Startup pitch decks are an essential tool in any entrepreneur's arsenal. A pitch deck (or a startup pitch, investor pitch, or slide pitch deck) is a brief yet informative set of visually appealing slides. The deck provides investors with essential information about your business and business plan. It may include fundraising needs, target market metrics, financial goals, and other relevant data.
Here are some tips to help you create your pitch deck, practice it and hone it so that you can be pitch-perfect when it matters.
Consider your audience
The audience for your startup pitch deck is the investor. Investors want to know that you have a vision, a clear plan of action, and, most importantly, that you can execute your plans. The best way to write a successful pitch deck is to remember who you are writing it for and what they want to hear.
So when writing your deck, start by thinking about the investor's needs: what do they want to know about your company? How much detail do you need to give? And how can you ensure that this information is presented in a way that will make them feel comfortable investing in your company?
Focus on your key messages
The best way to get investors on board with your idea is to ensure they understand what you're all about. The first step? A good pitch deck.But making a good pitch deck isn't always easy—you must keep your message simple and focused while giving enough information for people to understand what you're doing and why it matters.
Give your audience the right information.
When creating a startup pitch deck for investors, you must remember that you want to give your audience the right information as quickly as possible. You want to be concise, and you want to be engaging.
You also want to ensure that you're telling the story of your product or service in a way that makes sense to your audience. If you're pitching a healthcare product, it's not going to be enough to talk about how great it is; you need to tell them why the problem it solves is so essential and how the people who use your product will benefit from it.
The same goes for any other business: if someone is investing in your company, they need to understand why they should invest in yours.
Tell a great story with your data.
Numbers are undoubtedly important when pitching your startup. Still, potential investors will be likely to listen if you can create an emotional connection or tell a story with your data. Use storytelling and graphics to create emotion and support your vision with data on market, traction, trends, financials, etc.
Convey a sense of urgency
Not every startup idea is going to be the kind that makes VCs rush to invest. But that's okay! Because really, the emotion you need to instill in them is FOMO—the fear of missing out on a great opportunity. You want them to sit in that meeting knowing that your idea is so good they need to invest immediately—before someone else does.
Pack an emotional punch
Numbers are crucial to your startup pitch deck, but remember to connect emotionally with your audience by telling an exciting story
Take the time to make your pitch deck relatable and easy to understand. Your VCs need to feel your customer's pain and the relief they'll experience when your product or service swoops in and gets rid of that pain. Use storytelling and graphics to create that emotional connection.
Showing your passion is also essential. Your investors need to see how much you believe in your idea. Because they aren't going to invest if you don't show them how much you believe in it.
Get straight to the point.
When pitching an investor, founders should put their key numbers and traction at the very beginning of their deck to catch the investor's attention. This gives investors an overview of the company and its market opportunity. But be careful not to go overboard with the numbers.
Investors want to know your company's key metrics and how they're improving over time, but they don't need an overly detailed breakdown of every element of your business model. They also don't care much about the history of everything you have been working on —they want to know what's unique about your solution, how it works, and why it will succeed in this market.
Keep it short, simple, and Honest.
The longer your pitch deck, the higher the chance of losing your audience halfway through. Grab their attention and hook them from the get-go by keeping your pitch deck short and sweet.
Simplicity is key—the more information on a slide, the more opportunity to lose your audience's attention. Keep your slides simple and visually stimulating.
Ensure you are honest and honorable in your financial statements, team roles, and any other details you include in your pitch deck.
Get your team involved in the presentation.
When presenting your startup to investors, it's essential to ensure that your team is involved in the process. The more they know about your company and what makes it unique, the better they'll be able to sell it.
They can also help you find ways to make the presentation more engaging for potential investors. It's crucial that you not just present a bunch of facts; you want them to feel like this is something they want to invest in—so get their input on how best to convince them!
Let your team members share their thoughts, and prove to your VCs that you've assembled the best team on the block.
Make sure it looks beautiful.
Your pitch deck design should be as important to you as your data or presentation skills. The right design will strengthen your message and get you one step closer to walking out of the door with the funding you need.
A beautiful design can help you visually tell a story and make your audience feel something emotionally. Good design can also help you connect with your audience by engaging more of their senses.
The most important thing to remember is that practice does make perfect. There are many things to remember when preparing your pitch deck, and it's easy to forget a few finer details. But if you put effort into practicing your pitch deck with a trusted confidant, you'll be in a better position to deliver a winning pitch.
