--- title: Pitching to Publishers description: Pitching to Publishers category: strategy tags: [] accessLevel: public author: Baby Ghosts publishedAt: '2025-11-10T10:42:09.228Z' --- # Pitching to Publishers _Jennie's notes from Jason Della Rocca talk at Digital Alberta. These can be fleshed out and expanded on!_ ## Mindset You’re pitching an opportunity, not a problem. Pitching is a critical survival skill - there’s no shame in getting out in the world and talking about yourself. Think beyond publishers. Pitching is also to garner: - Love/support from platform holders - Favors from vendors - Input from peers Pitching is about getting people behind your vision. Think in terms of long-term relationship building - not every meeting is a win/lose. ## Before going 1. **Build a target list** - Do research on past deals/genre tags supported by publisher - Chase most important first 2. **Book meetings before the event** - Chase via email, get intros, cold call - Sign up for the matchmaking system - Pro-tip: Schedule most important targets for day 2 - day 1 is for practice - Avoid early morning - higher flake risk - Pro-tip: Chase a published studio for an intro 3. **Prepare materials** 4. **Practice practice practice** ## Pitch materials - Prep your meta materials for publishers to look at - LinkedIn - Website - Social channels - Prepare materials - 1-pager - Visual assets: video, screenshots, concept art - Pitch deck - Stable game build - absolutely essential - Best result is request for pitch deck and build of the game - Pro-tip: load everything to your laptop and phone for backup - don’t rely on access to the internet ## Intro Cycle Intro based on one-line summary and piece of art. - Ideal if done via a mutual trusted connection - Or “cold call” on LinkedIn/Twitter or meeting matchmaking system Meeting request with one-pager - Pro-tip: Include one-pager link in matchmaking system request Likely agreement to meet - May request extra information - Don’t send anything unless asked Keep email exchange simple, focus on logistics - Save game details for meeting - Pro-tip: Update contact cell numbers ## 1-pager design - 1 letter sized page, PDF - Visually sharp like a movie poster - Key data elements - Genre, platforms, price-point - Current production status, target release date - Key features/USP - Competition/market - Studio logo, contact info ## Pitch formats - Casual/at-the-bar - Elevator - “Performance” (e.g., GDC pitch, pocket gamer big indie pitch) - Initial meeting - Follow-up meeting ## Typical “1st Meeting Pitch” Elements LESS IS MORE. Make it fit on 10 slides - target 5 minutes. No walls of text - keep it highly visual as support for your presentation. 1. **Awesome cover art/logo** - **Goal**: Catch attention right from the start - Establish brand vibe ![](/img/image1.png) 2. **Gameplay/story overview + art** - **Goal**: Articulate core essence of the game succinctly - Don't waste time on discussing combo mechanics for 20 minutes ![](/img/image2.png) 3. **Video clip** - **Goal**: Show off how cool the game is and that it is (mostly) real - Could be teaser, raw gameplay footage, mock gameplay - 30-45 seconds 4. **USPs + art** - Prove your game has unique/innovative elements, compelling - Already thinking about how it will be marketed - “Fun to play” or “indie style” are NOT USPs ![](/img/image3.png) 5. **Traction** - **Goal**: Prove that others think you are cool or worthy - Social media likes and views - Festival selections/showcases - Discord size - Press coverage - Special deals, relationships, partners, advisors ![](/img/image4.png) 6. **Business model + Competitive analysis** - **Goal**: Demonstrate there is a market for your game - Include: pricing, platforms, genre tags - Skip sales forecasts and focus on finding good comparables - Ideally games released in the last 12 months ![](/img/image5.png) 7. **Production timeline** - **Goal:** Help publisher understand the state of the game and how much work is left until launch - Use “sausage” timeline visual - Include key production milestones past/future, reveal, release, DLC dates, events or big marketing beat dates - Assumes you have budget and production schedule!! ![](/img/image6.png) 8. **Team, pedigree, awards** - **Goal**: Convince them you are the team to make this amazing game - Can include production partners - Past notable studios/projects ![Your team information](/img/image8.png) 9. **Ask** - **Goal:** Clearly ask what you need and expect from the publisher - Can cover stuff like: - Funding requirements and broad use of funds - Role/functional needs (ie, PR, trailer, localization, porting, etc) - Product/genre expertise - Specific geographical or platform needs ![Your ask](/img/image9.png) 10. **Contact/socials info, more awesome art** ## Practice, practice, practice ### During an event 1. **Use 1hr meeting blocks to allow for buffer** - Be 2 people in each meeting (one talker, one note-taker) - Pro-tip: Mark actual local time in the calendar title 2. **Meeting zones** - Biz lounge - Expo/booths - Other chill areas like hotel lobby - scout in advance 3. **Daily debriefing and tweaking** - After each pitch, assess how it went and update your deck 4. **Meeting flow** - Typically 30 minutes - 3 min. - small talk and biz cards - 7 min. - Get publisher talking about themselves - Pro-tip: Get them talking first so you can modulate - Ask open ended questions - 5min. - Run through deck - 5 min. - offer to play build (they’ll prob decline) - **10 min. - Q&A/discussion and next steps** 5. **On-site chasing** - COVID impacts to keep in mind - Parties and networking events - Ask for on-the-spot intros via other devs 6. **Goal of the meeting** - Get past the “shit-filter” - Assess compatibility - Timing, funding size, roles - Setup next meeting, post event - Have clear follow-up/action items - Collect market intelligence - Use notes! What are publishers focused on? 7. **Post-show follow-up** - Debrief and update targets spreadsheet - Pitch postmortem (what went right/wrong, to improve) - Follow-ups - Follow-up emails per action items - Add everyone on LinkedIn - Nags - Max 2 nags after call, 1-2 weeks apart - Afterwards, only ping based on meaningful progress ![Post-show follow-up](/img/image10.png)