Business ideas have come forth in their various forms, dynamics, and platforms. And a few of them have been remarkably interesting to the dragons. The dragons oftentimes have recognized the immense potentials of a few business ideas, which somehow fell short under analytical scrutiny. However, a few business ideas have made the dragons move their markers towards the pockets of the pitcher, based on several parameters. They have made certain pitchers very happy indeed, laden with an overloaded bank account flowing the dragons’ money.

First of all, let’s attempt an examination on some ideas, products, and business that didn’t fly and why; let’s amuse ourselves with the highlights of the show so far, and amuse ourselves at another man’s expense:

Miscellaneous

One pitcher had presented an idea about selling energy. He asked for 30 million naira, but when asked how he has planned to spend the money, and how far he’s gone with the project so far, his response wasn’t convincing, which prompted more questions and remarks like, “I don’t even know what you’re selling” one dragon had asked, and when the pitcher replied, “energy”, the dragon then asked, “what stops me from selling energy myself?” before concluding, “I can’t clearly see your business edge over your competition from everything you’ve laid out” and another dragon had asked him, “so far, you’ve accounted for the proposed use of 20 million naira…what are you going to do with the other 10 million naira?” and the pitcher had replied, “I budgeted 10 million naira for miscellaneous”, and this was considered hilarious by the dragon who retorted, “what is miscellaneous? Is buying a new car for yourself miscellaneous?”

And that was how this miscellaneous encounter cost this pitcher some miscellaneous expenses.

Paid in Full

This interesting pitcher presented an exciting idea, which was actually an I.T related product to the dragons and asked for a whooping 8-figure investment from the dragons. His idea was backed with a functional plan for its execution, and basic operational nervous system required for the launching of the product to the public. This northerner was able to tell the dragons where the money was in the business. He was also able to demonstrate the functionality of this mobile-driven technology to the satisfaction of the dragons. And when he was asked, “how much will it cost you to get the information you need to broaden your database?” by one of the dragons, his response was curt and clear. And instantly he attracted a whooping investment from the first dragons, who happened to be the expert in that field…this dragons interest in this idea inspired the other dragons to invest. And in the end, this pitcher raised all the money he had asked for from all the five dragons, meaning that he had just employed 5 globally-renowned business moguls on the board of directors of his company. They were bringing not just their money, but their expertise and experience to his business. He shook hands with 5 millionaires…yes…he too was a millionaire now!

So, I guess the trick of the bottom-line is win one dragon over…no, sorry, win the dragon with the most experience in the field of your proposed business, and watch the other dragons squirming for an opportunity to get on board!

You too can face the dragons…and walk home a millionaire!

I remain your trusted eyes in the den.

–The Den Sweeper.

I feel compelled by my love for you, to let you have a little background info on the dragons you’d be facing in the den, but I seriously recommend that you keep this revelation strictly between the two of us.

You have five dragons…

From different backgrounds…with different levels of experience…from different economic sectors and industries…they are different in character and fields of expertise…but they all have a few things in common:  they’ve all amassed immense wealth and achieved huge levels of success in their respective fields; they all have a unique success story; they are armed with very analytical minds and sharp business intuitions, and they are ready to invest in your business or idea:

One of these dragons is a household name in the broadcast media industry in Nigeria and indeed the world; in his early 50s, he has more than 30 years experience in the media business…he’s risen from the ranks of radio and TV presenter, reporter, news anchor, and news editor for the biggest broadcast network in Africa to occupying an enviable position as the owner of a burgeoning broadcast media outfit respected terrestrially and internationally. He is well-travelled. His analysis of any proposed business provides the pitcher with an itinerary for attaining great heights in business. He reeks with the aura of a motivational speaker-challenging and inspiring any young mind with his meteoric rise through the ladders of a highly politicized industry.

One of the dragons is a digital age entrepreneur who became a multi-million pound sterling millionaire at the age of 24 for a mobile-phone driven technology.  His passion for music and I.T encapsulated in a synergy of wealth and prominence made possible by his dexterity in running a cutting edge 21^st century mobile-technology service delivery company. This dragon is an exponent of inter-personal skills, upholding the belief that your product or idea is only as good as your personality.

One of the dragons is a brand name in the marketing communications industry with over 35 years experience in the African advertising environment. A new generation entrepreneur, with a fresh approach to emerging business challenges. He has amassed so much wealth and success by positioning his advertising company as a company devoted to providing unequalled and unrivalled leveraging platforms for its clients to reach the core of their target, and generate great revenue from doing so. He is very persuasive, and upholds the virtue of compelling and convincing persuasion. When you meet him-be sure to observe the cardinal rules of advertising.

