Q&A: What materials or software should I use to pitch a VC?

Expert David S. Rose, Founder & CEO of Angelsoft, weighs in on what materials or software to bring while pitching to a venture capitalist:

The answer depends on the context in which you're pitching. If you meet the VC for 30 seconds in an elevator, you certainly aren't going hand her a 30 page business plan. Although it sounds like overkill (because you won't need all of these for every VC), a well-prepared entrepreneur will have all of the following, to be used at the appropriate times:

Written

A one sentence (or sentence fragment) tag line
A professional business card
A one or two paragraph email introduction to the business
A 'one-pager' overview
A 2-3 page executive summary
A 20-30 page business plan

Live

A one sentence description
A 30 second elevator pitch
A 5 minute 'quick pitch'
A 15-20 minute angel/VC PowerPoint/Keynote pitch

Online

A functional public web site
A short video pitch
A dedicated, controlled access, investor-relations web site

If you have all the above, you'll be fully prepared for any sequence of events as you interact with prospective investors.