Probably like a lot of you, I'm skeptical of having to pay to pitch. Each time I hit the Paypal button, "Is it a scam?" ran through my head. But I justified it as paying for an expert's time, which can be extremely helpful... and is has been!
For every "pass" I received, I got invaluable advice on how to make my pitch better. And this weekend, I got a script request from the 5th pitch I have made on here! I know there are many steps in the process, but the validation that someone outside of my friends and family wanted to read my script made me more emotional than I expected when i got that email.
Now, by no means do I pretend to be an expert, but I wanted to share my "rules" when it came to pitching on here and the big takeaways from the "failed" pitches.
1. I researched every executive and read what they were or weren't looking for before I paid to pitch them. It makes no sense to pitch a sitcom with a male lead if the executive says in the notes that they're looking for "female-led drama or sci-fi."
2. I set a budget on how many pitches for the same concept. If 10 out of 10 executives "pass" on my idea, it probably means I need to find another idea to pitch.
3. BUT - don't get discouraged if the first 9 say no. This was especially hard for me, and I was only on my 5th pitch.
4. DON'T. READ. YOUR. PITCH. SCRIPT. VERBATIM. Despite reading not to do this on Stage 32's "how to pitch", I still did it on my first couple pitches. As soon as I made my feel like a conversation AND not scripted, the quality of the responses I got from the experts increased exponentially. It's almost like if they heard someone reading a script, that was a key signal that this pitch wasn't worth their time.
5. Stick to your script - You can be verbatim without sounding verbatim. I've got a sales background and it's no different than a sales script. Rehearse it, know it back and front, but make it sound like it's the first time you've said it.
Anyhoo, I'll keep you updated on my progress. Good luck to everyone out there!
I feel the same when I go to the pay button but I do like the feed back on my pitches. It helps to hone my craft. Gives me direction.