How to Sell An App Idea [The Ultimate Guide]

Introduction

If you are an entrepreneur in a blooming startup hub like United Kingdon, how to sell an app idea is a tricky question.

But WHY?

There are two significant reasons: competitive market and wrong pitches.

UK’s startup environment is competitive, with more than £941 million worth of startup loans disbursed to entrepreneurs by the British Business Bank.

So, there is no denying that competition is high, and you need the correct pitch. However, most entrepreneurs don’t tick the proper checkboxes when pitching their app ideas.

When choosing a startup idea, you must be able to check either of these boxes

[ ] Truly novel (nobody else has tried)
[ ] 10X better product

The absolute best check both. 99% of startups check neither.

A good pitch is sometimes a strong story explaining how to get the 1st ☑️

— Garry Tan 陈嘉兴 ????️ (@garrytan) December 31, 2019

As the above tweet puts it- you need a novel and unique product that is 10X better than the competition.

Further, Garry offers essential insights on how to sell an app idea- “framing the idea!”

Simply put, you need to frame your pitch right to attract investors.

This article will focus on:

• Why do you need the right pitch for your app idea?
• How to frame your pitch to attract investors?
• What do you need to have in your pitch?
• How to plan your pitch to get investments?

So, let’s start with the basics of pitching!

What is a Pitch for a Startup Idea?

A pitch offers your investors an insight into your product, the problem it will solve, and the business model.

It is a brief presentation showcasing your app's business plan - which includes the target market, revenue sources, and features that will help solve users’ problems.

Any startup pitch aims to persuade potential investors, partners, and customers to believe in the app idea.

A startup pitch will have elements like:

• Problem definition
• Vision of the product
• Unique value proposition
• Team
• Traction metrics
• Milestones
• Business model
• Competition.

Each element has a specific function in your idea pitch.

For example, the problem of the definition helps investors understand the exact issue you aim to solve through the product.

The unique value proposition is where investors can evaluate the uniqueness of your product in comparison with existing products or services in the market.

Both the elements - problem definition and unique value proposition tick the checkbox Garry refers to at the beginning of the article.

So, as an entrepreneur getting the elements of a startup pitch is crucial to get funding. But how to get the pitch right?

Secrets to the Right Pitch to Sell App Idea

What’s the right pitch? Is it the one that brings more investors or higher funding?

An entrepreneur needs to adapt the pitch according to the type of investor and stage of a startup.

So, there is no one-size-fits-all pitch for your app idea.

For example, if you pitch your app idea to a venture capital firm, your product or service needs a viable revenue source, a strong market presence, and efficient teams.

At the same time, the pitch idea will need some fine-tuning based on the funding stages, like series A, B, or C.

It is important to note that your pitch is not just about problem definition and uniqueness but also about how to make money from an app idea.

So, the best practice will be to consider cost of developing an app, revenue sources, and profitability.

Here are some tips to follow while you plan for your app idea pitch:

• Focus on the USP of the idea, which needs a clear definition in the pitch
• Analyze the existing solutions to find how novel your product is in comparison
• Identify critical market gaps through surveys and research
• Build a reliable business model with feasible revenue sources
• Create a lifecycle management plan for your product.

Let’s understand these tips and how they make your pitch stand out amidst the competition.

#1. Have a Unique Selling Point for Your Product!

Whether it's a feature that makes your product unique or just the experience.

Take an example of a meal planning app that offers a personalized solution for families looking to eat healthy on a budget.

Unlike most meal-planning applications that require users to spend hours inputting data to generate meal plans, this app offers plans in just a few clicks.

The USP here is an AI-based algorithm pre-built in the application, which automates the process of meal planning, grocery list generation, and personalization.

Having the USP is important, but framing it right is also crucial to sell the app idea.

So, if you are wondering how to sell my app idea and attract investors with USP, here are some tips:

• Clearly define your USP for investors, which shows why your business stands out amidst the competition.
• Refine your USP through thorough market research.
• Establish strong brand identity through targeted marketing aligning with product USP.
• Showcase how the USP of the product will translate to higher profitability.
• Have financial projections in your app idea pitch to indicate evident growth in the future.

