Reading time: 9 min.

I just returned from 2 days at the Waves of Change forum. 2 days packed with meeting new and inspiring people. 2 days of listening to 100s of elevator pitches.

I realized that many nature businesses and NGOs are struggling with pitching their project under so much pressure.

Reading time: 9 min.

I just came back from 2 days at the Waves of Change forum. 2 days packed with meeting new and inspiring people. 2 days of listening to 100s of elevator pitches.

I realized that many nature businesses and NGOs are struggling with pitching their project under so much pressure.

Most of the time, you get a maximum of 2 minutes to convince the listener of your cause. That is not much time.

So here a the cheat book to nail your next pitch. I will share valuable tips about how to write an elevator pitch with a great structure. I’m also taking my own elevator pitch as an example, as it helped me win a jury prize.

Let’s dive in!

Quick definition of an elevator pitch

An elevator pitch is a catchy summary of your business, NGO, or project. Imagine you’re in an elevator, and you only have a short ride to tell someone about your idea.

🦊 Good to know: it’s called an “elevator pitch” because it’s as short as an elevator ride.

The reasons a great elevator pitch is important

The art of pitching is important because you constantly meet new people that could help you realize your biodiversity vision.

So you always need to be ready to precisely share the key info about your nature business or NGO.

50% of the people in a recent study said their attention span shortened.1 For you, that means that you have only seconds to keep the attention of the listener.

Now all tips are my personal view, what I tested and realized is working.

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6 steps to structure your elevator pitch

Two minutes is short, so you basically go through your pitch deck or website and pick the most important bits.

The following six parts are non-negotiable.

1. Start your elevator pitch with a story

Stories are much more convincing and memorable. So instead of going into hard facts of your idea, ease the person into it.

Share the reason why your nature business or NGO exists and why this is an issue the listener should care about.

Ideally, make it as personal as possible so that people hopefully reflect themselves in the story.

2. Use numbers to convince

Now a great story speaks to the heart of the listener. Numbers will back you up for their brain.

If you got some interesting facts or statistics about the problem that you want to fix, share them.

The same goes for your solution part. Be concrete as possible to strengthen the trust of the listener.

3. Mention who you are to gain trust

Now it is time to share who you are. So that the person knows who stands in front of them. Please don’t forget this part.

If you are having a 1 to 1 discussion with the person and you pitch to them, you can obviously start with this part.

4. Share your idea to provide the solution

After you share the problem and your reason for existence, it is time to communicate your idea.

Make it as clear as possible, and most of all, keep it short. You don’t need to list all activities you are doing. Use the 80/20 rule. What 20% of your tasks produce 80% of your impact? Stick to that.

5. Mention your target audience to precise

Share with the listener who your main target audience is to show that you are realistic about your idea.

We all want the entire world to use your solution. Yet we all need to start somewhere.

6. Share what you are looking for

Now this depends on the situation, but if you actively approach the person, mention transparently what you are looking for. Funding, partners, co-founders, etc.

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4 valuable tips to rock your elevator pitch

There is much more, but here are the 4 most crucial ones.

1. Adapt the pitch to the context

First, you build your general pitch. However, it is key that you always adapt your pitch to the context.

You always have a different audience in front of you. So change words or highlight different aspects to make it more personal.

Below you will find my general pitch and the one that I used for the last event.

2. Learn your pitch by heart

If you are a public-speaking rockstar like Obama, please freestyle. But for the rest of us, please learn the pillars of your pitch by heart.

Writing down your pitch will help you cut it to the essence. When we freestyle, we use much more words, meaning more time that we don’t have.

That doesn’t mean you need to use exactly each word, but it provides a clear frame of what needs to be mentioned.

3. Prepare for the most frequently asked questions

After pitching your biodiversity business or NGO for a while, you probably got some similar questions. Make sure you have the most crucial answers ready.

E.g.: who are you working with? What is your business model? Who is your target group? What is currently your biggest obstacle? And so on.

4. Build up some confidence

This is easier said than done. But try to come across as confident as you can be.

Speak out loud, avoid filling up words, and look into people’s eyes. This already takes you a long way.

If you usually struggle with this, check out my other project Wildya, where we tackle those issues (lack of self-confidence and other self-development topics) in more detail.

But now, let’s get into some examples to make it easier to understand.

👋 Looking for the best tools and resources to make your organization thrive?