One dragon is a venture capitalist who understands the theories, mechanics, and applications of money in the business world. She has vast experiences in negotiating global money matters and designing modules that drive more profits for businesses. She has also has a background in computers. She has years of experience in equity investing, and holds a keen interest in emerging markets. She holds a MBA from one of the world’s most prestigious business schools. Her mind works like a portable computer, analyzing numbers and figures at the speed of thought.

One dragon is a prince whose last name inspires awe and respect for the business savvy associated with his lineage. Let’s say he inherited a well-seasoned ability to make fortunes. Young and successful, with a background in engineering, and an expanding experiential resume in investment and portfolio management, petroleum, and agriculture, this dragon represents the new breed of African entrepreneurship with many business pies on his dining table. He sits on top a conglomerate that has grown in reputation as a vibrant provider of essential commodities and services across Africa.

I hope this prepares you…Good luck!

–James Amuta

Dear Diary,

What role will the pitcher’s personality play in getting an investment from the dragons? Is there a lot at stake to risk injecting a bit of professional arrogance into your personality? Is it okay to assume that as a professional at what you do, that the dragons have no right to question a few of your claims and declarations? How prudent is it to assume that you know better than the dragons? How wise would it be to lock yourself in an argumentative duel with one or all of the dragons?

Well, I don’t have all the answers, after all I’m just a humble den sweeper’s alter-ego, but one thing I know for sure is that for a package to be considered interesting, the wrapping must be attractive and appealing. And talking about attractive and appealing, I am not suggesting that you blow your entire savings on an expensive designer suit: No, not at all, because I’ve seen a lot of pitchers (in business) in very expensive suits with very cheap personality, and less-than-a dime attitude. But there’s a need to look the part you preach. You need to look smart, reliable, and worthy of eliciting confidence in your business. You can’t expect to walk away with N10 million, looking like someone who’s never laid hands on N5, 000 before. But then if a business suit will make you irritably cocky, please wear something that makes you look good but still gives your ego enough room to practice some modesty and humility.

The first presentation you make is of yourself. You are your business idea. You are your business plan. You are your Power Point presentation. No projector or slide will sell your idea or business better than your personality, so BE your business, and BE your presentation.

Believe me; you’re apt to have a more attentive audience with the dragons, if you engage them with a likable personality. Let them see the business idea IN you and through you. Be your own business advocate, speak for your NUMBERS, as well as have your numbers SPEAK for you.

Bear in mind that the more money you ask for, the more research you are expected to have put into the business idea you’re pitching. The more money you ask for, the more passionate you’re expecting to be. The more money you ask for, the more precise with figures you’re expected to be. The more money you ask for, the more professional and experienced you’re required to be in the field of the proposed business. And the less equity you wish to part with, the more resources and business mechanism you need to have already put in place for the effective running of your proposed business.

Above all, arrogance and over-confidence may not help you. A positive, polite, and likable attitude may guarantee a more successful pitch.

 Finally, just try the magic of a charming smile now and then.

Good luck!

–The Den Sweeper

I need money!

I have a wonderful business idea that is worth more than 40 million naira on paper, but currently worth nothing in reality, and to transform this ingenious business idea into a real business I need 10 million naira. My projected income is approximately 10 million naira monthly, if only I can secure the funding I need. But then an investor is ready to offer me 10 million naira is exchange of 80% equity in this business. Meaning that he will own 80% of my business. He will have 80% control, and he will do 80% of the work! No way, it’s an ugly rip off. I can’t offer anything more than 30%…no way!

I don’t care if he’s bringing his expertise. I don’t care if he’s brought 100% of what we’ll use in starting this business. I don’t care if he’s putting in 80% of the work required to make this business manifest. I don’t care if the business is currently worth NOTHING. I don’t care if he’s taking a 100% RISK with 100% of his money, investing in a yet-to-exist business. I don’t care!

I think the problem is that I think and believe my business is worth the figures I’ve put down on paper. I see the profit, but I don’t see the risk, and I don’t see the obvious: it’s not even a business yet. Yes, right…why should I give an investor 80% of my business, even if he’s taking 100% of the risk? So if I make 10 million naira monthly, automatically, I’ve given him 8 million naira monthly. That’s not fair! I can’t accept that! But what have I forgotten? I don’t even have a business! I need his 10 million naira to make the business happen, or the business will just die like one of my previous business ideas that met with a solid brick wall when it came to the issue of finance. Let’s look at it from a wise man’s angle. First of all, I’ll ask myself the following questions:

1.        How much am I currently making from the 100% ownership I have in the business? And if my answer is NOTHING…not a single farthing! Then, I’ll ask:

2.        How much will I make (independent of the investor’s money) within the next one year? And then again if my answer is between NOTHING and ABSOLUTELY NOTHING, then I’ll ask again:

