How to Pitch to Investors: A Guide for Nigerian Startups

As of November 2024, the number of startups in Nigeria alone stood at 3,360, according to Statista, making it the highest in Africa, followed by Egypt and Kenya. 

It goes without saying that securing funding is a major challenge for startups in Nigeria and Africa at large. That’s why it’s necessary to stand out when pitching to a potential investor. A compelling pitch is your golden ticket to a round of funding that could change the trajectory of your entrepreneurial journey.

Just having a good idea is great, but you need more than that to get investors to believe in your vision, you need a compelling pitch that demonstrates the potential for substantial returns.

In this guide, we’ll take a deep look at how to prepare for your pitch, how to craft a winning pitch deck, where to find investors and how to prevent common mistakes that Nigerian startups make when pitching that you can use to captivate investors and secure funding.

Understanding the Mindset of Investors

To understand how investors think, you need to put yourself in their shoes. By doing this, you’ll understand that they look for business opportunities with minimal risk and offer high returns on investment. 

Here are some questions they ask themselves, depending on the stage your startup is at:

• Is there a large target audience available that needs the solution you are providing? Are you solving a real problem for them?

• Is your business model scalable? Can it grow at a fast pace without incurring high additional costs?

• What revenue streams does your startup use to make money? When will it become profitable?

• Do you have the right people with you to execute your business plan? Are they experienced and committed?

• How far along are you on the journey? Have you started acquiring paying customers and partnerships? 
  

Other concerns that investors may have when investing in Nigerian startups:

• Shifting policies and government regulations. Is your business easily and regularly affected by unstable policies?

• Is your business scalable and can you find quick solutions to challenges that may come?

• Are you and your co-founders responsible and financially disciplined?

Preparing for Your Investor Pitch

With sufficient preparation comes confidence and you’re going to need this confidence when pitching to investors to win them over. Follow these tips to prepare before you pitch your idea:

• Do some research on who you’re meeting

Investors are different and are drawn to different things. Do your best to find out the kinds of startups that they have funded before and their interests. This can help you craft a more tailored pitch.

• Ensure you have business clarity and can communicate it properly

Be clear about how your startup will make money, your target audience, and your pricing strategy. Know your numbers and be as specific as you can be. Clearly communicate your customer acquisition cost, profit margins, and past, present, and projected revenue. Doing this confidently will draw their attention and make them more willing to fund you.

• Create a compelling story to back your idea

Numbers are good, however, a good story can drive your pitch home because investors invest not just in businesses, but also in founders. They need to know that you have the passion and desire to see it through. To sell your pitch, tell a compelling story about the impact your startup will have financially and on the people your startup will help.

Crafting a Winning Pitch Deck

What is a pitch deck?

A pitch deck is a visual presentation that is designed to showcase your idea, product or startup to investors in a way that convinces them to fund you. It accompanies your pitch and should be simple, impactful and straight to the point.

Here are the essential slides that it should have:

1. Title slide

Here, you should include your company name, logo, tagline, your name, title and contact information.

2. Problem statement slide

Clearly state the pain point(s) that your audience experiences and your startup aims to solve. You can use data and anecdotes to illustrate how much of a problem it is in Nigeria.

3. Solution slide

Show how your product or service solves the problem stated earlier. You should also emphasize your competitive advantage and unique value proposition that positions your startup as the solution to the problem.

4. Market opportunity slide

Show the size of the market and your target audience. Provide data on target audience demographics and market trends in Nigeria.

5. Business model slide

Here, you can explain how your startup will make money, your pricing strategy, lifetime value, customer acquisition costs and the scalability of your business model.

6. Traction/milestones & growth metrics slide

What progress have you made to date? State this in terms of customers acquired, revenue generated, and partnerships. Spotlight the traction you made despite the challenges you faced.

7. Competitive analysis slides

Who are your competitors and what makes you unique? Analyse your competition in the market and identify your competitive advantage. Show how you can/have been able to differentiate yourself in the Nigerian market.

8. Data-driven financial projections slide

Here you should show your revenue projections, operational costs, the road to profitability, and any other financial cost applicable to your business. Back your projections up with data and show them in Naira wherever possible.

9. Team slide

Show the investors your co-founders and other important team members, including their relevant experience, connections and expertise that can help you achieve your business goals.

10. Funding slide

Be clear and specific about the amount of funding you require and how you intend to use it for marketing, expansion, product development, etc

State your valuation, outline your exit strategy and the potential return on investment for investors.

11. Thank you slide

After all has been said and done, provide your contact information, website address and other necessary contact details, then express your gratitude for the investor's time and consideration.

Keep your slides clean and as short as possible. Investors shouldn’t have to read essays during a pitch, considering that they’re busy and may have to sit through many other pitches. Keep it memorable and short.

Perfecting Your Pitch Presentation

Delivering Your Pitch with Confidence

How you deliver your pitch is just as important as the pitch deck itself. Here are some important tips for your presentation:

1. Use simple language

Help them understand what you’re saying easily. Complicating things with complex jargon may not help you achieve your objective.

2. Use data and visuals

To make your pitch more engaging, use images, charts, graphs and other visual elements to pass across your message.

3. Prepare for questions

The investors will definitely have questions. Try to anticipate them and have answers to questions about competition, challenges, financials, projections and numbers.