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2 elevator pitch examples

1. General elevator pitch base that I use for Wildya

This is the pitch base that I use. Depending on the context, I adapt it, which you can see in the second example.

Hi, I am Oliver, the Founder of Wildya. (Who I am) 

We are a personal development app that helps people and nature to grow. (What we do)

2023 is a crazy year, and there are plenty of global crises. (Story)

I decided for myself to tackle the mental health & biodiversity crises because they are connected.

75% of my generation said they experienced a quarter-life crisis. (Numbers & Target Audience)

Quarter-life crisis. This shouldn’t even exist.

Yet it is real. I know it because I have been there myself. (Personal)

Triggered by eco-anxiety, which leads me to biodiversity. 1 mio species face extinction if we don’t do something asap. (Numbers)

That’s where Wildya comes in. (Idea)

We reconnect people with nature through personal development.

Our app will do 3 things:

1. Help you build your better self in a time-sensitive, healthier & effective way
2. We will assist you in living more in the present and
3. While working on yourself, you automatically create a positive impact on nature.

So join us so that together we build your better & wilder self. (Call to action)

2. Elevator pitch example for Wildya at Waves of Change Forum

This pitch helped me win a jury prize at the event, so there might be some bits you can copy when you write your elevator pitch.

Context of the event: in a room with other change-makers that I was sure experienced eco-anxiety as well. A pitch event where I needed to pitch to a jury. The focus was more on mental health.

2023 is a crazy year, and there are plenty of global crises. War, Ai stealing jobs, inflation, climate change, the biodiversity crisis, rising inequality, disruption in supply, and much more. Hard to say sane, right? (Story)

We are going through one of the most uncertain times in our history, which is taking a toll on our mental health. (Story) (Use of mental health instead of personal development)

My name is Oliver, founder of Wildya, and I decided to tackle the mental health & biodiversity crises because they are connected. (Who I am)

75% of my generation said they experienced a quarter-life crisis. (Numbers & Target group)

Quarter-life crisis. This shouldn’t even exist.

Yet it is real, I know it because I have been there myself.

Triggered by eco-anxiety, which leads me to biodiversity. 1 mio species face extinction if we don’t do something asap. (Personal sharing & Numbers)

That’s where Wildya comes in.

We reconnect people with nature through mental fitness. (adapted words)

We designed an app that will do 3 things:

1. Help you build your better self in a time-sensitive, healthier & effective way
2. We will assist you in living more in the present and
3. While working on yourself, you automatically create a positive impact on nature.

Because we, people, are the engine behind all the changes that we just discussed in the past 2 days. We need to collaborate, not to compete. We need to listen, not just talk. And we need to show compassion instead of hate. (Relevant for this event)

2023 is a hectic year. By no means you alone can change all of this. But we all can start with ourselves. (Story & make it personal)

🦍 How does your donation page look like?

Check out our 12 tips to increase donations for your nature-driven business or NGO!

Your turn: time to improve your pitch for your business or NGO

5 actions to take next week to improve your pitch

1. Block yourself some time next week to work on your pitch.
2. Write down your elevator pitch.
3. Test how long it takes you to say everything & add 10 seconds because when we are nervous, we tend to use more words.
4. Record yourself or practice in front of people.
5. Send me your pitch. I am happy to give you 3 free tips. Just write me at oliver.dauert@wildya.earth.

Cheat sheet to improve the elevator pitch of your nature business or NGO

In a nutshell: You only got 2 minutes maximum to convince the other person. Use them wisely.

Best tools: Loom to record yourself & track the time.

Best practices: Ted has the best library of best practices that break down an idea.

Set up time: 1 hour.

Maintaining time: If you found your pitch, you only need to touch it when you make major shifts or if you realize it doesn’t resonate with people.

People have a harder time keeping focused on your words. With those valuable tips, you got a step closer to keeping their attention on you.

See you next week.

Have a wild one!

Oliver

🦧 Whenever you are ready, there are 2 ways we can help you: 

1. 1-to-1 business consulting. Detailed and personalized consulting to double the impact of your biodiversity organization in the shortest possible time. Not sure how good your pitch deck is?

Sign up for the waiting list by writing us at oliver@wildbusinessmates.com (unfortunately, we are booked out at the moment).

2. Wild Business Mates in Action. Wild Business Mates help you execute in areas you are struggling with. Tech, Marketing, Sales, Communication, etc. We can realize all the steps I mentioned above.

¹ Not all digital distractions are negative – experts explain, World Economic Forum.