Outdated: 30 Slide Deck Obsolete in the Modern Age

Recently, there was a noticeable sample in pitch decks, particularly since I charge many decks for +. These decks are actually characterised by fewer slides with much less data, specializing in conveying exact messages.

Docsend’s newest report on VC exercise in 2023 exhibits that attracting the eye of buyers requires reaching the target instantly and staying on message.

Pre-seed founders have responded to investor pullbacks by constructing smaller decks. They’re rearranging the opening slides in methods I have never seen earlier than, Docsend head of analysis Justin Izzo defined throughout an interview with +.

The founders are presenting complete narratives concerning the position, the issue and the options. As a substitute, they’re diving into the why now, introducing their product, and outlining their monetization technique. This concise technique could appear abrupt certainly, however pre-seed founders acknowledge that buyers solely have a restricted period of time to dedicate to the pitch deck.

Amazingly, founders are literally sending out 16% extra decks than in the identical interval final yr, which means VCs have a big quantity of fabric to guage. To be able to make fast choices on whether or not or to not make investments additional time in an organization, buyers want fast entry to important data.

Evaluating 2022 to 2023, VCs are spending almost 20% much less time (at present 2 minutes 12 seconds, in comparison with 2 minutes 42 seconds a yr in the past) reviewing the pitch deck. Whenever you solely have 2 minutes for his or her consideration, each second counts. That is confirmed by knowledge from Docsend, which signifies that 40% of profitable pre-seed groups had decks that had been smaller than common, whereas 65% of unsuccessful groups had decks that slide increased than common.

Founders need to be ruthless in each the variety of slides of their deck and the quantity of content material on every slide. Since 2022, the typical slide deck has decreased from 19 slides to 16. On account of this truth, it’s essential to be deliberate in choosing data to incorporate:

IntroductionBegin by introducing your group’s title, model, and a catchy tagline or picture that instantly describes what your startup does. Additionally, control the scale of the funding spherical you might be on the lookout for.

GoalBegin your pitch with a mission slide or summary slide that engages your viewers. Skillful storytelling is layered, so supply a top level view first after which delve deeper into totally different points of your group because the pitch progresses.