Pitching Regular Hoops to Investors

View my pitch deck and read some takeaways! (Regular Hoops Reflection #2)

I recently participated in the MSBC 11 Pitchfest, sponsored by Detroit Venture Partners (**click here to view my pitch deck**).

Unfortunately, I didn’t win… But I left with valuable feedback. Stick around to read my friends’ reactions. 

Feedback

1. Strong Passion & Story

Before the Pitchfest, I rambled when explaining my vision and assumed enthusiasm equals powerful storytelling.

Preparing for this event compelled me to step back and connect the dots. I learned to vocalize my thoughts and translate my passion into a story.

But passion is just one aspect that investors evaluate. The business needs to make sense too. The latter is where I struggled, and the next two points reveal why.

2. Articulate the Content Strategy

Many of the judges believed Regular Hoops will only create basketball mixtapes. In fairness, that is what the Instagram content looks like today.

I needed to emphasize the future — as the brand becomes the voice of basketball culture. This could have been accomplished by clarifying the content strategy in three phases:

Stage 1 (07/2022 - Present): Mixtapes of Regular Hoopers for market validation

Stage 2 (01/2023 - 08/2023): Iterate new short-form storytelling content

Stage 3 (09/2023 - Future): Produce top-performing Stage 2 videos in New York

3. Understand How to Scale Regular Hoops

Investing in social media brands is similar to investing in consumer startups. So to scale, Regular Hoops must acquire engaged users. 

In social media terms, that means increasing view count, which can be manufactured through growth hacks like paid media. 

But those “get-rich-quick” tricks don’t develop attractive communities and highlight the battle between Algorithm & Artistry. If you’re not familiar with this concept, Hasan Minhaj details it on the Colin & Samir Show.

“The problem with servicing an algorithm is you may start servicing that rather than your own truth and honesty and artistry… You start [servicing an Algorithm] and you'll be refining crude oil for YouTube, Meta, and Twitter” - Hasan Minhaj

So my strategy is simple… if the content is good, then people will view it. Right now, Regular Hoops’ content is tailored to people I feature. This is not suitable for a mass audience, which hinders scalability.

Scalability will be the key to success. It’s challenging, but that’s what I signed up for.

Gratitude

I’m grateful for people (like YOU) who have supported me along this journey.

Your support does not go unnoticed, so I want to use this platform to share some messages I received after the Pitchfest:

“It’s a long game and requires continued focus on winning; this immediate competition doesn’t determine that and maybe makes what and where you want to win clearer”

“You get to learn and grow from here. Apply that feedback and make it more crisp and refine the pitch”

“F**k that, ur sh*t is just as legit. If not more. What you’re trying to do with ‘regular’ hoopers and giving them a voice in a sense. You kinda make everyone feel like a celebrity which is super unique”

Closing Thoughts

I participated in the MSBC 11 Pitchfest knowing Regular Hoops is not a venture back-able business. It’s too early, as I’m focused on building the brand before the business.

Nevertheless, the experience was rewarding, and I look forward to competing in future pitch competitions. 

Shoot me a message or leave a comment to share your thoughts. I’d love to hear from you.