One of the critical aspects of determining what the USP is and how to make money from an app idea depends on the market scenario.

#2. Compare Your Solution with Existing Ones

Comparing your product with the existing solution helps understand your app idea's market fit.

Why so?

Because 90% of startups fail, one significant reason is pitching a product into the wrong market.

Simply put, you need to analyze the market your product targets and how it fits among other solutions.

The Fantastic Home Buyers startup is a classic example of a startup failing to comprehend the need for the product in a market.

Alan Murry bootstrapped this startup which focused on easing the process of buying a house for people in the UK.

However, he later realized there was no need for such a product in the market and shut down the business in 2018.

The reason behind Alan’s startup failure was a lack of market research.

So, researching the market and competition is crucial if you are an entrepreneur in the UK looking to create the next unicorn, researching the market and competition is crucial.

#3. Use Targeted Marketing for Better Brand Identity

Increasing hype for your product before you launch has always worked for brands.

However, what type of brand identity you want to establish needs to align with your marketing efforts.

So, if you are a startup in the food delivery space, market hype is essential.

Gregg’s #VeganSausageRoll is a classic example of a brand leveraging negative marketing to increase the hype.

This campaign did help Gregg’s vegan sausage rolls launch with a massive sales boost, but their approach is unsuitable for each business.

However, what you can learn from Gregg’s campaign is the importance of generating product hype through marketing.

Another key aspect of establishing brand identity through marketing is improving user trust.

If you are planning on how to sell an idea for an app, establishing the brand identity, and building trust is critical.

For example, you need to market your solution's mobile app security best practices.

Here are some tips to follow for targeted marketing:

• Conduct market research to determine the target audience and their preferences
• Develop a unique brand identity through marketing efforts that showcase the USP of your product
• Leverage social media campaigns to improve brand awareness
• Offer product trials and let users experience some features which provide organic feedback
• Include the user feedback and peer testimonials in your pitch

#4. Build a Reliable Business Model

Business model of your application idea is crucial for investors to understand whether a product delivers enough value and ROI.

A pitch for your application idea requires a viable revenue source, process flow, customer journey map, and a minimum viable product.

An essential aspect of pitch is a working model of the product, which helps investors understand how your solution works.

MVP is the best way to showcase a working model without spending too much.

It is a shippable version of the product with minimum but essential features.

You can hire UK app developers to build an MVP and add it to the pitch.

However, finding the right developer or a team of developers for your product MVP is crucial.

Here are some tips for finding the right development team for your application idea:

• Consider the type of application to develop, the tech stack, and the features.
• Check the developer’s portfolio to see if they have relevant experience in developing such apps.
• Assess their technical skills and knowledge of programming language.
• Make sure that you choose a team with better communication skills and enhanced collaborations.
• Look for a development team with strong project management skills.

#5. Create a Lifecycle Management Plan for Your Product

First, as an entrepreneur, you may wonder why you need such a plan.

The reason is simple, an investor needs to evaluate your capability to handle the product throughout its lifecycle.

A lifecycle management plan includes everything from idea inception, development, launch, and ultimately retiring it from the market.

Here are key steps to create one for your pitch idea:

• Define product lifecycle stages as follows:

1. The development stage involves the creation and testing of the product.
2. Introduction stage involves the launch of the product and marketing.
3. Growth stage involves customer base expansion and market share.
4. Maturity stage involves peak sales and market saturation.
5. Decline stage involves the product losing relevance and decline in sales.
6. Retirement involves phasing out the product of the market.

• Define key objectives and metrics for each stage.
• Strategize for optimal results at each stage.
• Assign responsibilities and timelines for each stage.
• Have a pre-defined process to monitor and evaluate the progress of business outcomes.

Are You Ready to Pitch?

There are nearly 9 billion mobile apps, so your idea needs to be novel to attract investors.

But is that all?

The answer is complex, and we have tried to solve it through an actionable five-step process that will help you improve your idea pitch.

However, if you are still wondering how to sell an app idea to investors, please contact our expert panel.

Our team of developers can also help build an MVP for your pitch idea and attract more investors.