We all know that a Pitch Deck is a visual presentation created to provide a brief snapshot of your business to potential investors but it is imperative to understand its use. The intention of a pitch deck should be to narrate your startup story to help you land a second meeting with the investor. It should create interest and curiosity in the minds of investors to seek more information about your company. It needs to be concise and yet tell a compelling story about your business. It is a good practice to include visuals and infographics to keep the audience engaged. Some of the essential components of the Pitch Deck include the vision of the company, business model, competitive landscape, go to market plan, and financial forecasts.
Here are 11 slides that are important to include in your Pitch Deck. This is just a sample order for your deck but you do not have to follow this. The flow of your deck should be engaging and relevant.
1. Value Proposition
This is a short overview of your business and the unique value that your solution will provide to your customers. This should not talk about the problem you are trying to solve but about the value that your business solution will provide to your customers.
2. Vision
Vision should articulate the purpose of your business and what is it that you are hoping to achieve in the future. It should answer the question of where you want to go. It should be simple and short, and not to be confused with the value proposition.
3. Vision Problem
This is the section where you briefly describe the problem that your product/service solves. Be business oriented and don’t get too technical. Remember you are talking to investors who might not know the technology. This should be clear and convincing enough to demonstrate the need for your solution.
4. Target Market & Opportunity
In this slide, you should clearly identify your target market and explain the opportunities for success in this market. This is a chance to present your research and show how your company meets the particular needs of the target market. You can also divide your target into primary & secondary. Primary being the market you are currently focusing on and secondary being the one you plan on expanding into.
5. Solution
This is the place to present how you are going to solve the problem that you have identified. What is your secret sauce? Give information on the actions that your company will take to address the problem. Include product/service details, screenshots, images, features & benefits. Again be business oriented and not technical.
6. Go to Market Plan
Here explain your marketing plan – what the strategy is, who is involved, and why is this the best strategy. It should talk about how you are going to reach your desired customers and offer your solution to them. This should be clearly laid out and easily understood. Going viral on social media is not a plan 🙂
7. Revenue Model
Describe how your business functions and how you will make money. Here, you should talk about the revenue model whether it will be freemium based, subscription based, partnership based, affiliate based etc.
8. Validation Roadmap
Provide investors with your current stage, key performance indicators that prove the need of your solution Show your wins and talk about your future plans and how you will get there.
9. Financials
Show the market opportunity is ‘$’ value. Represent your revenue projections for the next 3 – 5 years. This is where you show the traditional hockey stick graph.
10. Competition
Focus on your differenciation. Represent your startup to be superior to your competition using the right graphical model. Make sure investors understand what is unique to you and what makes you stand out.
11. Investment & Use of Funds
Always end with your ask. Include how much funding are you looking for and how do you plan to use these funds.
Using these 11 slides as a guide will ensure you have a well rounded Pitch Deck. Remember that even though a Pitch Deck is critical for fundraising, the main goal is to get to the next step, which is another meeting and a request for more information. It should be designed to generate traction and get the investors excited about your startup. Keep it succinct, clear, and impactful.
If you need help creating an investor ready pitch deck, please reach out to us, until then Happy Pitching!
