The order of the slides in a pitch deck is debated, and different sources say different things. Our advice is therefore that you try and find your logic in your slides to best match your presentation. We believe in starting your pitch deck with an introduc=on and then describing the problem, solution, your team and the market. But hey, rules are there to be broken right?
Begin your "pitch deck" with a short introduction about who you are and why you are there to present your case. For example; I am looking for financing, feedback on my business idea, looking for contacts in a particular industry. The introduction should be short and concise and create an interest among the audience.
Describe the problem or need that you have identified. Explain for whom this is a problem (target group), how big the problem is for them and how often it occurs. It is also good if you can show how much money the potential customer is willing to add to get the problem fixed. A clear and thorough description of the problem shows that your team has understood the problem and the market that you operate in. Please describe trends in the relevant area and if you have conducted interviews or surveys with the target group, present the results that confirm the problem. One method that can be difficult to manage, but effective if you succeed, is to describe the problem so that it touches both the heart and brain of the beholder.
Continue with explaining how your product or service solves the problem - and the benefits of it. Is it, for example, smoother than existing alternatives, cheaper, creating a better feeling or saves the customer time?
Show how you think your product or service will look like, for example in the form of a sketch or prototype. A big plus is if you can demonstrate how this works, or should work if it is not developed jet. It’s easy to get going talking about your product or service, try to keep it to the most necessary parts of the beholder.
Explain how you verify that your product or service solves the problem detected. Tell us if you have let potential customers try your product or service, the feedback you received and any improvements you have made based on the feedback.
Describe the team behind your idea. Who are you and what experience do you have that emphasizes that you are the right team to succeed? Please include the different roles or tasks the different team members are having.
Describe how big the market is for your product or service. How many potential customers are on the market. Is it possible to scale up operations to other geographic areas than you initially targeted? In such cases, how big is the poten5al market? In some cases, product or service can be adapted to suit other industries than the initial, is there any such market for your product or service and in such case how big is the market for it? For example, Airbnb’s business model and technique is used by individuals to rent, and rent out apartments. But the technique could also be applicable for renting cars, parking lots etc.
Describe your competitors. If it’s a new product or service and therefore there are no direct competitors - tell us what the alternative to your product or service is. How do the customers themselves solve the problem today? A bonus is if you can describe the proportion of the market that your competitor owns and what shares you intend to take.
How will you make money? What does your business model look like? How will customers pay for the product or service? Direct payment, subscription? Describe it - and link the income to your budget.
Describe your budget, how you will cope with the liquidity and how many products you have to sell to break even. It can be difficult - and there are many uncertainties in the estimates in these early phases of a business, but studies show that this part gets the most attention from investors. It is also in this part you can tell what you are looking for. If you are seeking capital for your business idea, this is the slide where you tell the audience how much money you are looking for, what you plan to use the money for and what the investor gets in return. But: often one can have different condi5ons for different investors. One tip is, therefore, not to print this in your presentation, but instead deliver it orally when you meet the investor in person.
Finally, you will leave your contact information for interested people to come in contact with you.
Best of luck creating your own pitchdeck and if you want further inspiration please use our test case Venture Ice Cup to see how a pitchdeck may look like.
Submit your pitch deck to any of our competitions here.