How to Make a Winning Pitch Deck for Investors: 10 Tips 💯

A well-crafted pitch deck is a secret weapon for capturing the attention of potential investors. It’s more than just an explanation of your business — it’s an opportunity to showcase your vision, passion, and unique value proposition to movers and shakers with the power to help you succeed.

If you’re ready to take your business to the next level, it’s time to perfect your pitch deck game! Here’s how to make a pitch deck that stands out from the crowd, plus a few real-world examples that raised millions in funding. 

If you’re an entrepreneur or start-up founder in need of funding, chances are you need a pitch deck.

A pitch deck is a presentation providing a brief, informative overview of your business to prospective investors. It aims to capture their attention and persuade them to help your company grow. Essentially, it’s the vehicle that illustrates the value proposition and potential of your idea. 

The immediate goal of a pitch deck is to persuade its audience to take the next step — anything from setting up another meeting to joining your team or contributing funds.

To garner serious consideration, a pitch deck must be polished and compelling. You can use any presentation software to create pitch decks, but they need to stand out. They often employ graphics, screenshots, and other visuals to leave a lasting impact. Most pitch decks consist of less than 20 slides and capture the most important details.

If you’re pitching your business or project, you need a pitch deck. It’s the easiest way to succinctly convey your ideas and needs to potential partners, investors, and customers — and it’s your best chance of receiving financial assistance. 

Successful pitch decks have three key characteristics:

They’re straightforward. Great pitch decks are simple, easy to understand, and free of unnecessary jargon. Use bullet points to highlight key points, and remember to cut to the chase. Think of it as a more in-depth elevator pitch.

They’re compelling. Excellent pitch decks capture (and keep) the audience’s attention.

They’re easy to act on. The best pitch decks contain concise calls to action, making it easy for your audience to schedule a follow-up meeting, invest in your business, or join the team.  

The good news? Creating a slide deck that effectively communicates your business idea is easier than it looks. The better news? We’ve done most of the research for you. Following these 10 steps, you can craft engaging slides that grab your audience’s attention and compel them to action. 

Here’s how to make a good pitch deck:

Come up with a title. Typically, simple is best — add your name and your company’s name to the first slide of your presentation. If you have a tagline or motto, add that, too. 

Include a brief introduction. Introduce yourself. Provide background information on your business, such as your unique selling proposition, but keep it short. 

Determine the problem. Lay the foundation of your business plan. Explain the problem you’re solving and why it’s important.

Find the solution. Unveil your business idea! Demonstrate how your products or services solve the problem you identified in the previous slide. If it’s relevant, add a slide explaining the features of the products, but remember to always focus on the benefits instead of the mechanics. 

Identify the target market, market size, trends, and opportunities. Dedicate a slide to the potential demand for your business. Use data visualization techniques, such as pie charts, bar graphs, or a timeline, to highlight market trends and optimal timing. Present this information in a visually appealing, engaging way. Consider including financial projections as well.

Look at your competitors. Highlight your product’s edge over competitors and position it as an up-and-coming hero. Prove that your business has a unique market advantage. 

Include testimonials. Numbers can’t say it all. Include testimonials to strengthen your credibility and increase trust. 

Introduce the team. If more than one person works on your business, humanize the organization by introducing them. Use photos for increased authenticity. 

Show what you’ve achieved. If your business is gaining traction, use data to showcase your progress, milestones, and professional development.

Make a call to action. End your pitch deck with a clear call to action, and remember to include contact details such as your website, email, social media, and phone number.

Creating a pitch deck isn’t just about including the right content; execution is equally important to ensure the best possible first impression. 

Consider these best practices: 

Keep it simple. Avoid cluttered slides — keep them simple and straightforward. 

Tell a story. Use your pitch deck to weave a compelling narrative about your business.

Focus on the benefits. As mentioned earlier, highlight the benefits of your products or services. These are more important than the features. 

Give people a reason to invest. Clearly describe what sets your idea apart and why you’re the best. Highlight what’s in it for them.

Provide it in PDF form. Format your pitch deck as a PDF to ensure it works across all devices. 

Look professional. Use consistent branding and design elements for your presentation. Don’t forget to look presentable yourself. 

Practice, practice, practice. Prepare by rehearsing your pitch and anticipating any questions.

Here are some design tips so your pitch looks as good as it sounds: 

Make it legible. Use clear, readable fonts, and don’t add too much information to one slide. 

Use eye-catching colors. Make slides stand out with complementary color schemes. 

Explain the obvious. Don’t assume your audience knows everything (or anything!) about your industry or market. 

Add visuals. Use visual aids such as charts, infographics, and graphs to convey complex information in an attractive, engaging way. 

Check out our case study tips and style guide examples to get inspired.

We did some digging and found a handful of fantastic pitch deck examples from popular brands. Here are a few companies that did it exceptionally well: 

Airbnb. Airbnb first used a classic 10-slide pitch deck covering market validation, market size, business model, market adoption, and competition. It highlighted the revolutionary potential of creating a new accommodation type for travelers. 

Uber. Uber’s first pitch deck focused on its unique business model, which aimed to disrupt the traditional taxi industry. It contained problem and solution slides and highlighted the market size, business model, competition, team, traction, and more. 

Facebook. Facebook’s original pitch deck contained its value proposition, key metrics, and online marketing services. It successfully communicated the company’s vision of a social network that connects people worldwide by relying on growth metrics, user engagement, and the customer base.

Tesla. Tesla’s pitch deck demonstrated the company’s innovative and environmentally conscious approach to the automotive industry. It provided information on and photos of the team and looked at company growth, collaborations, and strategic assets.

LinkedIn. In their meeting with venture capital firm Greylock, LinkedIn’s pitch deck conveyed a sense of credibility and expertise. It emphasized the network’s potential to revolutionize how professionals connect and network online.

Now that you know what a show-stopping pitch deck looks like, it’s time to make one of your own! You can connect with talented Independents specializing in pitch deck development through Contras’ commission-free platform. If you’re an Independent yourself, this advice is excellent for pitching your services to clients — and we can connect you to the clients you want to work with. Head to Contra to get started today!