Marketing your start-up business: what I have learned and what you should know

This past year I had the privilege of participating in the University of Iowa Innovators Workshop, a National Science Foundation I-Cops Program, with four other start-up companies from Iowa. This was an intense three-week crash course focusing on developing marketable ideas for start-ups. The class was taught by a real-life (and successful) venture capitalist from Iowa who has started and sold several companies throughout his career.

Right out of the gate we were asked to give a two-minute elevator pitch without any preparation. Feedback was then provided by other venture capitalists and high-level executives from Fortune 500 companies. I am a strong proponent of putting myself in uncomfortable situations and learning from the results, but this was ridiculous. There I was stumbling over my words trying to describe how great of a company CHS is. In my mind, the most successful part of the pitch was getting done before they cut me off at two minutes.

The feedback was harsh, but fair: 1. How big is the problem I am trying to solve? Quantify it. 2. How is the problem currently being addressed? 3. Narrow the “customer” down to who will be paying for the service. 4. Why is our solution better than what is out there or has failed in the past? These comments and questions had me reflecting on how I viewed CHS as a business. Was I going about marketing the company all wrong? Did I even know what problems we are trying to solve?

We were all vulnerable and in search of answers to take the next step, that REALLY big next step, in making our companies successful. After being torn down following that two-minute elevator pitch session, the class focused in providing us tools and techniques to increase the marketability and commercialization of our start-ups. The instructor kept coming back to the concept of Value Proposition and defined this as “Pain Relievers” or “Gain Creators.” How does our solution solve a customer’s problem and why would they but it?

I am sure many of you reading this have really good ideas for a business, BUT do you have the answers to the harsh feedback questions above? What is your Value Proposition? Your “Pain Relievers” or “Gain Creators?” Don’t wait for an intimidating two-minute elevator pitch, or worse yet, 30 seconds on an actual elevator with a potential client, to realize you don’t have the answers to these questions.