Pitch playbook
Fill this in with your team: brand first, then your pitch, then your 8 to 10 minute video. Due December 4.
Part 1 of 3
Build the brand
Before you pitch it, know what you’re building and who it’s for.
Your brand story
Four questions. Answer them as a team.
- 01Who is this for?
One real person. Name them and their moment.
- 02What emotion does it spark?
The one feeling they should have in one look.
- 03What is its personality?
Three words. Would it be calm, bold, playful?
- 04What is the name and promise?
A name you can say out loud, and one line it promises.
The look
In one look, it should spark your emotion.
Colors
Two or three that match the feeling.
Type
One headline font, one body font.
Logo idea
Simple enough to sketch in ten seconds.
AI helper: Product marketing skill. Helps ChatGPT or Claude pin down who it’s for and why it’s different. github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills
Part 2 of 3
Pitch it
Now that you know what it is, tell its story with the pitch formula.
The pitch formula
Every viewer asks these, in this order. One sentence each.
- 01Hook“Why should I listen?”
One person in one moment; or a question the room recognizes.
- 02What“What is it?”
One plain sentence: what it does, for whom.
- 03Why it matters“Why should I care?”
Proof from the people you’re building for. Known fact or hypothesis?
- 04Show“Does it work?”
One journey you can honestly show. Input → output → change.
- 05So what“What’s different for your user now?”
Back to your person; then the next test.
Weak: Our revolutionary AI solves campus loneliness.
Strong: We're testing whether clearer first-visit info helps students actually show up to an event.
AI helper: Copywriting skill. Turns your pitch formula lines into plain, punchy words. github.com/coreyhaines31/marketingskills
Pressure test it
Paste this into ChatGPT or Claude before you film.
You are a skeptical hackathon judge about to watch our pitch video. Here is our pitch, one line per part of the pitch formula: Hook: […] What: […] Why it matters: […] Show: […] So what: […] For each part: (1) name the question a listener is asking at that moment, (2) say whether our line answers it, and (3) give one plainer rewrite under 20 words. Then flag every buzzword, every claim we haven't proven, and anything a first-year student couldn't repeat back. Don't invent facts or numbers. Write [NEEDS PROOF] instead.
Your clock
An 8 to 10 minute video. Plan to finish at 9:00.
| Hook | 0:00 to 0:30 | Make the moment recognizable. |
| What | 0:30 to 1:30 | What it is, who it’s for, why it’s better. |
| Why it matters | 1:30 to 3:00 | The real problem, and how you know. |
| Show | 3:00 to 7:00 | One journey on screen, then how you built it. |
| So what | 7:00 to 9:00 | Back to your person. Then the vision. |
| Logo and buffer | 9:00 to 10:00 | Logo outro and team names. Never go over 10:00. |
Too long? Cut in this order:
- Long intros before the hook
- Saying the problem a second time
- Extra features and extra users
- Tech details viewers don’t need
- Big future plans you can’t back up
Write the demo first
One journey through the real app.
Start
What does your person have or need?
Action
What do they do?
Result
What changes on screen?
Meaning
What should viewers take from it?
Part 3 of 3
Make the video
With the brand and pitch done, the video goes fast. Less redoing, fewer tokens.
Pick your style
Circle one.
Day in the life
Follow your person through the moment your app helps.
AI generated
Storyboard, generate scenes, approve, then animate.
Team on stage
Record the team horizontal, then cut it together.
A mix
Real footage, AI scenes and screen recording, one voice.
Our 3 to 5 reference videos:
Storyboard in three chapters
Build it scene by scene, never in one giant prompt.
Beginning
0:00 to 3:00
Hook, what, why it matters. What do we see and hear?
Middle
3:00 to 7:00
Show the real app solving the problem. Which journey?
End
7:00 to 9:00
So what: back to your person, then the vision. Last line?
Tools for each job
You own every fact.
- StoryboardChatGPT or ClaudeGive it your brand, audience and pitch formula. Ask for a clear 8 to 10 minute storyboard, scene by scene.
- FootagePhone · 4K · 24 fpsFilm your real person and screen record the real app. Shoot horizontal.
- AI clipsHiggsfield · Runway · LumaBuild it in short scenes. Approve each one before the next prompt.
- VoiceYour voice or ElevenLabsOne natural, human voice. Mic close, quiet room. Never the robotic default.
- EditDaVinci Resolve · CapCut · RemotionStitch the scenes on a timeline, add captions, end on your logo.
Let Claude build and check
Five free repos for Claude Code.
A repo is a free add-on for Claude Code. You ask for a piece of your video, and it writes and runs the code that builds it, then checks it.
- ArgoYour demo
Claude clicks through your web app and records a narrated demo.
github.com/shreyaskarnik/argo - ExplainrooExplainers
An explainer clip where visuals and captions land on each word you say.
github.com/vincentsch/explainroo - Huashu MotionGraphics
Animated titles, name bars and number cards to lay over your footage.
github.com/alchaincyf/huashu-motion - Video DirectorQuality check
Plans the video, then flags weak hooks, frozen frames and bad audio levels.
github.com/win4r/video-director - EarshotSound check
Claude listens to your video and catches sound that misses the picture.
github.com/Leonxlnx/earshot
They don’t edit camera footage. You need Claude Code, Node.js and ffmpeg.
Rules we learned the hard way
Save time, tokens and your weekend.
- Video is the product. Give it half your team’s time.
- One clear solution, not the kitchen sink.
- Approve each scene before the next prompt. Test, then move on.
- Find 3 to 5 videos you love and give AI that style guide.
- One natural voice. Bad audio kills a video faster than bad visuals.
The storyboard prompt
Brand and pitch formula in. AI drafts. You decide.
You are a video director helping a student team. Turn our brand and pitch into a storyboard for an 8 to 10 minute video. Brand: [name], for [who], should feel [emotion], personality [three words]. Our pitch formula: Hook: […] What: […] Why it matters: […] Show: […] So what: […] Split it into Beginning (0:00 to 3:00), Middle (3:00 to 7:00) and End (7:00 to 9:00). For each scene give: what we see, what the voiceover says, and roughly how long. Show the real app in the middle. Keep one natural voice throughout. Don't invent facts or numbers. Write [NEEDS PROOF] instead.
Ready to submit when
Due December 4.
- The first ten seconds name a person and say what it is.
- The real app solves the problem from the hook, on screen.
- One natural voice, clear audio, captions on.
- No passwords or private info on screen.
- It runs 8 to 10 minutes, with a full ending.
- Exported 16:9, and the link plays for anyone.
Eagle Pitch · Tayloe Hansen · University of Mary Washington, AI in Society