7 Expert Tips to Create a Successful Pitch Deck
A business can fly on the basis of how good your startup pitch is. It is of utmost importance that you start with an extraordinary pitch. Investors reportedly attend at pitch decks for a few minutes. Out of 1000 pitches an investor hears, it is noted that they fund only 100 businesses. There is no shortage of companies for an investor, but the window of opportunity is still so slim. Wondering what would be the reason behind it? Imagine founders telling their stories. You know how stories can move a person from an emotional point of view. If you do not know the power of storytelling, all you need to do is think back to the time you were a kid; what were the types of stories that engage you the most? In all probability, it could have been the ones with a solid main character, a comprehensive background, and just short enough to grab the full attention of the audience. In several ways, the best investor pitches also have the same traits.
You must understand that a ‘pitch deck’ is the most important document you will create for your company. It is the depiction of your company’s soul purpose and what it is committed to achieving. This is a mesmerizing and summarized way to explain your story and vision to different audiences. In case you can’t draw investors to your company, even innovative, well-thought-out, or potentially profitable product ideas will not help your startup grow. Your business can face serious difficulty with no investors when it comes to scaling up and reaching unlimited success.
Before you start with any pitch deck, know that it would act as a compass for you and your investors. These investors will orientate your startup strategy, development, and growth direction. It must contain central aspects of your reasons for the company’s existence. This article has summarized 7 points that are mandatory to be on your deck.
Here’s how to create the flawless investor pitch, with tips from the experts:
Problem and opportunity
As you know, every problem has an opportunity. All you need to do is find the problem, draw a solution and be the light for the people with the problem. In this step only the role of finding a problem comes into play. This problem is going to be the reason for you to go a long way. Once the problem is identified and you can handle it well, you can start your pitch by addressing this situation and take the audience into a journey of disappointments to an inflection point where you finally succeed. A clear opportunity and demand for the problem must be described when you are addressing your business and product. Also, ensure that you describe how other organizations miss your topic or propose incomplete or inadequate solutions.
Solution and product
The moment you find the problem, the next task is to find How you will solve the problem mentioned above. Have a clear idea about what product you will build — and why? Note that you are connected to the audience with your public’s pain and needs; the next few slides in your presentation should be about your solution. These slides include the process of building the solution and the profile of your potential customers. It is okay to display how you will build your user base and how you designed your product to bring in recurring revenues either through the product itself or through associated or side services. Above all, ensure that you brief your investors on gaining the hearts and minds of the public whose needs are unmet? It will be by elucidating its main benefits. Calculate the main three differentiation points? These will be answers to questions such as your position and thorough strategy to increase rapidly in the market share in the next 12, 24, 36 months? The best option is to answer these questions in order to provide everybody with a clear vision. Use Pictures, diagrams, screenshots, and demonstrations to explain things better.
Your competitions and total addressable market (T.A.M.)
The competition will follow you like your own breath. Who is likely to fight you? It can be of advantage to know the enemies and the ones you may cooperate with.
Right at this moment, enlighten your audience about who the challengers are in your field and how you will compete with them, beat them, outsmart them, and protect your business from them. On the other hand, one thing that can help you protect your business from attacks is knowing your own imperfections and weaknesses.
Another two addressable markets that you must make a part of your pitch are the total market and your niche or segment. The investors who are willing to fund will not want to understand how big the market is, they will not stop there. Instead they will want to know more about the strength of your particular niche. Investors would be better off with the addressable size of your niche.Accordingly, address their interest and move ahead.
Team and track record
What have your company achieved so far, and who all has helped you with the vision you have? You can ask investors what the most critical factor they analyze in a new venture is? A large number of them will tell you that they check what the team has attained till now and the team’s commitment to turning their ideas into a reality. The investors inspect it all — abilities of the worker, track record, and commitment. The option for you would be to talk about each of the founders and executives and how they complement each other. Comprehend your founder’s past experiences that will help relate in some way to the solution and product being built and proposed. Evaluate among all the other people, why are you the right ones to solve this one problem and build this specific product. You must discuss it all.
Keep it short
What speaks volume to investors- it is the layout of your pitch. In case you upload a 40-slide presentation filled with dense text, expect a sigh from your audience. Time is the most valuable thing for all, and the truth is, a large number of investors are looking for reasons to say “no” to your pitch. Formatting is comparatively straightforward for a pitch. Ensure that your pitch is one such document that makes it easy for readers to get through your core messages, even if they only skim through them. The slides should be listed in the following order:
- Problem
- Your solution
- Business model
- Walkthrough or demo of your product/service
- Marketing and sales
- Analysis of your competitors
- Your team structure
- Projections and milestones
- Status and timeline
State the amount of money you are asking for in your last slide, and leave your contact details.
Know numbers
You shall mention the key figures that investors are interested in while telling your startup story. You must know the correct amount of money your startup needs to raise. Also, do not forget to take notice of your current overhead, the point you need to outstretch in order to be profitable. Ensure that you do not include too many numbers in your pitch, they can take away from your focus. Your presentation shall consist of a few critical figures that will permit you to explain that you are well prepared and understand what’s relevant for your business.
Ensure you have a strong close
Keep in mind the end as you are telling your startup’s story. The outcome of your startup pitch must be an amalgamation of a short, clear summary of your argument as to why investors can invest in your startup. While working on your pitch, be sure not to get stuck. It is not advisable to rush through the end as you have this opportunity to bring all the details of your pitch together and gain the most out of it.
Eventually, you will need to answer the questions that investors, clients, will want to know from you. Make sure that you satisfy and convince them to a level that they will invest in your business right after your pitch. That would be an impressive pitch. To avoid any mistakes, go along with the steps mentioned above. Also, you must be confident and believe in your business.
