Pitch Deck Templates For Seed Capital - NextView Ventures
Pitch Deck Templates For Seed Capital - NextView Ventures
Pitch Deck Templates For Seed Capital - NextView Ventures
Deck
TEMPLATES
Tw o V C - A p p r o v e d F o r m a t s f o r
Raising Institutional Seed Capital
with commentary from
the founding partners of
About
While each company is different, we included key pieces you should use, along with our
opinions on what makes a great, investor-friendly pitch deck.
You should use these templates directionally -- dont simply copy/paste the entire resource.
This is not intended for use by startups seeking Series A or later rounds, as you will need to
include different information and/or craft a different narrative to successfully reach these
financial milestones.
Throughout this resource, my
partners and I offer some light
commentary and opinions via these
sticky notes. Youll find them along
the margins of a given slide.
David Beisel
Co-Founder & Partner
NextView Ventures
Mistakes to Avoid
Dont make the claim that you wont need future funding after this round.
This is somewhat common for entrepreneurs to say. But if the business is truly great,
youre better off raising future capital so you can step on the gas.
Additionally, taking venture capital implies youre trying to maximize growth and returns,
so in most cases, you will actually want to raise additional capital. Claiming otherwise can
hurt your credibility.
Many entrepreneurs fail to convey the basics (the who/what/why/how) early in the deck. Be
sure you do so you can have a more productive discussion afterwards. Be careful not to
underprepare.
Conversely, others will over-prepare, stuffing too much information into the deck and
treating the meeting like a one-way transaction. In reality, you want a conversation to
secure that next meeting.
The second template will explain more details about why this is important, but suffice to
say that many failed pitches lack a compelling narrative and thus fall flat. Good pitches tell
Always send your deck as a PDF.
an authentic story.
Your very first goal is to secure the NEXT meeting. You want to get an investor excited and
intrigued enough to perform some due diligence and convey that excitement to his or her
partners.
Play to your strengths and select the right pitch deck format for your
situation.
In this resource, youll find two different formats: (1) a short deck with a long, kitchen
sink appendix and (2) The Show, a story-driven format to be presented from start to
finish.
Short Pitch + Long
The of
Show
You should use the deck that best alignsAppendix
with your style and the specifics
your pitch
meeting.
Critical info up front
Coherent story format
Exhaustive appendix
Highly visual
Characteristics:
Basic layout/design
Driven by emotions
Use Cases:
One-way, end-to-end
presenting to VCs
Typically better for
good public speakers
Template 1:
Example Company
Executive Summary
What We Do:
Team Experience
Logos of Past
Companies & Top
Schools
Current Status:
We are [company stage, e.g. pre-revenue, prelaunch, etc.].
Traction to date includes:
(Month or Quarter 1): X key metric, Y key
metric
(Month or Quarter 2): X key metric, Y key
metric
Pilot Customers/Partners
Currently Raising:
Problem
[The succinct problem statement you aim
to address goes here. Use plain language
no jargon.]
your problem, as
emotional arc to
s immersed in it
adding some
such as these.
[Customer Tries
Something]
[Heres Their
Terrible Pain]
[Existing Solutions
Are Broken/Nonexistent]
Beisel
under & Partner
View Ventures
Solution
Explanation of
Actions Taken
Explanation of
Actions Taken
Theres noth
than getting
realizing the
what the pro
time for a sh
Explanation of
Outcomes
Go-To-Market
What to Know to Create Yours
David B
Co-Foun
NextView
Go-To-Market
Total Addressable Market: [$XB industry]
Distribution Strategy: [Your unique advantage + channels you plan
to test
Launch
[Dates]
Traction
[Dates]
Growth
[Dates]
[X]
[X]
Priority
Tasks:
[X]
[X]
Target
Results:
[X initial users
Convert X% of existing email list
Understand DAU & optimize]
[X]
[X]
Main
Focus:
Traction to Date
Seed-stage
there won
yet, but it
few data p
proof you
Looking Forward
We are seeking [$X].
We aim to [major goals] in the next [timeframe].
Company
Progress
Team
Building
Hire A, B, C]
Launc
h
Develop
Product
May
Hire X, Y, Z
Goal
Initial App
Optimization
June
Goal
[X]
July
Goal
[X]
Aug
Sept
Oct
This kitchen
great for you
conversation
up a given sl
use, theres n
FAQs
Team
.
general
seasoned
h POV?
it brief.
