Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Season 3 Episode 1: 'Is She Pitching Us?' Our weekly pitch show is back, and the investor judges are looking for answers.
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch is back for a third season, and this time, our panel of seasoned investors is armed with a new voting system -- and just as much sage advice as ever.
Entrepreneur's weekly pitch show invites ambitious entrepreneurs to step into the Entrepreneur Elevator, then gives them 60 seconds to pique the judges' interest. As many learn the hard way, there are at least three essential components to every great pitch: Define your company, make your request and specify what you'll use the money for.
While the entrepreneur rattles off what they have to offer, the elevator ascends to the boardroom floor where the investors listen via video livestream. Once time's up, the group quickly deliberates, then votes on whether to open the doors to negotiate -- or send the contestant down and pass on the opportunity.
Related: Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch Season 2 Ep. 12: 'That Is the Best Pitch I've Seen'
One of this season's judges, HelloAlice.com President Elizabeth Gore, kicks things off by introducing this week's theme. Spoiler alert: The contestants in this episode are all women.
"Women entrepreneurs put 90 percent of their income back into their communities and families," Gore says. "We're going to make good business bets today, but we're also going to make good bets for society."
Some of the ideas featured are technologies, from a platform to help Instagram microinfluencers with marketing, to artificial intelligence that streamlines scientific research. But other products aren't so cut and dried. At least, not to the judges, when pitches unintentionally leave too much to the imagination.
Simple questions such as, "what's the business model?" and "is this a finished product?" can't go unanswered, even with only 60 seconds to summarize. Market size, health benefits and an origin story don't cut it alone. And when an entrepreneur lands facetime with the judges, the ability to answer questions confidently goes a long way.
Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch in partnership with Sports 1 Marketing streams Wednesdays on entrepreneur.com. Follow Entrepreneur Elevator Pitch on Facebook, YouTube and IGTV.
