As every entrepreneur knows, Venture Capitalists and Angel Investors and very busy people. Many have very short attention spans and pitch meetings can be very chaotic and unstructured. This can be a real problem when you are in the middle of an investor pitch, just about to get to the most compelling slide and either you are told ‘time is up’ or you realize they have stopped listening as they type away on their smartphone.
Right back when I was an attorney, I learned early on that it is really helpful for the audience if you can give them an overview at the outset as to the main elements of argument. It gives the listener a context within which to frame the information you subsequently provide them with.
The same principle applies to pitching. In addition to being helpful for the investor to understand at the outset the key essentials of what you are about to pitch; it also ensures you don’t leave the room before having got to your best slides. Tell them where you are going, and then go there. Movie trailers apply the same principles.
When creating your slide, in addition to compelling graphics, use language that drives your points home in an impactful way and gets your investor(s) salivating for more information. Include your most important highlights which are likely to be along the lines of:
- Value proposition / problem you solve
- Market size
- Achievements (so often overlooked in presentations)
- Media coverage
- Number of sales, users, downloads
Getting this slide right takes time but the benefits are worth it. When you create an overview slide, not only do you ensure that your investors get the key points you want them to know at the earliest opportunity, you also ensure that they are more likely to be interested for the whole of your presentation and allow you to complete your pitch.
Image credit: CC by Paul L Dineen