Headsho
t
Headsho
t
Partner
tures
Past Company
Logo
Past Company
Logo
Past Company
Logo
Past Company
Logo
Competition
[Low Thing]
[High Thing]
[High Thing]
Logo
Logo
Logo
[Low Thing]
Logo
Logo
Dont kill y
slide that w
being over
to how you
relevant tw
10
Use of Proceeds
Q2
Q3
Q4
YEAR
Q1
Q2
Q3
Q4
YEAR
Projected
Headcount
Projected
Customers
Revenue
Salaries +
Overhead
Other
(Professional Fees,
Rent, Utilities,
Travel, etc.)
Cash Burn
Total Cash
Burn
11
Rob Go
Co-Founder
NextView V
12
Example 1 of 3
[Channel 1]
[Channel 2]
[Channel 3]
In
Progress/S
ucceeding
(Continue
to
Optimize)
[Conversion Action 1]
Conversion
and/or
Retention
[Conversion 2 or
Retention]
Launch or
Improve
(Starting
Soon)
Revenue
Monetization
LTV
Test/Valida
te
Hypothese
s
(Starting
Later)
12
Example 2 of 3
Context
Context
Product
Feature
Context
Context
Product
Feature
12
Example 3 of 3
Tactic
# Customers
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Tactic
Time
12
pproach to
4 graphs that
pulse on your
e tracking a
metrics.
sel
er & Partner
Ventures
13
How It Works
[ExampleCo makes X easier and
cheaper.]
[Save Time: ExampleCo does X for you]
.
[Save Money: X% more cost-effective on average.]
Youd be
slides fai
product w
and jargo
much, es
14
Product Screens
3
2
15
Bucket 3
Bucket 2
Bucket 1
Product Roadmap
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
Milestone
May
June
July
Milestone
Aug
Sept
Oct
16
Customer Validation
Headsho
t
Quote.
Logo
Headsho
t
Logo
Quote.
Proof
Proof
Proof
Proof
of
of
of
of
concept
concept
concept
concept
data
data
data
data
point
point
point
point
17
he
ss.
er
Financials/Budget
Revenue
Year2
Item
Item
Total Revenue
Cost of goods sold
Item
Item
Total COGs
Gross Profit
Gross Margin
X%
X%
Expenses
Item
Item
Total Expenses
Q1
Q2
Q3
Year1
Q4
Q1
Q2
Q3
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X $X
X%
X%
$X
X%
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
X%
$X
X%
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
Q4
$X
$X
$X
$X
X%
X%
$X
X%
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
$X
EBITDA
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
Other Income (Loss)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
($X)
Be sure
and you
mistake
project
growth
18
Unit Economics
Seed-stage
the history t
economics.
you have an
comparable
Example: A Venue
Booking Service
Cost
Channel/Partnerships
Acquisition
Cost-per-lead
-Partner Commission
$X
Service Agent
$X
Net Revenue
$X
Margin %
X%
Direct
$X
-$X
$X
X%
19
Market Size/Trends
e,
rst,
t
he
er
,
.
[$XB ]
total market
opportunity
Go-toMarke
t
Related Data Points
Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
Data
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
point/statement
[$XB]
(Source)
(Source)
(Source)
(Source)
(Source)
Check the slide notes below for
(Source) helpful links on each topic: the idea
(Source) of total addressable market (versus
the total market), as well as top(Source) just
down and bottom-up analyses.
(Source)
Lee Hower
Co-Founder & Partner
20
Exit Comparisons
Startu
p
Startu
p
Startu
p
Public Co
acq. by
acq. by
acq. by
[market cap]
Buyer
Buyer
Buyer
Public Co
[$X]
[$X]
[$X]
[market cap]
VC
VC
VC
Public Co
VC
VC
VC
[market cap]
21
Partners/Biz Dev
Current Partners:
Target Partners:
Logos of Early
Partners
Logos of Future
Potential Partners
22
Monetization
If there are m
flowchart is
exchange of
B2B, show o
comes from.
23
Challenges/Risks
[Challenge #1 context]
[Challenge #2 context]
[Challenge #3 context]
24
Why Now?
Trend, Factor,
or Data Point
Trend,
Factor,
or
Data
Point
icon
icon
icon
icon
Trend,
Factor,
or
Data
Point
Trend, Factor,
or Data Point
25
Template 2:
The Show
A v i s u a l , e m o t i o n a l l y- d r i v e n
deck
t o c r a ft a n d d e l i v e r a c o m p l e t e ,
c o m p e l l i n g s t o r y.
The Show is perfect for entrepreneurs aiming to tell a compelling, start-to-finish story.
Compared to the previous template, this deck should be presented in its entirety with
minimal interruption or tangential discussion.
Depending on your personal presentation style and abilities, The Show can be great for
group pitches.
