The pitch deck is one of the most important aspects of your startup. It is the first impression that you make with investors, and you should make sure that it is a phenomenal one. A pitch deck is a complex piece of startup art. A lot of thought process and intricacy is required to create an exemplary one. If you want to make a pitch deck for your startup that impresses investors, then make sure you read this article till the very end.
Pitch Deck Essentials
Captivating Intro
Your first few slides should be the introduction of your startup. They should talk about your idea, the problem it tackles, and the solution. The intro should be really captivating and capture the investor’s attention. You want to make sure that they remain interested till the very end.
Create an amazing tagline
Come up with a great tagline, phrase or slogan that encapsulates the entire business. You want the business and the name to stick with the investors and the audience. What this does is create great brand recall and lead to a lot more conversions.
Make use of appealing visuals
If you just incorporate plain text, or images found in Microsoft Word or PowerPoint, your pitch deck just won’t stand out. Get a designer to design the visuals, or get a photographer to capture them for you. If you do not have the budget for this, you can make use of free resources like Unsplash. You want your deck to stand out, and not be ordinary.
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Storytelling
Do not create a pitch deck that is dry, monotonous and loses interest over time. Incorporate the art of storytelling in your deck. You want to pique the interest of the investor and have him be intrigued about your startup. Talk about how you came up with the idea, how the problem was identified and what led to the creation of the solution and then ultimately the company.
Talk about Opportunity
You need to convince the investors that there is a market for what you are proposing. Investors are never interested in a shaky proposition with no actual value. They want to know if the market size will be able to support their investments. After all, returns are what the investors mainly look for. Give substantial facts and figures to support you idea.
Pitch Deck Structure and Outline
The pitch deck is typically divided into three parts:
- Introduction: This talks about the idea and the solution your startup is presenting. Here you also display the demo or pilot of your product.
- Middle: Here you discuss the market size, opportunity, business model and market plan, the competition and your startup team. In this segment you basically aim to convince the investors about your idea and why it is a good opportunity and fit for them.
- Conclusion: You finally wrap up your deck by discussing the traction and milestones you have been able to achieve. This serves as your idea proof or viability, as it represents if people are actually interested in it. You also mention all the information regarding fund raising here.
Related Article: Pitch Deck Examples from Successful Startups
Pitch Deck Mistakes
Lastly, to make a great deck for your startup, you should really avoid the following mistakes.
Not talking about competition
Talking about your competition won’t make you look weak. Hence, do not hesitate to do so. Presenting competition in your pitch desk shows that you have done in-depth research, and also reflects the potential market of your idea.
Making it too long
Try to keep the pitch deck to the point and as concise as possible. The optimal number of slides is 10-15. You do not want to scare the investor away by throwing a ton of text on the slides. Similarly, display one kind of information at a given time. Do not place data, visuals, and text all together at the same time. This makes it hard for your information to stand out, and for the investor to retain what he is viewing.
Missing out on important information
Make sure that you do not miss out on anything that you could be asked by the investors. Be ready with all the facts, figures, and documents. Above all, you need to pay particular attention to the financial slide because this is where the investors will spend most of their time.
A pitch deck is an integral part of the early stages of your startup. Use this information to make a great deck that lands you a solid first impression. If you have any questions share them in the comments section below, or drop us an email. We will be glad to help out.
Read: How to Start a Startup
