Shark Tank Investor Mark Cuban: What Makes a Good Business Pitch

Courtesy of ABC

A brand new season of Shark Tank begins Friday, September 25, and no doubt there will be even bigger and better deals to be made. And even more for certain is that Mark Cuban will be the stealthiest shark of all — waiting until all the other offers are on the table before he lays out his plan of attack. Before entering the tank, all cash-seeking entrepreneurs should hear what the billionaire businessman has to say about what makes a good pitch and how competitive the sharks are with each other. Mark Cuban explains what makes a good pitch Now that the show has been on for four seasons, the entrepreneurs have a better idea of how it all works. Cuban pointed out, "Once they realize they're going to be on the show, they'll go back, and they'll watch the episodes over and over, and do a scouting report on each of us, almost like a sport." He said that once the pitchers do their research, they'll determine which shark is best suited for their business and who they hope to work with. Then they'll adjust their pitch to aim for that shark. He continued, "The best way to be prepared, if you come on the show, is to know your business inside and out. Know your numbers cold. Know why you want to be in this business. Because Robert's going to ask you why. Barbara's going to ask you why. They're going to want to find out where your heart, where your soul is. Kevin's going to hit you with the numbers… Be prepared for all those different angles." The sharks get competitive with one another, for real Watching Shark Tank,"a viewer might think the banter between the sharks is just playful, TV talk. But Cuban revealed the competition is real. He said they get very cutthroat. He stated, "We don't want to have the business that fails… we're friends, but we're as competitive as can be. It gets feisty." He even went so far as to compare it to a family dynamic where you know someone's habits so well that they start to annoy you, but they love each other all the same. The Dallas Maverick's owner divulged that the sharks know absolutely nothing about the business owners before they enter the tank, but said that's what makes the show so interesting. As a shark he needs to evaluate these people on the spot and decide whether or not to give them his own money. He thinks about a company in relation to their industry and what he thinks he can bring to it to make it successful. He also, admittedly, takes the other sharks into consideration. "Are they interested? How they might approach it and what you can do to kick their ass. That's why it gets so testy because we recognize it's a zero sum game. Either you get what you want, or you don't. And you've got four other smart people that are sharks that are thinking the exact same thing. So it really does get intense." Shark Tank returns on Friday, September 25 at 9 PM EST on ABC.