Stop Pitching Your Startup Like It’s a Science Fair Project

Why no one cares about your startup

Nobody cares about your startup. And it’s not because they’re stupid, or you’re too early. It’s because you’re saying the wrong damn thing.

I’ve learned through my own startup, as well as working with hundreds of founders through incubators, that the answer to your frustration with this is always the same.

The problem founders always have is that they talk about the problem and their solution.

Which is adorable. And completely wrong.

To most of you reading this, the Problem Solution Statement probably sounds reasonable, and in fact is consistent with the principles of something like Lean Startup. Truth? No one cares.

Effective communication of a solution that creates value, which is what you’re looking for in asking about truly understanding and caring about what the business does, establishes that the reason the problem exists is understood and has been solved.

But Lean Startup also told you to talk to customers, not just pitch VCs. Stop using it like it’s scripture and start using it like it’s a tool.

I know from experience advising that I might sound like I’m talking in circles so let me clarify.

The Real Reason No One Cares About Your Startup (And It’s Not Your Idea)

Most founders get excited about their idea for a solution to a problem. And the problem in that is that everyone has ideas to solve problems. You have endless competition, despite you thinking that you might not, and whatever you can accomplish, anyone else can accomplish, particularly if they have more resources… the fact that you solved a problem is to me irrelevant given the fact that there’s a cost to me of attempting what you’re providing.

Here’s the reality:

Your idea isn’t special.

Everyone has ideas. Investors have better ones than you. And most of them have already backed someone who’s working on it with more resources.

The trick in effective pitching is to explain why the problem remains a problem.

The fact that you’ve solved a problem? Neat. But unless you’ve nailed why that problem still exists — and why no one else has fixed it — you’re just another founder with a product no one asked for.

You don’t win by solving the problem. You win by showing why the problem persists — and why your approach can’t be easily copied or crushed.

Why does the problem persist? Not that you have a solution for it but that you have a fundamental understanding of why the problem still exist despite the fact that many other people can and do try to solve it.

This is the why.

And the why is not why I care nor even why you care… the value in your business that I care about is that you have tackled the solution in a manner that no one else has capably conceived of, evident in the fact that no one else is doing it as well as you are.

If you fail to explain why the problem persists despite alternatives, you fail to convince your audience that you understand what’s actually going on.

And if you don’t convince me that you understand what’s going on, your solution is temporary, consistent with alternatives, or likely easily put out of business by competition… I’m not taking that risk on you.

Want a cheat code? Try this:

Explain why Uber didn’t already fix it. Explain why Salesforce hasn’t solved it. Explain why Google can’t just build it next quarter.

Make the bar clear: not that you solved something — but that others can’t. Or won’t. Or didn’t know how.

Take ride sharing…

You build a new app that promises faster pickups. Yay. But I live in Lubbock. Or Boise. Or 10 miles outside Austin. You don’t have cars there. So no, I don’t care that you promise 3-minute pickups. You’re lying. Or delusional. Or both.

The real problem isn’t speed, it’s availability. And you didn’t fix that.

The thing is, I might try it and then I’m going to discover that it doesn’t work as you claim.

Why? The problem isn’t that I need a car to arrive more quickly, the problem within the problem is that cars don’t arrive more quickly because there aren’t enough cars available, and you making an app that promises to get cars to ride more quickly, doesn’t convey sufficient value in a way that I care because I doubt it. In fact, I know it’s not possible because Uber and Lyft have the majority of drivers on their platforms throughout the world and you don’t and can’t.

Understand the problem within the problem. Why does this remain a problem.

Why No One Cares About Your Startup

Your pitch isn’t about your product. It’s about your grasp of the systemic failure that keeps the problem alive.

If you can’t tell me why the problem still exists, despite millions of people and billions of dollars trying to solve it, your pitch is worthless.

In our example, you are promising me a better value because a car arrives faster, is b.s. if I’m somewhere you don’t have cars. Follow? Tell me you solved having more vehicles available throughout the world, and THEN you can promise me something better.

Only with the problem causing the problem can you effectively convey real value that people will care about.

Most founders pitch as if they’re trying to impress a product manager at Google. What you need is to pitch like you’re diagnosing a disease no one else has properly understood, and you’ve got the cure.

So, before you pitch again, ask yourself this:

Why hasn’t anyone with more money, more people, or more time already solved this?

If you don’t have an answer, don’t pitch. Fix that first.

And I’ll be blunt — if you’re pitching a feature, not a fundamental fix, you’re wasting our time. And in startup land, that’s the only thing more precious than capital.

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You think you’ve got a startup? Prove it. Drop your pitch in the comments — I do this all the time, live, so let’s put it in writing. If you can’t explain why the problem still exists despite billion-dollar competition… I’ll fix it with you.