Pitch For $K – Be a Mentor!
In order to help the participants of the Pitch For $K competition expand their entrepreneurial network, each finalist is paired with a mentor as they prepare for their pitch. As a mentor, it is asked that you commit to a minimum of 3 hours to work with your assigned finalist. Sessions with your finalist can take place via phone, video call or in-person (if comfortable).In addition to your mentorship, the finalists are required to participate in a pitch clinic facilitated by the University of Flint’s Innovation Incubator and bring their idea through the 100K Ideas process, to prepare for their pitch.
Objectives:
As a mentor, your primary objectives are to:
- Assist with fleshing out the problem, solution and need of their idea.
- Provide insight and feedback on pitch presentation.
- Provide connections and knowledge to assist with moving their idea forward.
Assessment Questions:
To help your finalist flesh out their idea, here are a few questions that may be helpful to ask:
- What problem are you trying to solve?
- Do you have any patents, trademarks or copyrights around your idea?
- What does your idea do and how does it do it?
- Who is the purchaser?
- What is the end user?
- What differentiates your idea from existing solutions?
- Current revenue stage? (pre-revenue, break-even, profitable)
- Who are your competitors?
- What is the market research – is there a need for this?
- How will your idea make money?
- What will you do with the prize money?
