Pitch Flow Basics

Venture funds, fundraising gurus, and accelerators everywhere like to claim they have the "one true pitch deck structure" and that if you just follow XYZ Sequoia's structure your pitch is sure to impress. It's led to a fundraising paradigm where founders approach pitch decks like they're filling out a form. Problem, solution, market size, competition, team. Check, check, check, done... right? But here's the thing: a great pitch deck isn't about ticking boxes. It's about telling a tightly woven story that makes the opportunity seem inevitable - inevitable in both the solution presented and the company executing on it.

With all that said, these structures and templates often repeat each other for good reason, there are common slides that work well for most ventures. The key is in understanding these slides, how they build on each other, and knowing when to deviate from them.

The Classic Flow: A Foundation, Not a Straitjacket

For our customers, we typically start with the following familiar flow and then modify and expand from there. We've found this structure to be a logical progression that builds momentum and credibility.

1. Problem/Opportunity : Start with the why. What market inefficiency are you tackling? Paint a vivid picture of specific pain points your target users are experiencing. This isn't just about identifying a problem; it's about conveying urgency. Why does this matter now?
2. Solution : Now that you've set the stage, introduce your product or service. How does it directly address the pain points you've just described? Be specific and show how your solution is tailor-made for the problem at hand. Your problem and solution slides should combine to create a sense of inevitability for your solution - regardless of who executes on it.
3. Business Model : Great, you've solved a problem. But how will you make money doing it? This is where you transition from a cool idea to a viable business. Explain how your solution will generate revenue, show your pricing or current/expected average contract values.
4. Market : This is where you extrapolate your business model numbers into a market opportunity. A solid market slide calculates from the bottom up: X Number of Potential Users * Y Annual Revenue Per User = Z Market Size. Remember, the market needs to be large enough to excite the type of investor you're pitching to.
5. Competition : Market vacuums don't last long. Now that you've demonstrated there's money to be made, show that you're aware of other players in the market. Then explain why your solution is uniquely positioned to succeed.
6. Traction : Time to back up your claims with hard evidence. Show metrics that prove your solution is gaining traction and that the market you've described is real. This is your chance to demonstrate that you can execute on your vision.
7. Team : Investors don't just bet on ideas; they bet on people. Highlight why you're the right group to continue executing on this traction. Highlight relevant experience and achievements.
8. Financials : Project how you'll build on your current traction.. Be realistic but ambitious. Show how you plan to scale your traction and what the business could look like in 3-5 years.
9. The Ask : Clearly state how much capital you're seeking and what you'll use it for. Be specific about the strategies or features you'll invest in and the outcomes you expect to achieve. Paint a picture of where you'll be by the time you reach your next funding round.

Breaking Away from Convention

While the standard flow works well for most startups, there's room for creativity. Here are some ways to shake things up:

• Lead with Traction : If you have impressive growth metrics, consider starting with your traction slide or moving it up to be right after your solution. This immediately grabs attention and establishes credibility.
• Team Up Front : For serial founders or teams with exceptional backgrounds, showcasing the team early can build credibility for everything that follows.
• Problem -> Current Bad Solutions -> Our Solution : For some problems, it makes sense to add a slide that shows how it's currently being solved and how they fall short. These current bad solution actors should likely reappear on your competition slide.

Additional Slides for Consideration

Depending on your venture, consider adding:

• Vision/Mission Statement : This can be powerful for startups with big, world-changing ambitions. Placed right after your title slide
• Product Demo : A brief visual showcase of your product. Generally placed after the solution slide or at the very end of your pitch.
• Customer Testimonials : Real feedback adds credibility. Generally placed after the traction slide.
• Partnerships : If you have really strong strategic partnerships, highlight them. This could go before or after the team slide.
• Intellectual Property : For tech-heavy startups, a "how it works" slide with patents or proprietary tech mentioned can be powerful. Place this after the solution or competition slide.
• Go-to-Market Strategy : More critical for later-stage pitches. Insert before the financials.

Now, let's talk about slides that are typically excluded at the seed or pre-seed level but become more critical for later-stage pitches:

• Summary Slide : An executive summary of your offering, team, and key stats. Placed in the very beginning of the deck to give a snapshot to VCs before moving forward.
• Unit Economics : As you scale, showing profitability per user or transaction becomes crucial. Place this right before or after the financials slide or before or after the the business model slide. We've often even combined it to be part of the business model slide.
• Customer Acquisition Costs (CAC) and Lifetime Value (LTV) : These metrics become increasingly important as you scale. They prove that your growth is sustainable. Typically placed near or even part of the business model, traction, or financials slide.
• Cohort Analysis : This shows how different groups or ages of customers behave over time, proving the stickiness or increasing value of your product. Typically placed near the business model or financials slide.
• Milestones : A timeline of past and future key achievements. This works well right before the ask slide.
• Exit Strategy : Early-stage startups focus on growth. Later on, investors want to know how they'll get their money back. This slide typically goes into the appendix.

When constructing a deck, you'll often think of slides that feel like they cover important information but don't easily fit into the narrative. For these slides we recommend placing them in the appendix to keep the narrative flowing and concise. Remember that your appendix can be as long as you want and a robust appendix stands to impress once you enter the Q&A portion of a live pitch.

But with that said, your appendix doesn't need to anticipate every question. Remember that your pitch deck isn't supposed to convince an investor to invest but rather convince them to schedule a follow-up conversation. The best pitch tells a story that leaves investors excited and wanting to know more.