Day 1
60 Second Pitch Night
5pm- Doors open & check in
5:15pm - Dinner & networking
6:15 - 60 second pitches start
7:30pm - Teams find classrooms to use as headquarters for the weekend
10:30pm -
Close venue
For those of you who have come here with an idea, a concept or a dream, tonight is your time to shine and you only have 60 seconds to do it. Use your time wisely. Your pitch should be concise, descriptive and inspirational.
In order for your business to move forward in this event you must be one of ten winners, these winners are selected by the audience of participants. Each participant will cast 3 votes once all the pitches have been made. Each vote must be placed for a different business. You are pitching for not only votes, but also to find your future co-founders. Participants are comprised of developers, designers, engineers and marketers. If you are selected as a winner tonight your next task will be to build your team from these participants. If you are not selected tonight, offer your skills to another business for another chance to succeed; do not be discouraged.
Elements of a successful 60 Second Elevator Pitch:
Entreprenuer.com outlines the most important elements of an elevator pitch as:
- Stimulate interest.
- Transition that interest.
- Share a vision.
That’s a high level view of it. However, at it’s a more defined level your 60 second pitch should include:
- Introduce the problem you are trying solve.
- Explain how you are solving that problem.
- Describe how your solution is unique to what is currently available.
- Tell the audience how you plan to enter the market.
- Your closing should be a call to action. Why should people vote for you and join your business?
Joining a team:
It takes all types to run a business. Everyone has something to bring to the table. You must determine which business you are most passionate about and can provide the most value to. You will have a brief period of time to get to know the innovator and potentially the initial recruits.
There will not be enough time for you to do an in depth evaluation of the business, innovator or team members so you will have to trust your intuition in making your decision.
Recruiting your team:
Your main campaign for people to join your team was done in your 60 second pitch. If you have been selected as a winner you will have the opportunity to tell the audience what type of people you are looking for to join your business. The audience members have self-categorized themselves as developers (software), engineers (physical construction), marketers and innovators such as yourself. What individuals do you need? If your business surrounds a certain industry or area of interest it would stand to reason you are looking for people in that field.
After your final announcement you will have a short period of time to meet and greet some of the participants and lock in your team members. Sparks Weekend is a collaborative event, be respectful of the participants looking to join your team. If your business wins the event or moves forward as a company, there will be time afterwards to determine the equity split. We request you do not start these conversations during the event and do no exclude any participants from joining your business.
Day 2
Hustle, Hack & Build Your MVP
7:30am- Open venue
8am- Breakfast
9am- Morning announcements
11:30am- Mentors assigned
12pm- Lunch
5pm- Dinner
5:30 pm- Evening announcements
10:30pm- Close venue
*staying all hours is not mandatory
Today is a day of action. You and your team should be focused on validating your business concept. Depending on what your business is, this may take different forms. It could be developing a prototype, outlining your minimum viable product (MVP), on-boarding early adopters or making your first sale. It is whatever you and your team determine is the best way to prove to the judges that your business is viable. Take a look at our recommended resources for help.
Keep in mind the format you will be presenting to the judges, which is a 10 minute presentation. Starting on this presentation early and having knowledge of what will fill the business model canvas will benefit you in the long run. You don’t want to be stuck scrambling to get your pitch deck completed Sunday afternoon.
Mentors
We have recruited local entrepreneurs that are distinguished in a variety of fields. Based on your business type, we will be assigning a mentor to your team that we feel appropriately complements your needs based on their experience and expertise.
These mentors are intended to provide insight and guidance to your team. However, we understand you may be busy “doing” so they will be respectful of your time and we request you do the same. The relationship you may have with your mentor is up to you and them. We were very intentional in selecting these individuals to be a part of this event and their experience reflects this. Use them as a resource, to bounce ideas off and refine your business goals/model. They can tell you what works and what doesn’t because they have been where you are before — and have been successful.
Day 3
The Final Sprint & Presentations
7:30am- Open venue
8am- Breakfast
9am- Morning announcements
12pm- Lunch
2pm- Presentation dry runs start
4:30- Dinner
5:30- Final presentations start
7:45pm- Awards/Ending speeches
It’s time to wrap up whatever you’ve decided is the best mechanism to prove that your business is viable and focus on the presentation. Tonight’s presentation is the face of your business, no matter how hard you’ve worked this weekend, it comes down to these seven minutes to illustrate that you have a business that can withstand the challenges of the real world. So take your time and make sure you have it dialed in.
Elements of a successful pitch:
Problem:
What is the purpose of your business? What problem is it solving? How necessary is it?
Solution:
How do you solve the problem? If it’s a luxury item - What will make people want it? Why will they buy it?
Target Market:
Who are your customers? What is the size of the market you are going into? How much of that market do you think you can realistically capture?
Customer Validation:
What have you done to prove people need this? Why will they buy it for the price you are selling it for? What evidence do you have to support your claims?
Competitive Advantage:
Why is what you are doing better than what others are doing? Why will customers buy your product vs theirs? How do you know someone can’t come along and rip off your idea?
Competition:
Who else is doing what you do?
Business Model:
How are you going to make money? How long will it take to turn a profit? What are your 5 year financial projections? What is your revenue and what is your profit? What are your margins? ARE YOU BEING REALISTIC?
Go to Market Plan:
What is your marketing strategy? Do you have strategic partners? How will customers find out about you?
Team:
Who is on your team? What are their roles? Why are they there?
Accomplishments:
What have you done this weekend to prove this is a viable business?