Change your world and win $1000 in one minute!

 

Genius meets opportunity! You have an awesome business idea...all you need is a break.

Imagine you find yourself alone in an elevator with the one person who has the ability to make your dream come true. In that one minute ride from the lobby to the penthouse board room, what would you say?

Submit your elevator pitch for a chance to win $1000 and a one-on-one mentoring session with Dr. Bruce Firestone (Canadian real estate tycoon and founder of the Ottawa Senators).

Elevator Pitch Resources

What Makes a Good Elevator Pitch?

A good Elevator Pitch consists of two key elements:

1. Lay out the pain statement. What problem is it that you are trying to solve?

2. Show the value proposition. How does your venture solve that problem?

Be specific—how exactly does your product or service benefit a single client or customer?

Every great Elevator Pitch must meet 4 key tests:

1. Must be succinct. You’ve only got 1 minute.

2. Easy to understand. Both your grandma and your grand kids have to get it. Your product or service appeals to multi generations or, at a minimum, you can explain it to multi generations.

3. Greed inducing. Investors want to make money. Clients want to know that buying your product or service is a negative cost—the benefits generated are greater than the cost.

4. Irrefutable. If your Elevator Pitch leaves the investor or customer with more questions than answers, you’d better go back to the drawing board.

Resources

•  The Art of the Elevator Pitch by Robert Paglairini for SeekingCapital.com
• How to Create an Effective Elevator Pitch
• 5 Tips for Creating an Elevator Pitch

 Examples of Successful Elevator Pitches

• Craig Schoen’s award winning "elevator pitch".  
• Wes Nicol Business Plan Competition 
• Wes Nicol Home Page

 

How do I apply?

1. Save your elevator pitch in either a mov, avi, or mp4 format.
2. Complete the Registration Form below, click accept and you will be taken to the upload site where you can upload your video.
3. All recorded pitches must be received by 5 p.m., Tuesday, October 13. A panel of judges will select the top six pitches.
4. The top six contestants will present their pitches in person between 1:15 p.m. to 2:30 p.m. on Monday, October 19, at CEED’s Fresh Ideas event, hosted at NSCC Waterfront Campus.
5. All six finalists will be invited to meet with Dr. Bruce Firestone for a private business advice session directly following the competition finals.

Rules

1. Participants must be youth (between the ages of 16-34).
2. Pitches must be 60 seconds or less in length.
3. The pitch must be new – meaning that it has never been pitched before.
4. All recorded pitches must be received by 5 p.m., Tuesday, October 13.
5. Finalists must present their pitches in person on Monday, October 19. * note – the pitch time will be extended to 2 minutes for the in-person pitches.

Click here to download the marking grid.

The contest is now closed.