Thread by @MurtazaBambot

Most startups pitch like this...
• Problem
• Solution
• Market Size
• Competition
• Biz Model
• Projections
• Team

But, this is the WORST way to tell your story.

Instead, here's how you craft a BILLION dollar story that always hits the mark 🧵

The standard problem-solution pitch treats fundraising conversations like a checklist ☑️

It has the right pieces... but it's not a memorable story 😩

Investors have to sell you to the rest of their partners. All you've given them is a list of facts.

You need a better flow...

Instead, start your pitch with TRENDS 📈

Trends are macro market conditions that affect your startup.

Good trends make your startup inevitable. They make it impossible to fail.

(@businessbarista's last episode on Founder's Journal covers this)

Some relatable examples:

Ex 1: @Clubhouse

They BLEW UP in 2020, but this idea was bound to succeed.

Why?
1/ Covid made us crave human connection
2/ Big jump in influencers thanks to TikTok & Insta
3/ Airpods hit mass adoption — walking around with Airpods in was now normal (this was low-key huge)

The real genius is recognizing these trends early on 🔑

After you see these 3 trends happening at the same time, it's obvious that *someone* was going to build an audio-social network.

Rohan & Paul were smart enough to see it in 2019.

Probably some luck in there, too 😉

Ex 2: Gem.

They're a B2B tool to help companies recruit talent faster.

For small hiring teams, it's a godsend — you can create, track, and analyze email campaigns easily.

But this isn't really a new idea. Loads of startups have done this before. What's different about Gem?

Gem's Trends:
1/ Cultural changes + improvements in tech —> more founders than ever
2/ It's a candidate's market —> employers have to compete for talent
3/ Average tenure at a job is decreasing (from 5-10 yrs, to 2-3 yrs) —> hiring is happening more frequently

So now its obvious how a recruiting platform that...

• targets tech founders
• creates rinse-and-repeat hiring systems
• identifies top tech talent

...would do SUPER well 🤑

Gem's raised millions & signed customers like Lyft, Instacart, and others.

Now it's your turn ⬇️

Your goal: use trends to make your startup inevitable.

@Julian created a great framework for this...

• Find 2-3 technical changes (i.e. crypto, hardware, better phones)
• 1 societal changes (legalization of marijuana, patents expiring)

https://twitter.com/Julian/status/1404893937555279874

Think about what things are changing in the world.

Really sit down & list out all the possible reasons around WHY this is the perfect timing for your idea.

Strong trends are hard to argue with. Weak trends are easy to spot.

Spend 70% of your story-building on this step.

And a small secret: VERY few successful founders actually think about trends when starting their company.

Usually, trends are recognized after the fact (hindsight is 20/20).

Don't feel like you've missed out because you're starting now. We did the same thing at @HeartbeatChat

So your updated story should be...
- Trends
- Problem
- Startup Reveal
- Traction
- Future Plans
- Team
- Ask

If you do your trends right, you don't need slides for competition, market-size, projections, etc. Your trend story should make it obvious how big the opportunity is.

Trends make your story bulletproof & impossible to argue with.

They're also memorable & ensure that each investor you speak to is blown away by your understanding of your market.

Trends frame the narrative perfectly, so investors can sell you to the rest of their partners.

That's it for today!

If you enjoyed this...

• consider dropping a follow (@MurtazaBambot)
• RT the first tweet to help other founders who might be struggling to raise

I tweet about fundraising, startups, and our journey building @HeartbeatChat

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