21 Things to Avoid
1
Repetitive Information Repeating the product/ solution ten times can turn your marvelous product into irksome junk. So, it’s advisable to serve your product only once to maintain the upper hand.
Even Barack Obama don’t mention about his dog in speeches. So don’t waste time in mentioning about your personal achievements. Take time and discard those flattery information.
2 Irrelevant Information
3
Excessive Financial Data
Filling out slides with too much Financial data is similar to adding Malware into your computer. It kills and damages the interest of your deck. Mention only crucial Financial Indicators in slides while left ones can be packed into Appendix.
4
Bloated Facts and Figures Creating a deja-vu with numbers is not “in-thing� in investor deck. Investors can bolt your fake numbers anytime as they have experts with them to tally the data you provided. So, keep it real!
5
Too Many Slides Maintain in mind that investors have very limited time. Talk less but explain clearly.
Stick to the standard concept of keeping deck limited to 15 slides.
6
Every Single Development In order to show a bigger picture of your company, you don’t need to pull out every single information on the slides.
Keep it simple and clear.
7
Long Paragraphs of Text
Think it as of presenting only headlines! So use only keywords instead of long statements.
8
Only Images and No P lan
Images are not accessories! So use only in the deck where you can’t run the show without an accessory.
9
Lack of Idea C larity Whole deck can turn into a meaningless junk if you can’t state the crux of your idea or solution plainly.
10 Pro Marketing Slides Don’t trade yourself to the investor. Introduce your business model as a valuable proposition instead.
11
Unveiling All Your Cards
Unveiling “The Golden Success Formula” in the first meeting is not advisable. So don’t deck up your deck with your aces.
12 Local Slangs and Industry Jargons Don’t forget that sharing Local Language Slangs with investors is not equal to being frank. And Industry Jargons can’t help you either.
13
Standard Boring Look
Only a million dollar idea isn’t enough to help you climb the success ladder. Your commitment to your idea is reflected in the distinctive look of your deck.
14
Your Philosophical Thoughts
Investors are not there to hear what others said. So keep your philosophical thoughts out of deck.
15 Negative or Pessimistic Statements Negative statements are not motivational. Investors are people that want to work with utopian folks only. So, avoid negative comments in the deck.
16 Confusing the Investor Stirring up the investor’s mind can’t help you win in anyway. Have honest and direct conversations only.
17
Contradicting Information Having pitfalls and contradicting information is not only embarrassing but also shows your lack of attention in the deck. Check all the information before mentioning in the deck.
18
Unrealistic P lan and Approach Investors come across thousands of unrealistic plans everyday. So, don’t be one of them as they can easily spot out such pitches.
19 Industry Abbreviations Don’t think that using Industrial abbreviations is cool. Investors may or may not identify them. So, don’t play with them.
If necessary, provide a legend to explain their full form
20 Complex Business Graphics Business Graphics are meant to represent complex things in simpler ways. So, don’t change the meaning! Investors appreciate the “simplification” of complex ideas.
21 Language Other Than English Making deck in local language is good but having a grammatically correct English version of the deck is better! Investors can send your deck for approval in any part of the world. Hence, prefer a universal language for business communication.
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