Theres no exact template for creating The Show, since its so specific to your own story. As
a result, weve created an example of this style pitch deck by pitching a fake product: The
Show.
Thus, the following slides will help you get a sense of the emotional feel of this style, and
the copy itself will overtly talk about it too, since thats our product. (Meta, we know.)
Look for these call-out boxes to learn more about a particular slide.
These exist OUTSIDE the actual story arc (i.e. its our attempt at
stepping back to analyze a slide). Theyre not part of the pitch.
The Show
Tell Your Seed-Stage Startups Story. Better.
Remember: Were about to present this template to you as if The Show is the startup being
pitched. Thus, the slides that follow will convey both the emotional style of this type of pitch
AND some tactical details of what you should include in your own version of The Show.
The Show
Tell Your Seed-Stage Startups Story. Better.
Remember: Were about to present this template to you as if The Show is the startup being
pitched. Thus, the slides that follow will convey both the emotional style of this type of pitch
AND some tactical details of what you should include in your own version of The Show.
(Still with us on the meta approach? Good. Now,
quite literally, on with The Show)
The Show
Tell Your Seed-Stage Startups Story. Better.
The Show
is an investor pitch deck
template
that guides an audience
through a compelling story
and helps entrepreneurs
more successfully
raise seed capital.
The Show
is an investor pitch deck
template
that guides an audience
through a compelling story
and helps entrepreneurs
more successfully
raise seed capital.
As with any style pitch deck, you should articulate the basics of
WHAT you do up front. Founders fail to convey this surprisingly
often, which derails your pitch immediately. Dont forget to
include this simple yet critical detail early in your own story.
Problem
Unfortunately, many
startup pitches are
broken. Theyre
ineffective and fail to
convince VCs to
invest.
5
Problem
Unfortunately, many
startup pitches are
broken. Theyre
ineffective and fail to
convince VCs to
invest.
Problem
Unfortunately, many
startup pitches are
broken. Theyre
ineffective and fail to
convince VCs to
invest.
But the status quo alone isnt enough. It must lead to a problem. No problem,
no product. No product, no company. You want to really hammer home this
idea of the problem you solve, so well dedicate a few more slides to just that
Problem
They lack a
compelling
story.
7
Problem
They lack a
compelling
story.
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
2.Were the
people to
do it.
3.Its already
happening.
25
26
27
Solution
Compelling
stories
convey
exactly that.
28
Were building
The Show
29
Were building
The Show
29
Were building
The Show
29
Were building
The Show
29
What we realized by
testing The Show
30
31
31
1
2
32
32
1
2
3
1
2
3
Early Results
Data Point/Proof
Data Point/Proof
Data Point/Proof
34
Early Results
Data Point/Proof
Data Point/Proof
Data Point/Proof
Stories were the most
effective means for
generating a positive
response from investors.
35
Early Results
Note that this slide should present just a few key data
Data Point/Proof
points and perhaps a powerful statement, quote, or
conclusion. In addition to the short list of data points,
Data Point/Proof
provide context verbally, e.g., For comparison, Famous
Company A gets X results, making ours better by Y.
Data Point/Proof
Our
Unfair
Advantage
for achieving traction and distribution
36
Our
Unfair
Advantage
for achieving traction and distribution
Not only should the story in your pitch present your company as the
inevitable resolution, it should drive home the unfair advantage every
investor seeks in entrepreneurs when it comes to actually gaining traction.
Its not just about building something worth using its about growth.
36
Our Advantage:
Context
Our Advantage:
Context
37
Our Advantage:
Context
Our Advantage:
Context
Maybe you have an exclusive partnership with a big brand. Maybe your
team boasts a truly connected, all-star cast. Whatever the unfair
advantage(s) is/are for your company, articulate that loudly and proudly.
These are the factors that help investors see you will not only succeed in
general but will succeed early and often. (Note that this is mainly about
distribution.)
37
Opportunity
Years 1-2:
$X Billion Market
38
Opportunity
Growth into
Larger $Y
Years 1-2:
Billion Market
$X Billion Market
38
18-Month Plan
Raise $N
Million in
Seed
38
18-Month Plan
Raise $N
Million in
Seed
Grow X
Part of
Business
39
18-Month Plan
Raise $N
Million in
Seed
Achieve
Z Key
Results
Grow X
Part of
Business
40
18-Month Plan
Raise $N
Million in
Seed
Achieve
Z Key
Results
Grow X
Part of
Business
40
Our
Team
deep expertise and decades of
combined experience in
raising/investing seed capital
Lee Hower
Rob Go
David Beisel
Jay Acunzo
41
The Show
Contact: [email protected]
555-555-5555
ViewFromSeed.com
@NextViewVC