As they gear up for this year’s Innovation Showcase, over 80 founders from across the nation are honing their investment pitches. They have read every book, every blog, and consulted a half dozen mentors, but this month, Verge is bringing in an incredible resource for honing your pitching skills who has a surprising background.

Thaddeus Rex is an extremely well respected public speaker and consultant. Today he works with marketers and salespeople across the country on building and leveraging world-class brands. Sounds cool, right? He must have spent his youth hopping from Madison Avenue Ad Agency to Madison Avenue Ad Agency, learning the biz better than anyone in the world.

Not quite.

Thaddeus didn’t start off as an advertiser or a sales guru. In fact, he got his start as a children’s singer. Thaddeus began his career as a musician on PBS followed by a decade’s worth of touring performing for schools and family groups.

So what could this possibly have to do with crafting an investment pitch? Thaddeus sat down with the Verge crew for a Google Hangout to chat more about the lessons he’s learned about crafting brilliant presentations and building winning brands.

The Magic to a Perfect Pitch? Appealing to Dual Audiences

It’s extremely easy to get caught up in the minutiae of a pitch deck. To Thaddeus, it’s all about understanding who your audience is (and why only thinking about one audience is never enough.)

“If you’re writing songs for kids, you’re really writing songs for parents. It’s about appealing to two audiences.”

So how do you apply that to a startup pitch? When you’re pitching to an end user, it can be extremely easy to forget about the business and focus on the features and benefits. When you’re pitching to an investor, discussions of market cap and revenue streams may clutter what the product actually does. To hone your pitch, you need to choose a defined target audience and put investors in those shoes. Make sure that your investors can see the end user experience while still appealing to their pocketbook.

If you’re pitching in the Innovation Showcase, you may be wondering “How do I fit all this in 60 seconds?!” Thaddeus has a quick three-step solution to taking this solution and fitting it in a tight time frame.

1. Develop intrigue and connection and immediately by highlighting an issue and making them feel a part of that problem.

2. Help them imagine the solution to that problem.

3. Surprise them! You have the solution.

Want Your Brand to Tell a Better Story? Give It Vocal Lessons

The biggest challenge brands face can be trying to take a product that no one really cares about and giving it value. Because of this, many marketers go on and on about brands telling a story.

“A story is important, but a song is linear, a song has a theme.”

Thaddeus Rex – Your Brand is Like a Song (a Rainmakers’ “Sparks Talk” event) from Thaddeus Rex on Vimeo.

It’s Time To Sharpen Your Ax

We’ve all heard the Lincoln-ism “If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I’d spend six hours sharpening my ax.” Well if you’re going to be looking for funding any time soon, this month’s Verge event is your time to sharpen your ax. With all of the investor insights we’ve given you in the past, Verge has never provided such a great resource in the art of public speaking and honing your message.

On top of that, we’ve got two killer pitches, one from a well-known neighbor to many of our friends at the Speakeasy and another from a newcomer to the Indy startup scene who is already working with some SERIOUSLY big name clients! You also have the opportunity to meet the Hoosiers vying for over $100k in funding at this year’s Innovation Showcase and meet Indianapolis’ newest superstars, the Indy Xterns. 

KEEP AN EYE ON YOUR INBOX. Tickets are going live tomorrow AM (Wednesday, June 18th) and with the interest we’ve seen from founders and investors alike, they won’t be open for long. In the mean time, beware! Dinosaurs are everywhere!