"Every good pitch, whether it's an elevator pitch, a three-minute pitch at an angel forum or even a 20-minute pitch at an investor, starts with a strong opening sentence," Founder Institute's Adeo Ressi says. "And I can't stress to you how important getting this opening sentence right is."

To help entrepreneurs, Rissi has developed a simple guide to pitching in the form of a mad lib:

My company, (company name), is developing (a defined offering) to help (a target audience) (solve a problem) (with secret sauce).

In the video below, Rissi walks through his mad lib, providing an example and a series of tips that could also be helpful when pitching the press.

"You want to avoid buzzwords," Ressi says, "I've actually heard someone say 'mobile social CRM.' It's an iPhone application, right? You don't need to litter your pitch with buzzwords.

"And you want to avoid adjectives. Don't say something like 'revolutionary service.' Say what it is, 'backend software.' You don't need to embellish what you make, just say what it is."

So you want to give it a try? TechCrunch is currently hosting a competition in conjunction with Rissi, challenging its readers to leave a one-sentence pitch and the best – judged by Rissi and his team – will be offered a scholarship at one of the Founder Institute's 26 locations and table at the Founder Showcase on Tuesday.

Read the TechCrunch post: "Startups: Time For Another One-Sentence Pitch Competition With The Founder Institute"

Credits: Video from Founder Institute on Vimeo.