub spoke about the technology’s impact on university campuses, Syed took the stage to impart tips on how to pitch your idea successfully.
Red Bull Basement - Karachi Launchpad Session
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According to Syed, the process can be broken down in five simple steps. “This can be applied to any pitch, be it a business idea, marriage proposal or to your parents to renovate the house,” he says.
1 - KNOW YOUR PRODUCT.
“You need to know what you’re selling,” says Syed. “The product could be you, let’s say, in a job interview. You are selling your skills, your ability. You need to know what the strengths and weaknesses of your product are.”
Faizan Syed - Entrepreneur from Pakistan
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2- KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE
Syed has some valuable advice on this point. “You must know who you’re talking to. Are you talking about cats to a bunch of dog-lovers? If so, how do you make it interesting for them so that they are engaged?” he says. “You have to replace the cat in your story with a dog. You talk about how similar they are.”
Practically, what Syed suggests is taking the core essence or characteristics of your idea, your product and wrapping it up in a packaging that’s tailored to your audience. Either that, or choosing the right audience and catering to them.
Faizan Syed - Founder & CEO East River
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“You need to know what the audience wants to hear. You’ve spent weeks and months getting to know your product and now when you’re in front of an audience, you need to spend all your time getting to know the audience.”
Syed says the biggest mistake anyone can make is not knowing the audience beforehand and studying them. “Never show up at a pitch without knowing who you are going to be talking to. And the person who you are talking to depends on multiple factors, including the company or organization they represent and what ideas that company stands for.”
Audience at the Red Bull Basement, Karachi Launchpad Session
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3- APPROACH AND PRESENT
“Now that you’ve done the homework of knowing your product and the audience, you approach and present,” says Syed. “The approach could be from submitting a resume online or meeting them in person at an event or university and scheduling an appointment. The approach could be in an interview or the pitch itself, in the way you converse and talk. It matters how you present – are you crisp and on point, how you dress, how you articulate your thoughts, what language you use – all of these elements come in the approach and presentation.”
The Pakistani entrepreneur says your audience has already made a decision when you step on to the stage, before you even speak.
Faizan Syed shares his experiences at the Karachi Launchpad event.
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4- DETERMINE OBJECTION
After you present, you ask questions as immediate feedback on the presentation will help address the issues at hand, if any.
Syed suggests being blunt in your inquiry as it helps come both parties to an understanding easily. “Most people here in Pakistan don’t ask questions. So, after the presentation, you ask your audience or investors if they have any questions and they say no, you ask them a question. You should ask them if there were any issues or shortcomings in your presentation. You should ask if they think you will be able to pull this idea off and deliver.”
Co-Founder, Airlift - Ahmed Ayub speaks at the Red Bull Basement event
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5- ADDRESS THE OBJECTIVE AND CLOSE
Syed says once you determine the objections, you must address them immediately and close. He recounts his experience when he went for an internship interview at Lehman Brothers while studying at Cornell University in New York, USA. He says his grades were average and he was a fan of cars and raced often.
“I didn’t have good grades or any experience in finance sector. I went into the interviewing know that. And I knew that my interviewer was a Cornell University alumnus and was supportive towards the university’s students.”
Syed says he did well in the finance and accounting-related questions but felt the interviewer had concerns about his grades, which weren’t in the 90% bracket of the students the firm accepted. “I could tell she wasn’t happy about the answers I gave about my grades. So, once we were done with the interview, she asked if I had any questions. I said I had one question: ‘what is it about my candidacy that is of concern to you?’”
Faizan Syed
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The interviewer said it was a rather blunt question. Syed iterated that he wanted to address it before walking out of the room. She pointed out his grades and said that he didn’t stack up when compared to other applicants.
Syed’s response to the interviewer was that he was a big fan of cars. “I said I love cars and I drive a Pontiac GTO,” he says before listing down the vintage car’s specifications. “I said ‘But you know when I go racing on a race track, a Mini Cooper always outruns me just like it did against Ford Mustang in the 60s. You know why?’ She said ‘why?’ I said, ‘Because racing tracks have a lot of twists and turns, and the Mini is so agile that it adapts to the track, makes up for the lost time and takes the lead. And life in investment banking is full of twists and turns and you need someone who’s nimble and agile to take the lead. That’s why the guy with the numbers will never be as good as the guy who’s agile and can adapt, and that’s why you need me.’”
Like Syed, you address the objection, and close.
And if you’re still wondering, yes, Syed got the job.
