The power of the perfect pitch

Being able to pitch your business, brand and products to potential customers is a core skill for any woman entrepreneur, and pitching is definitely an art-form - but one that everyone can master with plenty of planning and practice. This past month, Lionesses of Africa partnered with Volkswagen South Africa, to host the first VW Lionesses Den pitch competition. At stake, the opportunity to secure vital cash injection into the winning businesses, at a time when cashflow is everything to any business during this tough time. With our teams watching over 400 video pitches, it gave us the ideal opportunity to really see the approaches taken by women entrepreneurs to pitching. Congratulations to Ntokozo Mbuli, founder of television production company Sugar Bean Pictures, who took away the big competition prize by wowing all the judges with her powerful pitch. This is definitely a woman entrepreneur to watch over the coming months and years! If there is one overall learning to take from this experience, it is that the women who take their pitching really seriously, who prepare their presentations diligently and professionally, who rehearse until they perfect their messages, are the ones who stand out from the crowd. In the competitive world of business, the lessons are the same - if you want to get your business and brand noticed by potential customers, you have to present yourself professionally, passionately, and convincingly. That takes work and practice, lots of it - but ultimately it’s worth it when you win the business!