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What convinces them

•You understand the market's **current** pain, not a fantasy future. He backs solutions for problems people have today.

•You know your competition cold, including who could outspend you and how you'd still win.

•You are transparent about struggles and traction, even when it's ugly. He digs for honesty.

•You lead with numbers, not narrative. Unit economics, waitlist counts, pilot terms, churn. If you don't have numbers, say so and show the model.

What will kill the pitch

•**Vague market claims.** Saying "AI will transform X" without naming the buyer, the price point, and the current alternative. Say instead: "Here is the specific workflow we replace, and what it costs them today."

•**Hiding weakness.** If traction is thin, he will find out. Say instead: "We have 3 LOIs and 2 pilots. Our churn risk is X, and here's our plan to fix it."

•**Competitor blindness.** If you say "no one does this," you lose. Say instead: "Competitor A does X, B does Y. Our wedge is Z, and here's how we defend against a well-funded copycat."

•**Solving tomorrow's problem.** If your pitch relies on a market that doesn't pay yet, he walks. Anchor to a budget that exists now.

Questions to prepare

1. Walk me through your traction. (Have exact numbers, even if small.) 2. If a competitor had unlimited money, how do you compete? 3. What is your current struggle? (Be specific, not existential.) 4. Who is your customer today, and what do they pay for right now? 5. What do you know about the market that others don't? 6. What breaks in your model if you get 100 customers this quarter?

How to talk to them

Direct, number-first, zero fluff. He is curious, so he will probe. Don't take it as hostility. Answer the question asked, then stop talking. No vision speeches.

What to lead with at your stage

Since you are likely PRE-SEED or SEED (check range $20K-$500K):

•Lead with the specific customer pain you've validated through conversations, not surveys.

•Show your team's unfair insight: why you, why this market, why now.

•If you have any waitlist, pilot, or LOI, put the number in the first 60 seconds.

The bar

A PASS means he believes you know the real problem today, you know your competition, and you are honest about your numbers. If you dodge or inflate, you fail. If you show clarity and transparency, even with early traction, you pass.

Bruno Mickael Martins da Silva

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How to win Bruno Mickael Martins da Silva