Start-ups don’t fund themselves. The first step is raising money from investors requires a great pitch and an awesome slide deck. Why is it important to have a bank of slide decks for different situations? Because every contact point with an investor serves a different purpose, a slide deck appropriate for each type of interaction is necessary. For instance, because an e-mail slide deck usually serves to book an in-person meeting with an investor, you are better off using basic information for it (just enough to garner interest).
The in-person slide deck, on the other hand, is of huge importance because you will need to close people with it. It also will serve no purpose if not executed properly. For this reason, it will have to be more elaborate and detailed. Here we explain to you what you should be putting in an in-person deck. At this stage, an investor has agreed to listen to you pitch. The following tips and suggestions will allow you to use your time wisely.
Follow a Structure that complies with your time constrains. Given that you have limited time to present and captivate investors, presenting with passion, simplicity and power is very important. We suggest that you organize your pitch deck in the following order as a general guideline.
1: Vision / Elevator Pitch
2: Traction / Validation
3: Market Opportunity
4: The Problem
5: Product / Service (Solution)
6: Revenue Model
7: Marketing & Growth Strategy
8: Team
9: Financials
10: Competition
11: Investment ‘Ask’
11+: Appendices***
You may have followed a slightly different structure for your deck and that’s okay. Just make sure you are going over the critical information that focuses on a lucrative market gap that your company will fill. Most of your time should be spent on The Problem, Product, Marketing and Growth Strategy, and Financials.
If ever you want to add additional slides and are not sure of their relevance put them in the appendices. Remember to use relevant hyperlinks directing you to the intended appendix in order to avoid rummaging through slides in front of investors.
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Brand your slides
Don’t use any features that will make your brand seem generic or amateur. Clip art, WordArt Slide transitions and too much animation will tend to lower the quality of your presentation. Keep note that sometimes less is more. Use your company colors, embed your logo onto all slides, don’t use a pre-made PowerPoint template, and don’t be afraid of standard-looking fonts. Even if you are not a graphic designer or PowerPoint whiz, making a professionally branded slide-deck may be time consuming, but it is far from complicated.
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Create a Narrative
Having great slides without great execution will get you nowhere. Creating a narrative or storyline will help you captivate investors from the very beginning. Investors have short attention spans, and the last thing you want is for them to lose interest just a few minutes in. You want to find a narrative that will elicit an emotional response from your audience even if the subject is somewhat dry.
You should understand how to engage the listener and couple your narrative with the right PowerPoint visuals. Some of the most effective presentations use the same storytelling techniques. You have to remind people of the status quo and reveal your path to the better way.
Different investors may have different styles, but if you are able to efficiently convince them of a profitable business opportunity you have done your job. Show them why the market opportunity is worth their time and money. In order to succeed at this you must rehearse, rehearse, rehearse. Even if you don’t get the investment you hoped for, but managed to wow investors with your presentation, you will have created a lasting impression which will work in your favor next time around.
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