This contributed post is for informational purposes only. Please consult a business, financial and legal professional before making any decisions.

If you want your business to go far, there will come a time when you have to tackle some big pitches. Most often, you’ll be pitching to suppliers. Sometimes, though, it may be to the bank, or investors who can help you grow your business. No matter the cause, your success will often hinge on these meetings.

With that in mind, it’s essential you prepare adequately during the lead-up. Failure to plan every detail could spell disaster. And, no matter how good your product is, a botched pitch would ruin your chances of working with that company. If you can’t put a pitch together, how they trust you to be a sound investment?

To make sure you send the right impression, we’re going to look at three steps you need to take beforehand.

Perfecting your material

It should go without saying that the body of your pitch should be your priority. You need to know what you’re saying, and how to say it. To help you, it’s worth returning to the idea of the elevator pitch. This is something everyone in business knows about. You should be able to sell your product in the space of an elevator ride. Use this within your big pitch, and then expand upon it. Open with an elevator pitch which captures their attention, and then plan what else you need to say. Remember that you want to keep this interesting. All information should be relevant and captivating. You will need to go into profit margins eventually, but it’s not worth looking at these during a pitch. Instead, focus on your product, and convince your audience that they need it in their lives. Write down all your points on prompt cards to ensure that you remember key factors to focus on when the day comes.

Preparing for the worst

In all honesty, optimism doesn’t pay when it comes to big business matters like these. Instead of approaching your pitch with your glass half full, approach as though everything that could go wrong, will go wrong. And, then, set about working out how to make sure your pitch is a success anyway. First, contact a company like Windward Technology who can help you backup any computer presentations you need for the day. Leaving something like this to chance would be a mistake. Instead, ensure a technology crash wouldn’t spell curtains. Make sure, too, that you prep someone else in case of illness on the day. Knowing that the pitch can go ahead without you is essential.

A dress rehearsal

Obviously, you need to practice, practice and practice some more for this. But, you should also do a dress rehearsal. Otherwise, you have no real understanding of how things will go. If the pitch is taking place in your office space, you can practice every little detail. If you’re going elsewhere, you should still do dress rehearsals to prepare as much as possible. Most meeting rooms have a similar setup, so this should still help you prepare.