SVP to host bigger, better Fast Pitch this year

Social Venture Partners Cincinnati will once again host its Fast Pitch competition, where local nonprofits will deliver their pitches in an attempt to attain grant money to put toward funding their missions.
 
Last year, three grantees were awarded prize money, which totaled $7,500; but this year, there is more support and, therefore, larger prizes—and more of them.
 
“You could win up to $16,000 if you do a sweep,” says Joan Kaup, executive director of SVP Cincinnati. “So, there’s $27,500 right now, but doesn’t $30,000 just sound better? I haven’t given up yet.”
 
Fast Pitch, which is modeled on a technique introduced in the venture capital and startup community, is an idea that prompts organizations to learn their story and figure out an effective way to share it.
 
“So the goal is to initially accept 20 [nonprofits] and invite them to training, and that’s all about, ‘What is your message? What is your key story?’” Kaup says. “And then those 20 will get a practice round with the Partners, who will narrow it down to eight; and those then get a training focused on, ‘Now that you know your story, how are you going to deliver it in a way that is creative, compelling and concise?”
 
SVP Cincinnati will match each organization with mentors and coaches who will work with one another for several weeks leading up to the February 11 event.
 
This year’s theme is Innovation that Matters, and the competition is open to all area nonprofits.
 
“What are the really wicked, sticky issues we’re dealing with in today’s society, and how are we going to bust that right open and take care of it?” Kaup says. “So we’re asking them to come forward with their innovative solutions that will make a difference to Greater Cincinnati. It could be children, animals, environment—I don’t want to put a fence around it—it’s wide open.”
 
Perhaps most exciting is that this year’s winner will also have the chance to compete on a national level in September 2015, as eight different SVP affiliates host this type of competition throughout the U.S.
 
“So we’re going to come together and have a national competition, which is just great for building capacity—it’s that much more exposure, that much more awareness,” Kaup says. “It will be about, ‘What is that nonprofit doing, what is the mission, the activity, how is the organization making an impact in the community, and can it be scaled to other communities? It’s exposure to what will be national funders and foundations, so the opportunity is pretty big for them.” 

Do Good:

•    If you're a nonprofit, apply for Fast Pitch prior to the November 1 deadline. 

•    Contact Joan Kaup if you're interested in sponsoring the event and helping the organization reach the $30,000 mark.

•    Save the date, and contact Joan to be put on the event's waiting list so you're first to know when tickets are available for purchase.