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Getting the message across20/09/2006. Source: Israel Venture Capital Journal (IVCJ). Noga Fisher 
 In this Israel Venture Capital Journal article, Noga Fisher offers a six-step coaching curriculum for venture capital firms to teach their portfolio companies' CEOs how to improve their presentations.
Coaching the CEOs of your portfolio companies on basic presentation principles can make the difference between getting invited for another round of meetings or being kicked out the door. Noga Fisher, a partner in Fisher/ Kahn Financial Communications, offers a six-step coaching curriculum to teach your CEOs how to improve their presentations.
How did you feel the last time you watched the CEO of one of your portfolio companies make an important presentation?
If you’re like many venture capitalists we know, the experience made you cringe, taking you back to the first time you looked at the CEO's Power Point and thought, “Great technology, but terrible presentation…”
Of course, back then the CEO was looking for seed capital, and you spoke in that wordless code that graduates of the same IDF unit understand intuitively. Now you’re sitting in front of a Wall Street banker, with hopes for financing riding on the CEO’s ability to get his point across. And you’re thinking, “Maybe we should’ve worked a little harder on that presentation...” We have found that a few simple principles can go a long way towards improving most presentations, especially when “suggested” to companies by their VC investors or other trusted business coaches. Three of the principles apply to the content of the presentation and three to its form: 1) Say enough, not everything; 2) Get to the point; and 3) Give as much time to market analysis and execution as to technology and products; 4) Make it visual; 5) Keep it simple; and 6) Use the presentation, don’t read it.
Following is a brief explanation of these simple but powerful principles:
1. Say enough, not everything. Having bought a new suit and flown thousands of miles, it’s only natural for the CEO to wax prolific regarding the company’s history, operations and market potential. But get the CEO to understand the investment banker’s point of view. For him, this meeting is just one of many he will have that day, and he assumes that few of the companies that he meets will turn out to be the “gem” that he wants to finance.
Therefore the CEO’s goal is simply to get the investor intrigued – to impress him enough that he takes a real interest in the company. This means telling him the right things about the company, not everything! Have the CEO explain how he sees his target market and its true needs, why his solution is the right concept and has the “secret sauce,” to borrow Guy Kawasaki’s words. Assure your CEO that if he “gets through,” the investment banker will begin asking for more detail, giving him “permission” to go further into the company’s technology and progress.
2. Get to the point! It’s not good enough to know what to say – you also have to say it in the right order. The investment banker is impatient and wants to know immediately what you’re all about. So make sure the CEO explains the company succinctly within the first minute of the presentation. Help the CEO come up with a short, intriguing answer to “Who are you?”
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This article appeared in the Israel Venture Capital & Private Equity Journal (IVCJ). IVC Research Center publishes the Israel Venture Capital & Private Equity Journal, a quarterly review of trends and developments in the Israeli-related venture capital industry. IVCJ, distributed worldwide, is dedicated to provide wide-range coverage of Israel's venture capital industry. For more information please visit www.ivc-online.com
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