PitchCorner.com hopes to become online destination for start-up auditions

Wednesday, May 12, 2010 | Source: Concentrate

Every entrepreneur wants their start-up to become the next big thing. PitchCorner.com wants to become the place where the next big thing, and a lot of smaller ones, are found.

The Ann Arbor-based website provides a space for entrepreneurs to post a video of their elevator pitch, a short speech meant to capture the interest of an investor or customer. The idea is to help them fine tune their pitches and give investors a clearing house to see what is out there.

"You learn so much by seeing somebody or hearing their conviction," says Rick Galdi, co-founder of PitchMedia, which owns PitchCorner.com. "You get much more from it than what you would learn by reading a piece of paper."

Galdi would know. He is one of Michigan's most prominent angel investors and president of the Great Lakes Angels. He and Mike Brennan decided to make a go of it with PitchCorner.com last year. It has since debuted at the 10th Annual Collaboration for Entrepreneurship in Ann Arbor in January.

"Being able to pitch the company is something any entrepreneur should be able to do," Galdi says. "If you're not ready to do it in person or on camera then you're probably not ready."

The four-person start-up lets anyone surf the site. Those who want to post their pitches can do so for a $9.95 monthly fee. That will also allow them to post their logo and an executive summary of their business or product. The idea is to offer a cost-effective resource for start-ups where every dollar not only counts but needs to be stretched.

"It's gaining momentum slowly," Galdi says. "I didn't expect it to explode overnight because it's such a new idea. I had to temper my expectations a bit."

Source: Rick Galdi, co-founder of PitchCorner.com
Writer: Jon Zemke