In February, I took part in a Vancouver Startups “Ask Me Anything” event called “Deep Dive: Pitching Beyond the Pitch Deck”.

Amogh Oak of Vancouver Startups asked me the questions! I thought I’d share a few highlights…

“How do you know if your story is worth sharing?”

I believe everyone has a story worth sharing. I talked about an engineering client who didn’t think she had a story—until we uncovered a powerful narrative about solving a client’s problem.

“What questions can you expect during Investor Q&A”

Expect questions like:

• Why this?
• Why you?
• Why now?

Or more practical ones like:

• What traction do you have so far?
• What’s the current status—team, competitors, your edge?
• What’s your vision—where’s the venture headed?

My go-to strategy: think of Q&A like a card game

This is a technique I learned from a seasoned presentation coach.

Picture yourself with a hand of cards—each one represents a strong answer (traction, your why story, competitive edge, etc.). When you’re asked a question, choose the best one or two cards to play.

I’ve shared this strategy with clients preparing for live pitches, and it really works. In fact, Tasha Nathanson of 7 Leagues Leather told me:

“Using the framework that Brenda provided, I was able to do a much better job of responding to the questions that the panelists asked.”

I’d love to hear your thoughts! What’s your approach to handling Q&A after a pitch? Does it work well for you? And if you’d like to assess how ready you are for a Q&A, sign up for a free 45-minute AMP Up Session. We’ll cover the 10 things that make a pitch truly memorable.