““Start-Up Success came along exactly when I needed it. I had an idea, and the groundwork laid for how to approach bringing my idea to fruition, but there were holes I wanted to fill in my pitch deck, and I didn’t know where to begin. Sandy and Liza provided a wealth of knowledge and guidance, as well as asked the hard questions other people may have avoided – and they forced me to get creative about finding the answers. I feel confident moving forward and pitching my business, but know that I can reach out for advice, or a reality check when I need it.” ”
Full Curriculum
LEARN FROM PROVEN EXPERTS.
1. Identify and articulate the key need and benefit of your idea. You’ll learn to write clear and compelling concept statements that will allow you to easily test how to best position, communicate and market your idea. You will test and optimize the character statement for your idea. Understanding the underlying compelling reason why people will want to use your product or service and learning how to clearly communicate it can often be the difference between success and failure.
2. Understand and define your target audience. Who do you focus on first and why? You’ll learn how to do the demographic, geographic and psychographic research to understand who is most likely to buy your product or service. This focus allows you to build more effective, precise marketing programs.
3. Analyze your competitive landscape. Who are your competitors? What do they do well? How long have they been in business? Where are the opportunities for you? Why? What can you learn from them? Key competitive information can insure you don’t recreate past mistakes. It also is essential for credibility when looking for outside funding. People want to know what already exists and how you will take advantage of opportunities both from a consumer need and a competitive opportunity perspective.
4. Conduct qualitative and quantitative research on your idea. Learn various techniques to get the most out of research. You will be asked to implement various research methods to truly hear and get feedback on your ideas, strategies and branding components. Products and services work when they are built from the perspective of the end user. You can only get that perspective from fundamental research.
5. Identify and build the core competencies of you and your team. What is your personal competitive advantage and what can you outsource? How does the vision of owning your own business fit in with the broader vision of all of your life roles? How do you make it all balance? How do you hire the best team for the job? Who best synergizes with your strengths?
6. Build effective financial models and cash flow projections for your idea. Where are the leverage points? Where are the financial pitfalls? How much money do you need? When? Are there various ways to finance and build the idea? What are the impacts of these scenarios?
7. Create and research the P’s of marketing. What is your pricing strategy? Promotional strategy and plan? Where can you best focus your idea? How important is place? Are there any broader policy impacts that could support your idea?
8. Finalize your strategic plan and timeline for implementation. Ultimately, you will roll up all the work you’ve done into a roadmap for implementation with timelines and decision points. You now are ready to energetically walk down the road less traveled.
Overall Tangibles You’ll Walk Away With:
Elevator pitch
Creative brief/look and feel
Target Audience Profiles
Competitive analysis and pricing matrix
ProForma & financial overview
Marketing frameworks
Powerful presentation deck
2-page corporate overview and power letter