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Entrepreneurship & Startups vocabulary · Pitching

Demo day

Meaning in entrepreneurship & startups, with examples

/ˈdemoʊ deɪ/nounCommon term

In entrepreneurship & startups, demo day means: An event at the end of an accelerator programme where each startup pitches on stage to an audience of investors, journalists and partners.

In Turkish: demo günü, yatırımcı sunum günü

How it is used

Demo day pitches are short, often three to five minutes. Founders prepare for and pitch at demo day, and investor meetings often follow in the next weeks. The term is also used for any event where startups show their products to investors.

Example sentences

  1. We have four minutes at demo day, so every slide has to count.

  2. After demo day, we booked twenty investor meetings in two weeks.

Common collocations

  • pitch at demo day
  • demo day presentation
  • prepare for demo day
  • after demo day
  • acceleratorA fixed-term programme, often three to six months, that gives a group of startups mentoring, training, contacts and usually a small investment in exchange for equity.
  • pitchTo present your business idea or product to investors, customers or partners in a short, convincing way so that they agree to support or buy it.
  • pitch deckA short slide presentation, often 10 to 20 slides, that explains a startup's problem, solution, market, team, numbers and funding needs to investors.
  • elevator pitchA very short, clear description of your business that you can say in about thirty to sixty seconds, the time of a short elevator ride.

More terms: Pitching

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