Pitch decks used to be a presentation aide during in-person meetings primarily. Now, pitch decks are the primary tool to get investors into meetings.

Investors are picky about whom to get on a call with. To get investors to take a call with you, your pitch deck should:

• Quickly and concisely get an investor excited about your start-up

• Allow an investor to quickly evaluate if your start-up fits into their thesis

• Generate excitement within a fund as it is shared internally

Good pitch decks will clearly answer:

• What the business does

• What problem is solved, and for who (consumers, businesses, governments, etc.)

• How the business makes money (business model)

• How far along the business is (traction, stage, etc.)

• How the business will generate outsized returns for an investor and defend those returns from the market

• What market the business is in, how big it is, and how fast it’s growing

• How much capital is needed to achieve the next growth milestones

• Why this team is the team to capitalize on this opportunity

Once you've secured a call with investors, you don't necessarily need to jump straight into your pitch deck. In fact, many sales professionals will tell you that the best sales pitches don't use a deck. Instead, focus on having a human-to-human conversation, reacting to your counterparty, and getting the key points across quickly. Of course, if it's helpful, you can still use your pitch deck or refer to specific slides when asked difficult questions. The key, however, is to recognize that the primary use case for your pitch deck has shifted and that you want your pitch deck to deliver on its primary purpose.

In our upcoming posts, we'll cover common pitch deck mistakes and what to include in the perfect pitch deck, so stay tuned.

Talk soon,

Rafael

PS: How do we help you? My team and I build pitch decks, review existing decks, and offer pitch simulations. Get in touch if you or someone you know may be interested.

PPS: This mini course is based on our popular “Fundraising & Pitch Deck” newsletter.