GET INVOLVED IN CONCEPT
Concept is Velocity’s entrepreneurship and pre-incubator program at the University of Waterloo. They provide information, guidance, and programs for the entrepreneurially-minded and tailored pre-incubator programs for aspiring startup founders. Their mission is to provide experiences that inspire and inform entrepreneurial students from all backgrounds and life experiences. Whether you have an idea, are working on a project, or have an early prototype, Concept wants to help you.
AFM students who are looking to leverage Concept can book a coaching session, where students meet 1-on-1 with founders or past startup employees who can give advice based on their past experience. These sessions can help you prepare a pitch or provide general guidance about the startup landscape. AFM students can also get involved by checking out one of their intro sessions and events to learn more about the organization and what services will help them turn their idea into reality.
Students may be interested in Working Sessions, which are small invite only sessions that allow students to work with a Concept Coach and dive deeper into a wide variety of topics. These are only available to students who have previously met with a coach or attended an intro session, so make sure to get involved and jump in.
PITCH LIKE A PRO
As someone interested in becoming an entrepreneur, you’ll need to know how to pitch your product to investors. A “pitch” is a short and concise description of your business idea, which centers around the purpose of your product/service and your target audience. They can be as short as 30 seconds (which is considered an ‘elevator pitch’) or as long as 20 minutes. Most pitches are visual by using a slide deck. By doing so, it helps to get your point across to your audience.
Guy Kawasaki, an American marketing specialist, author, and Silicon Valley venture capitalist, coined the 10/20/30 rule for your base deck. This refers to your pitch having ten slides, run twenty minutes in length (you can shorten if need be), and have a thirty-point-font size for all your content. There are also ten specific topics you should focus on within your ten slides.
PITCH LIKE A PRO
As someone interested in becoming an entrepreneur, you’ll need to know how to pitch your product to investors. A “pitch” is a short and concise description of your business idea, which centers around the purpose of your product/service and your target audience. They can be as short as 30 seconds (which is considered an ‘elevator pitch’) or as long as 20 minutes. Most pitches are visual by using a slide deck. By doing so, it helps to get your point across to your audience.
Guy Kawasaki, an American marketing specialist, author, and Silicon Valley venture capitalist, coined the 10/20/30 rule for your base deck. This refers to your pitch having ten slides, run twenty minutes in length (you can shorten if need be), and have a thirty-point-font size for all your content. There are also ten specific topics you should focus on within your ten slides.
CONCEPT $5K GRANT
Concept’s big event is the Concept $5K Grant. Every year, $20,000 in grants are awarded to students with creative and innovative tech ideas.
To earn the grant, students must apply and be selected for the semi-finals to pitch their ideas to a panel of judges from the local startup community. Each applicant has 3 minutes to present and show the judges why they deserve a place in the finals.
Ten teams compete in the Finals for a chance to win, and four of those teams will walk away with a $5K grant!
AFM Concept Grant winner David Zhao pitches Flowy, AI powered digital transformation tools to commoditize frictionless automation.
DILLON M., AFM STUDENT AND ENTREPRENEUR
Upper-year AFM student, Dillon M., is a TEDx and youth speaker, social entrepreneur, and one of Starfish Canada’s Top 25 Under 25. At the young age of 17, he co-founded the social enterprise PickWaste. His environmentally friendly venture had a massive impact on the environment. As a result, he was interviewed by numerous national news outlets (CBC, CTV and CityNews) and one of the top 100 podcasts in the world – Humans 2.0.
Dillon has consulted directly with the CEO of A&W Canada and has taken on the role of connector for the League of Innovators, a charity that strives to bridge the gap between high school students and entrepreneurship.
DILLON M., AFM STUDENT AND ENTREPRENEUR
Upper-year AFM student, Dillon M., is a TEDx & youth speaker, social entrepreneur, and one of Starfish’s Canada’s top 25 under 25. At the young age of 17, he co-founded the social enterprise PickWaste. His environmentally friendly venture had a massive impact on the environment. As a result, he was interviewed by numerous national news outlets (CBC, CTV and CityNews) and one of the top 100 podcasts in the world - Humans 2.0.
Dillon has consulted directly with the CEO of A&W Canada and has taken on the role of connector for the League of Innovators, a charity that strives to bridge the gap between high school students and entrepreneurship.
