2009 Elevator Pitch Contest on at StartupNation
If you’ve been following StartupNation for years, not just months or weeks, you know that we were one of the pioneers that popularized the “Elevator Pitch”, your chance-of-a-lifetime opportunity to pitch your dream investor in a blazing 60 seconds. It was always one of the most popular segments in our nationally syndicated radio show and was definitely the most fun.
Now we’re taking that legacy of sometimes good, sometimes awful, but always courageous pitches and turning it into an online contest at StartupNation. 
After March 2oth, the Top 100 highest vote getters from among all contestants will be judged by a panel of professional investors who sit on a mountain of cash just waiting to be invested into the right deals.
GAME ON! That’s what we say.
Starting today, you can submit your 60-second video or audio elevator pitch. If you must, it can be up to two minutes in length, but preferably, folks, closer to 60 seconds.
Your pitch will be voted on by viewers who scrutinize you just like Mr. Money Bags would. Can you handle the pressure? Can you deliver the goods? Can you hook your dream investor? If you’ve got the right pitch and the right deal, you may be selected as one of the Top 5 Winners by the judge-investors.
The Top 5 Winners will each be given an hour that could be worth millions. They’ll each be given one-hour of dedicated presentation time with the panel of investors. They will also receive a brand new laptop. (See more on this below.)
We’re extremely excited to kick off this contest, especially given the tough financial environment for startups and existing companies alike.
We certainly couldn’t have launched the contest without the sponsorship of GoToMeeting, the online presentation service, and Toshiba, maker of the new Satellite Pro S300 laptop. Their teams have worked closely with us to ensure that entrepreneurs get inspired and informed and that winners receive invaluable prizes to help them achieve success.
Here’s a link to the StartupNation Elevator Pitch Contest:
http://www.startupnation.com/elevator-pitch-2009
Are you going up or going down?
February 3rd, 2009 at 12:26 pm
ooh this sounds like fun!
I love the last line: “Are you going up or going down?”
February 3rd, 2009 at 2:20 pm
WOW - What a terrific opportunity, for all the right reasons. Looking forward to submitting a great elevator speech…..thanks so much!
February 5th, 2009 at 1:10 am
This is awesome! My elevators going up and I can’t wait to submit my pitch.
February 13th, 2009 at 10:50 pm
I was a little confused with the dates of submission. Here it says that the top 100 will be chosen after March 2nd, but on the official rules page it says March 20th. Was wondering which one, because it makes a big difference on how much time I have to throw this together.
Thanks
February 14th, 2009 at 3:24 am
fixed it, Veronica. now, throw it together and get out the vote! but it’s not just about votes, it’s about the rating each voter gives you each time they vote for you. the formula is votes multiplied by average rating.
February 26th, 2009 at 12:14 am
We are almost ready to post our pitch. What are the size requirements for our video? Both megabytes and dimensions, cant find them anywhere. I’m sure they are listed as we enter the competition but I want to have my video sized and ready before I go through the “enter” process. Look forward to pitching and we appreciate the opportunity!
June 23rd, 2009 at 8:15 pm
The best way to find growth capital is to apply to a venture summit where you can speed pitch your ideas to several investors face-to-face in a single day. One such example is The Speed Venture Summit, the premier speed-dating-style event for fast-growth businesses and investors in New England. http://www.speedventuresummit.org; and follow the virtual discussion at Twitter #SVSNE
August 10th, 2012 at 5:53 pm
Ladar Cleaning Service start up
http://www.indiegogo.com/ladarofmistartup
Ladar Cleaning Service is a woman owned and operated Commercial cleaning services. The purpose of this is to help bring in some capital to buy cleaning equipment