3.        How much will the business be worth within the next one year with the investor’s money (N10, 000, 000)? And if my answer is that the growth rate of the business is about 100% ROI (Return-on-Investment) on the first month, 200% ROI in the second month, 300% ROI in the third month etc? And if from my calculations, I figure that somehow within the next 4 months, the business may be worth well over N40, 000, 000; then I’ll ask myself:

4.        What is 20% of N40, 000, 000? And if my answer is N8, 000, 000; then I’ll ask myself:

5.        What will the 100% of my business be worth within the next 4 months (or even 1 year) without the investor’s money? And if the figures in my answer say  NOTHING or anything less than N8, 000, 000; then I’ll ask myself:

6.        Is 20% of N40, 000, 000 WORTH more than 100% of NOTHING?

I’ve been thinking about this all day, because I have a business idea to pitch to an investor, and I need to be sure before I decide on how much control of my business is worth giving away for N10, 000, 000. If you’re pondering what I’m pondering, then we both need each other’s comments on this!

P.S: As you know, I’m not a financial expert, I’m just a humble den sweeper, and therefore I make no claims to the soundness of the business logic imbedded in the above reasoning!

–The Den Sweeper 

 **photo courtesy of www.flickr.com

To step foot in the den, you need courage!

You must also have a passion for the idea you wish to present before the dragons, or risk getting burned!

Please never approach the den ill-prepared. If you don’t have your facts right…well, good luck.

And here’s an Idiot’s Guide on How to Walk Out of the Den With No cash…and a Lot of Blisters:

1. Talk about a business idea you have no experience in, or a burning passion for

2. Forget research and base your entire presentation on speculations

3. Stutter, shiver at every question, keep your eyes on your brand new shoes, and remain irritably inaudible

4. Be very greedy, ask for a lot, and offer very little in return

5. Leave your documents at home, and brag about them in the den

6. Ask for the money, and don’t explain in detail how you wish to spend/ invest it

7. Talk about a dozen ideas at the same time, with no plan for executing even one

Well, if you do all these in the den and still walk away with an investment, you may be on your way into the Guinness Book of World Records as the first mumu to kill a dragon!

–The Den Sweeper

Lagos, Nigeria

Lecturing a group of MBA students, in one of his entrepreneurial classes, at the Lagos Business School wing of the Pan African University on Thursday, Professor Pat Utomi confessed that he wished a programme like the Dragons’ Den had been available when he was younger, to help jumpstart his entrepreneurial career – and that of his peers.

“Entrepreneurs have to be creative”, lectured Professor Pat Utomi, “they have to abandon orthodoxy and add veritable value to consumers”

He cited the story of Virgin’s Richard Branson, referring to the period prior to the launch of the Virgin Atlantic route; narrating the clever technique Richard Branson employed to generate free media coverage for new Atlantic route. If you’re not familiar with the story, the publicity-hugging billionaire of the Virgin Empire took off in a helium balloon crossing the Atlantic Ocean – and on his carrier were the inscriptions “The British Virgin”. His adventure in the sky elicited a media uproar, Professor Utomi narrated to his class, “International media houses were eager to carry the story of the ‘crazy’ Sir Richard Bronson crossing the Atlantic in the British Virgin…unwittingly providing his yet-to-be-unveiled “Virgin Atlantic” Airlines with millions of dollars worth of free advertising”

More to the point, Professor Pat Utomi hammered on the need for entrepreneurs to forge new frontiers in business, by capitalizing on the potent platform of entertainment, urging entrepreneurs to seek ways of providing more than average service to their customers by approaching every aspect of their business with futuristic creativity.

“Identify opportunity”, he began, counting a few of the steps a successful entrepreneur must take to succeed, “commercialize the venture, and professionalize the business.

“There are mediums through which a clever entrepreneur may secure free advertising for his business, and don’t forget that luck smiles only on the prepared” the ex-presidential candidate continued, “on this note I’d like to introduce to you the crew from Dragons’ Den…they’ve come up with a wonderful business television show that ought to be exploited by the smart entrepreneur”

He invited in the U.K based Neil Oyenekan, the series producer of the UBA/ MTN sponsored Business TV Show: Dragons’ Den, to address the class; Oyenekan in turn rendered a graphically compelling presentation to the class. In fact, Professor Utomi was so impressed by his presentation that he promised to dedicate his next class to teaching his MBA students how to successfully pitch on the Dragons’ Den!

We’re talking about the upper echelon of the Lagos business society. With this as a sign of the contestants the Nigerian edition is going to attract, it is safe to say that world-class entrepreneurs are ready for this opportunity of a century.
Are you?

–James Amuta