This video discusses common mistakes entrepreneurs make when creating their pitch decks, such as failing to clearly articulate the problem and using too many slides. It offers advice on how to improve a pitch deck to better engage investors.
What this video covers
The first mistake is not articulating the problem clearly. The way that you want to go about it is that essentially, you want to articulate the problem in a way in which the investor either directly or indirectly relate to the problem. You see, their cousin, their daughter, their son, their wife, or their husband actually experienced that same problem.
Then the other thing that you may want to add in that slide to complement it is a powerful picture of your product or perhaps the service in action, so that way, people really get it, also, with the visual there.
The next thing is using too many slides. Typically, on average, it’s going to be 15 to 25 slides. You can actually grab the pitch template below that is being used by entrepreneurs to raise millions all over the world, and you’ll get a good idea of the length. Also, you can use it for yourself. But, again, keep it simple because, on average, it has been demonstrated that investors only spend 2 minutes and 41 seconds per presentation.
The problem here that I see founders making all the time, that mistake is just putting a big bio for people to read. You should keep it simple. Put a bunch of logos of companies that you and your team have worked at. Also, avoid even putting your interns on the slide. Just put the leadership team.
Who are the key founders? Maybe there is a follow-up slide to this, where you’re talking about the advisors. Why are you the right individuals to execute on this problem? What kind of expertise do you bring to the table?
Not doing all the research: this is a big one. Whether that is on the market size, making sure you have the right number, how big that market is. Make sure that you have credible resources or credible sources that you have looked up or that people can actually go and reference back to it.
Also, not tailoring the pitch deck to the specific investor that you’re meeting. This is a big one, as well, because it’s not going to be the same way that you’re going to be representing things, perhaps, to an angel investor when you’re talking about returns where they’re happy with a 5x return, a 5-times return on their investment versus the return that a venture capital firm is going to expect.
Some investors may be more excited about certain things versus others, so maybe what you want to do here is put some time into really researching what kind of investment theses they have and what makes them tick.
Taking the long route: let’s face it. Most of the things are out there; most of the things are invented. Don’t try to recreate the wheel. Just go out there, do some research, see some other pitch decks that people have done, and try to get some ideas and inspiration from what they’ve done and maybe incorporate it into what you’re doing. That way, you can get a kickstart.
Another mistake is not prominently putting your contact information. Let’s face it. You don’t know who that pitch deck is going to be forwarded to.
Maybe there’s going to be someone who receives it; they’re excited; they want to contact someone, and then all of a sudden, there’s no contact information. Who are they going to call? You should put it on the cover slide and also on the back-cover slide, which is the slide at the end, even your cellphone number. If they need to call you at 2:00 am, you should be ready to get up and pick up that phone because when investors are excited, you need to strike while the iron is hot.
