startup-pitch

# Startup Pitch

Build investor-ready pitch content in multiple formats. Uses a structured 7-element framework combined with a problem-solution-insight foundation to produce pitch narratives that are clear, compelling, and fundable.

## How It Works

```
INTAKE → RESEARCH (2 sequential waves) → PITCH CONSTRUCTION → REVIEW & PRACTICE
```

The process: understand the company deeply, research the investor audience and competitive framing, then construct the pitch. Typical runtime: 15-20 minutes in Claude Code (parallel agents), 30-40 minutes in Claude.ai (sequential).

### Core Philosophy

Three principles govern every output this skill produces:

1. **Clarity over sophistication.** "80% accurate and 100% clear beats the reverse." If a grandmother can't understand what you do, investors won't either. Eliminate jargon, acronyms, and marketing language.
2. **Lead with what's impressive.** You earn each additional minute of investor attention. Don't bury traction after 5 sections of problem setup — put the strongest signal right after "what you do."
3. **Make investors talk.** A pitch isn't a monologue. The more investors talk, the more they convince themselves. Structure the narrative to invite conversation, not shut it down.

### Language

Default output language is **English**. If the user writes in another language or explicitly requests one, use that language for all outputs instead.

---

## Phase 0: Resume Check

Before anything else, check if a `PROGRESS.md` created by this skill exists in the working directory or a project subdirectory (the skill name field says `startup-pitch`). If it does, read it and resume from the last incomplete phase. Tell the user: "I found progress from a previous session. You completed [phases]. Picking up from [next phase]."

If no progress file exists — or the one found belongs to a different skill — start from Phase 1.

---

## Phase 1: Intake

Short and focused — 1-2 rounds of questions. The goal is enough context to build a compelling pitch.

### Recommended Prior Work

A pitch built on validated data is significantly stronger than one built on self-reported answers. If you haven't already, consider running **startup-design** first — it provides market research, competitive analysis, business model, financial projections, and a validation scorecard that become the foundation of a much more credible pitch.

Not required. startup-pitch works standalone. But the quality difference is noticeable.

### Check for Prior Work

Before asking questions, check if prior sessions have been completed. Look for these files in the working directory or subdirectories:

**From startup-design:**
- `00-intake/brief.md` — product description and context
- `01-discovery/market-analysis.md` — market size, TAM/SAM/SOM
- `01-discovery/competitor-landscape.md` — competitor profiles
- `01-discovery/target-audience.md` — customer personas, pain points
- `02-strategy/lean-canvas.md` — business model summary
- `02-strategy/positioning.md` — positioning framework
- `05-financial/revenue-model.md` — revenue projections
- `06-validation/scorecard.md` — idea scorecard

**From startup-competitors:**
- `competitors-report.md` — competitive landscape
- `battle-cards/` — per-competitor profiles
- `pricing-landscape.md` — pricing analysis

**From startup-positioning:**
- `positioning-doc.md` — positioning document
- `positioning-statement.md` — positioning statements, elevator pitch
- `competitive-alternatives.md` — alternatives map
- `messaging-implications.md` — messaging hierarchy

If these files exist, read them and extract the pitch building blocks: product description, problem/solution, traction, team, market size, business model, positioning, competitive landscape. Tell the user: "I found data from a previous session. I'll use it to build your pitch."

Skip redundant intake questions. Go straight to pitch-specific questions if prior data is sufficient.

### What to Ask (if no prior data exists)

**Round 1 — The essentials (all required for a pitch):**
- What does your company do? (2 sentences max — this becomes the opening)
- What problem are you solving and for whom?
- What's your unique insight? (What do you know that others don't?)
- What traction do you have? (users, revenue, growth rate — with timeframes). If none: say so honestly, we'll build the pitch around insight and team instead.
- What's your business model? (one sentence — how do you make money?)
- Who's on the team? (names, roles, key accomplishments — not titles)
- How much are you raising and what will you do with it?

**Round 2 — Sharpening (only if needed):**
- What's your market size? (or enough data to calculate it)
- Who are your main competitors? What's your advantage?
- What milestones will you hit in 18-24 months with this funding?

**Pitch-specific questions:**
- Who is the audience? (VCs, angels, accelerator, demo day, specific fund?)
- What formats do you need? (10-min narrative, 2-min verbal, email pitch, all of them?)

Don't over-interview. A founder with clear answers to Round 1 has enough to build a strong pitch.

### The 2-Sentence Test

Before moving to research, crystallize the company description into exactly 2 sentences + one specific example. This is the foundation of the entire pitch.

Test: send it to a smart friend — could they paraphrase it back correctly? If not, simplify further.

> **Anti-pattern:** "We leverage AI-powered machine learning to optimize cross-functional synergies in the B2B SaaS vertical."
> **Better:** "We help sales teams find which leads will actually buy. Our tool analyzes email replies and tells reps exactly who to call next — last month one customer closed 40% more deals."

### Output

Save to `{project-name}/intake.md` — consolidated context for pitch construction. Project name: kebab-case (e.g., `ai-sales-assistant`).

Create `{project-name}/PROGRESS.md` with: project name, skill name (`startup-pitch`), start date, language, requested formats, target audience, researc