As we know, most of the time the first part of a pitch is presenting a big problem. Something that creates headaches for a specific portion of the population. This is an effective strategy, and one that most products need to follow to exist. The more interesting part is how you bring your solution to the table. Finding problems is easy, the world is full of people who constantly complain and are never satisfied.
The harder part is creating effective and viable solutions to these problems. This is a very important step in your pitch. You may have convinced your audience that a problem exists, but have you convinced them that your product addresses this problem in a definite, viable and cost-effective way? If you do not work on the way you present your solution and show clearly the way that this solution will create a big difference for your audience, you’re going to miss your target.
How to present your solution?
The best way to present your solution is togive the audience enough contextual elements so that they understand the way you decided to work. Let’s take an example of Upwork, the freelancing platform. So, what’s the solution? You don’t want to be chasing leads all day – you’re a freelancer. This is a platform that is convenient for you where you can find clients every day, chat, skype, send files, and keep all your dealings with clients organised. You don’t need a huge Google Drive, Slack, Skype, Gmail, invoice tools – this is a comprehensive solution.
The way they present this solution is quite attractive, this is a one-stop shop for everything. They don’t need to talk about the problems of freelancers – with finding clients,communicating, getting paid – they just present the actual, comprehensive solution. Whatever you need to do with a client, it can get done.
Niche solutions to niche problems
You may then think that if the problem is very niche, it ought to be your absolute focus, and you should devote the majority of your pitch to the problem, not the solution. An important thing to remember is that the only products that are limited to solving one problem are physical items. Like the €2 chopstick learning device I bought for my kid. It solves the problem of teaching someone how to use chopsticks, but it won’t help me use the fork and spoon a little better.
With technological products and services, you can always add a feature or functionality. Even if you start out targeting a very specific problem that affects a small number of people, these people are likely to have some related secondary problems that you can also solve. Then you can become a one-stop shop. A solution that’s not for a specific kind of problem. A solution that’s for a specific kind of people.
Don’t sell the pen, sell the pen they need
Presenting your solution is not the old “sell me this pen” pitch. It’s way more than that. Sell them the potential of the pen. More importantly, sell them the fact that this is the pen they need. Depending on the audience, the fact that the pen writes may be the defining factor. For others, it’s what the pen says about themselves. Some people have Mont Blanc pens that they barely write with. The same goes for watches, cars,and other luxury items. Therefore, depending on your audience, you may want to frame your solution in a specific way to address this.
There are many different devices that you can play into: convenience, fear of missing out, even people’s greed or insecurity. The key is to not be a solution for a problem, but for people.