In such a quick pitch there won’t be time to talk about your entire business plan — so these 3 are the most important things to weave in:

6. Differentiation — What truly sets you apart from your competition — without bashing them of course — who knows it one of their Founders or Funders are in the audience???

7. Monetization — How are you going to make money?

8. “Opportunization” — Yes, I’m aware it’s not a real word, but it rhymes with the previous 2 😉 Don’t just state the obvious “Huge Market” facts (those are important and can be shown or told in the opening.) This is the “Why us, why now?” This is the place to really show movement in trends and opportunities, bring in quotes from major sources — have there been major fundings or acquisitions among your competitors? Did an industry leader or a research firm like Gartner, Forrester or the likes say that a solution like yours is missing? Are there market trends among your users showing a shift in behavior? Was there a change in law or regulations mandating people or companies to find a solution like yours? Etc.

9) Team — In such a brief time you will not be able to review each team member’s entire resume — so state the assets of the team as a whole. Why are they the team to execute on this? What experience and unfair advantages do they have to make this a reality? If you have noteworthy Advisory Board Members, you can mention them briefly since that adds credibility to your pitch.

10) The Ask* — I put a star next to this because it’s important to check with the program or competition you’re pitching for if they want you mentioning your fundraising and how. It’s a regulatory issue. So check in with them — at the very least you can say something like “We’re currently raising our Seed Round and would be happy to speak with you later about it.”

11) Inspiring Ending — It’s so frustrating for me to see a great pitch that ends with “Um, Well, that’s it. Thank you!” Really? That’s the best you can do? Close off the story you began with, end with an inspiring quote, lead them to the bigger vision for the company — something that leaves them as excited as they were when you started.