4. Keep it short

Unless otherwise stated, keeping your pitch below 15 minutes will help to ensure that you don’t include unnecessary information and don’t bore your listeners.

5. Tell a story

To make your pitch engaging, tell a compelling and authentic story as you highlight the problem you’re solving, the solution you have, and the impact you’re making.

Let your enthusiasm and passion shine through your delivery as this can have a profound effect on investors.

6. Eye contact and body language

Maintain a good amount of eye contact with your audience and use confident body language - smile and gesture to emphasize your points.

7. Show adaptability and expert domain knowledge

Demonstrate your expert knowledge of the Nigerian market and the unique opportunities and challenges that it presents. Show how you can adapt to volatile and changing market conditions.

8. Practice

Get a good amount of practice in until you’re confident in the presentation. Practising with someone who can point out areas of improvement can be helpful.

Where You Can Find Investors in Nigeria

Ever tried looking for something in the dark? It’s hard, right? Let’s shed some light on where you can find investors in Nigeria. If you’re a Nigerian startup looking for investors, here are some VCs, angel investors and grants that you can look into:

Angel Investor Networks:

• Lagos Angel Network (LAN): One of the biggest angel investor groups in Nigeria.

• Rising Tide Africa: A group of women angel investors who invest in early-stage startups, especially women-led businesses. You should definitely check them out if you’re a woman entrepreneur.

• Diaspora Angels Network: This consists of Nigerians abroad looking to invest in local startups. The Diaspora Angel Network is part of the African Business Angels Network (ABAN)

Venture Capital Firms:

• Future Africa: Focuses on African startups with high growth potential.

• GreenHouse Capital: Invests in fintech, health tech, and AI startups.

• Microtraction: Provides early-stage funding to tech startups.

• Y Combinator: Y Combinator is a startup accelerator and venture capital firm that has funded well-known Nigerian startups.

Other VC firms are:

• TLcom Capital

• Ingressive Capital

• EchoVC Partners

• Ventures Platform

• Launch Africa

• Chrysalis Capital

Startup Grants & Competitions:

• Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF) Grant: Provides seed funding for African entrepreneurs.

• Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF): Offers funding for small businesses in Nigeria.

• Seedstars: Offers funding opportunities to startups.

Take advantage of networking opportunities at tech events happening around the country like Lagos Startup Week, Art of Technology Lagos, and Nigeria Innovation Summit. You could meet a lot of investors there willing to fund your startup.

If you need more information on securing funding for your startup, especially as a startup in Northern Nigeria, you should read more here.

Common Mistakes Nigerian Startups Make When Pitching

• Not tailoring your pitch to the local market your startup will operate in

• Overemphasizing technical details

• Vague and unrealistic financial projections

• Lack of in-depth knowledge of their target audience

• Not having a clear understanding of the investor’s priorities

• Not demonstrating strong traction or user base

• Overloading slides

• Not rehearsing the pitch enough for excellent delivery

• Being vague about how money will be spent if funded

• Not showing proof that people actually want your product

• Not paying enough attention to operational challenges that may arise

To prevent these pitfalls, you should conduct thorough market research to understand the Nigerian market, customer pain points, and customer needs. Tailor your pitch to the local context your startup will be operating in and rehearse your pitch multiple times to deliver a confident and passionate pitch with clear communication and strong storytelling.

Successful Nigerian Startups That Pitched to Investors

• Paystack

Secured funding from Y Combinator by demonstrating strong market demand and early traction.

• Flutterwave

Impressed investors with clear revenue potential and a scalable fintech model.

• PiggyVest

Used a compelling story and data-driven projections to secure multiple rounds of investment.

• BuyPower 

After its establishment in 2016, the founders secured funding from Y Combinator, with the advantage of being one of the first to the market it is in.

• Moniepoint

Over the years, Moniepoint has raised over $100m in various series after impressing investors with their track record of scalability and profitability.

• Cowrywise

Cowrywise raised $3m in a pre-series A round in 2021.

Investors love startups that solve real problems, show traction, and have a clear growth plan and that’s what these companies showed them. 

The success of these companies and many more shows that you too can get the funding you need by approaching and pitching to the right people. You can get funding from a long list of places but it’s up to you to determine if certain investors prefer to invest in certain sectors like fintech or not. Knowledge like this can make a huge difference when approaching investors.

Venture capital firms like TLcom Capital, Microtraction, and Ingressive Capital are prominent investors in Nigerian startups.

Conclusion & Final Tips

Here are some important takeaways:

• Know the investors: Do your research on the investors before pitching to them.

• Tell a compelling story about the problem you’re solving and the impact your solution will have: Investors connect with passion and purpose.

• Show traction: Even small wins (early customers, partnerships) make a big difference.

• Keep your pitch simple, short and sweet: It should be short, clear, and straight to the point.

• Practice as much as possible: The more confident you are, the more likely you’re able to pull off a great presentation.

Pitching to investors can be quite challenging but it proves itself rewarding when you eventually secure funding for your startup. Every Nigerian entrepreneur looking for funding needs to be good at creating a pitch deck and pitching. With the right amount of preparation and building the right relationships you can secure the funding you need to kick off your startup or take it to higher heights.

Have you faced any challenges when pitching to investors? Let’s hear about them in the comments below.