Welcome to Friday Funding Chats, your weekly accountability buddy in your small business funding journey. Every Friday we deliver top fund picks and tips to your inbox, saving you time and making your funding journey an empowering one.
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🤑 Three new opportunities plus the accelerator that you loved from last week.
🤑 Part 2 - How to pitch and make people care
🤑 Need help, book a call with me
In last week’s newsletter you loved this amazing accelerator opportunity from Foundervine for Southwark based (or serving Southwark) businesses. Yours truly is supporting the programme too, it’s a great one so here it is again.
Investment Bethnal Green Tech for Good Programme - a 6 week accelerator course and support, with a £60,000 investment for a negotiable share of your business. An amazing launchpad for impact and social justice driven tech startups looking to scale.
Grant National Lottery Heritage Grant Funds - open to not-for-profits and community organisations to save heritage (the designation of ‘heritage’ is fairly broad so check as you may be eligable.) With grants from £10,000-£250,000.
Grant AXA Angel Startup Competition - you still have a few weeks to apply for this. Grants of £25,000 are open to 4 startups (under 2 years), with a year of mentoring from an incredible Angel.
These Top Opportunities were lifted from the Funding Opportunities Database, a unique listing of over 40 grants, awards, accelerators and other funding opportunities for your small business (with a focus on creatives and social & environmental impact). Upgrade for just £4 a month and get Friday Funding Chats Live, and interviews with founders who have funded.
Last week I wrote about the mistakes I see people make when they are pitching. I never like to leave people hanging without a solution so this week I wanted to follow up with some actionable tips to avoid these mistakes. (If you missed last week, it provides context so you can read edition #47 it here.)
Believe it or not, there is an art to being good at pitching and it’s not necessarily inherent. I love watching people pitch, because I learn something every time. So before you start, I highly urge you to get down to a demo day or a pitching competition and watch this in action. I take lengthy mental notes and realised that the good pitchers had something in common. They made me care about the problem they are solving. There are several clever ways to do this, so let’s discuss.
They know their audience - before you pitch, learn who your audience will be, and who the judges will be. Get weird and stalk them on LinkedIn, find out what they care about, what values they hold. What charities are they on the Board of, what previous clients have they worked with? Now appeal to their values. You won’t hit everyone equally, but framing your pitch to address their pain points or their perceived issues with the world, will hook them.
Clearly communicate the problem - This is the first part of the pitch so speak clearly, don’t use jargon but do use examples. Statistics, feedback and case studies help to humanise the problem (more on this shortly) and clearly illustrate the issue. Pause at pertinent points to ensure they land well with the audience.
Humanise the problem - A first hand case study can go miles here. I love when founders bring up a picture of a client, customer or community member and tell me their problem. It feels less abstract and more rooted in real life, for real people.
If this is your lived experience, tell us - Don’t be shy. Lived experience of a problem qualifies you to not only address it, but offer a solution too. Tell us a short story of how the problem showed up for you or someone you know. Again, images, quotes, statistics can also help here. For example, ‘I am just one of 200,000 people in the UK who are affected by xxx.’
Speak passionately - This may be something you need to practise, but if it’s important to you, then show us. That said, make sure you leave time for the rest of the pitch (market, customer, traction, finances etc). I’ve seen some pitches start so passionately, then continue passionately and never really go anywhere which is a shame. Aim for a balance of passion and structure.
After that, it’s all about practise. Get along to Demo days and pitching competitions and get involved if you can. Organisations like Rare Founders and Entrepreneurs Collective offer lots of opportunities to do this. But I’ve also found them offered by UCL, Natwest, Startup Valley and of course The Pitch UK.
And if you’re sat here thinking, that all sounds lovely Lucy but I don’t see myself needing or wanting investment for my business, so this is all kinda pointless. I hear you, but…. pitching will show up for you as a founder in lots of places. It will be the impromptu introduction to a potential partner at an event, or an in person pitch to a foundation or grant body. Or it may be in a pitch competition with a cash prize.
If you want to know more, I’m delivering a free in person workshop with my friends at BIPC on 24th June. Its for beginners looking to understand more about pitching, and grow their confidence. Spaces are limited so book today.
Do you read these emails and think ‘I don’t know where to start’? Or maybe you have started but find yourself stuck and in need of a fresh perspective in how your business makes money? I am now offering Funding Diagnostic Calls for small & micro business founder in need of a collaborate way to diagnose a new funding strategy.
We’ll explore your goals, process, challenges, and successes. I’ll as you focused questions to ensure we build a complete picture of your specific needs, helping you move past any roadblocks.
What to Expect:
You will leave the 50-minute call with:
A fresh perspective on your funding process, helping you to see it differently.
New possibilities and open doors for funding applications.
Clarity on a potential next step, including the option for a follow-up session to ensure you stay accountable and action your points.
🔗 Need more? Connect with us on Instagram & LinkedIn
🎓 Do you have a small business community who could benefit from our knowledge and support? Reach out today to find out about our workshops, speaking and consultancy services. Contact Lucy
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