The MERLIN Pitch & rePlay is proud to be a part of the 2020 Startup Milwaukee week
Musical chairs for entrepreneurs … but the music doesn’t stop and no one is cut out of the process. MERLIN Mentors and gener8tor’s g-Beta are joining up again to host the MERLIN Pitch & rePlay on Zoom Thursday November 12, 2020 3:30 – 5:00pm.
Elevate Your Business
Special for this Startup Milwaukee Week event we are pleased to announce a prize for the best pitch. Thanks to Novel Coworking the winner will receive a FREE private office for two months at Novel Coworking’s Cathedral Square location in Milwaukee at 790 N Milwaukee St. Join a national network of high growth companies and business owners in this inspiring, plug & play work environment. This has a value of $1100. Offer expires 6/30/21. (See below more details) To apply to pitch scroll down and complete the short application form on this page. To be considered to pitch your application must be received by Midnight November 6.
This session gives entrepreneurs a unique opportunity to fine tune their pitch in a non-competitive environment to a few interested listeners. They get immediate feedback on their idea from a small but eager audience. All this is repeated five times to different small groups where entrepreneurs get to make corrections perfecting their pitch and their presentation style all while gaining helpful feedback and meeting others who can help. Those who pitch range from individuals who have been thinking over an idea, to CEOs of companies preparing to go into the investor arena for funding.
In prior years as a live event in a room buzzing with conversations, the Pitch & rePlay has proven to be an extremely successful event. Several now well known startups on the Madison Scene have used this forum for their initial pitch to the startup community. For 2020, with special thanks to gener8tor and g-Beta for Zoom support this virtual Pitch & rePlay will be similar to that used successfully in the g-Beta’s Mentor Swarms.
The intent of the Pitch and re-Play is a departure from the typical pitch event. The structure of most pitch events is a ‘one-shot up and out’ experience for the entrepreneur where feedback is limited to a few questions at the end (if that). All presenters are winners here as each presenter gets to pitch five times in succession to five different small groups of interested listeners. This enables participants to perfect their pitch making changes on the fly and testing ideas on ways to better convey their stories. The exposure to five different audiences provides small group dynamics and facilitates receiving helpful feedback on each pitch. Also entrepreneurs potentially make new connections with people who can help.
About Startup Milwaukee Week
Startup Milwaukee Week connects high-growth entrepreneurs with the resources they need (investors, support programs, service providers, etc.) to launch and scale high-growth tech companies in the Milwaukee region. The 5th annual event is taking place virtually, November 11 – 18, 2020 and is supported by Husch Blackwell, Northwestern Mutual and the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation and Skills Pipeline. To view the full calendar of events visit StartupWI.org.
Guidance for those who want to Pitch
Due to the limitations of the virtual setting only five entrepreneurs will be pitching. Application deadline is November 6, 2020 COB. Although having an existing entity (for profit or not for profit) is not a requirement, those who apply should have thought through the problem they are addressing, their solution, how they intend to build a sustainable business and how their skills and experience rise to the task of executing the project
Specifically a good pitch should cover:
- who you are
- what problem you are solving
- who you target as customers
- why your solution will interest them enough to buy and
- how you will build a sustainable business around your vision.
The format is simple. Following welcome remarks, all attendees will be moved to rooms of 5-8 attendees each. the number of rooms = the number of entrepreneurs pitching. Each entrepreneur will be assigned to a ‘room’ to meet his/her initial audience. Each entrepreneur gets 15 minutes in the room, 5 minutes to pitch, and the rest to answer questions and receive feedback. Entrepreneurs will receive a 1 minute warning prior to rotating to the next room. Entrepreneurs should be able to deliver 5 pitches to 5 very different diverse and helpful audiences. This is a very active participatory event. Through the Zoom software screen sharing option entrepreneurs may elect to use a slide deck should they chose.
For questions contact Chief Pitch Wrangler, Dennis Barnum
To apply to pitch entrepreneurs must submit the application below by midnight Friday November 6, 2020. Applicants selected to present will be notified by Nov 9 and must participate in a short online orientation to be arranged between Nov 10-11.
The winner for the best pitch will be determined by “Peoples Choice.” Attendees, after hearing all pitches, will vote on their choice of the presentation having the best prospects for becoming a successful business. The winner must claim their award no later than January 1, 2021. The free two month access to Novel’s private office space must start not later than May 1, 2021.
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tagPHOTO – mobile photo studios in custom Airstream trailers.