Decoding the nascent entrepreneurial pitch

Abstract

Purpose: This paper investigates how early-stage founders use the 60-s nascent pitch to attract co-founders, by applying the narrative paradigm. Design/methodology/approach: Videos of supported and non-supported pitches from Startup Weekend were analysed using the Grounded Theory Method. Findings: The findings were used to develop a framework for a successful nascent pitch. It shows that founders who can engage the audience, convey credibility and use symbols effectively are more likely to attract co-founders. Bringing these three elements together through personalisation, that is, making the startup concept tangible and personally relevant for co-founders to visualise, enables the founder to talk a venture into existence. Practical implications: This paper holds implications for founders and entrepreneurship mentors to craft a powerful, persuasive pitch by drawing on the framework. Originality/value: The framework brings a holistic understanding to the nascent pitch and explains how nascent founders acquire human resources at one of the earliest stages of venture formation. In this way, concerns of prior fragmented approaches focussed only on narrative elements of investment pitches are addressed.