Are you an entrepreneur seeking funding for your startup? One important step is preparing and sharing your pitch deck with investors.
Here, we will share tips and best practices on sharing pitch deck which get response. This will help increase your chances of securing the funding needed to bring your business idea to life.
Quick Steps on How to Share Pitch Deck with Investors
Prepare Your Pitch Deck: Ensure it's concise, compelling, and well-designed.
Select Sharing Method: Consider the benefits of sharing by link or PDF.
Share Securely as a link: Use Papermark to share deck as link
Send Your Pitch Deck: Via email or other channel available
Track the analytics and activity: You can get all the analytics for the view of the deck
Follow Up: Engage with investors who showed interest in your pitch deck.
What is Pitch deck?
A pitch deck is a concise presentation used by startups and entrepreneurs to provide potential investors with a quick overview of their business plan and vision. It's a crucial tool in the fundraising process, designed to capture the interest of investors and persuade them to consider funding the venture. Here's a breakdown of what a pitch deck typically includes:
What should be included in Pitch Deck?
Introduction: Introduces the business and sets the stage for the presentation.
Problem Statement: Highlights the problem or need in the market that the startup aims to address.
Solution: Details the product or service that the startup is offering as a solution to the problem identified.
Market Opportunity: Presents the size and characteristics of the target market, indicating the potential for growth and profitability.
Business Model: Explains how the company plans to make money, including pricing strategy and revenue streams.
Traction: Showcases any progress or success the startup has already achieved, such as sales figures, partnerships, or user growth.
If you struggling to make a deck which help you fundraising there are Pitch Deck Creators which can help tpo design perfect one.
Marketing and Sales Strategy: Describes how the startup plans to attract and retain customers.
Competition Analysis: Identifies key competitors and outlines the startup’s competitive advantages or unique selling points.
Financial Projections: Provides an overview of financial forecasts, including projected revenues, expenses, and profitability over the next 3-5 years.
The Team: Introduces the founders and key team members, highlighting their experience, skills, and roles within the company.
Funding Requirements: Specifies the amount of funding the startup is seeking and how it plans to use the funds.
Closing: Concludes the presentation with a compelling call to action, inviting investors to join the venture.
Why to share Pitch Deck as a link?
Sharing your pitch deck as a link, especially via platforms like Papermark, offers a suite of advantages that can significantly enhance the control, tracking, and overall impact of your presentation to potential investors. Here's why opting for a link through Papermark is a strategic move:
1. Enhanced Security
Controlled Access: Papermark allows you to restrict viewing to intended recipients only, offering a higher level of security.
Revocable Links:You can easily revoke access to the deck at any time, giving you ultimate control over your sensitive information.
2. Improved Tracking and Analytics
Viewer Insights: Detailed analytics on who viewed your pitch deck, when, and for how long, offering insights into investor interest.
Engagement Metrics: Understand which slides captured the most attention, allowing for real-time adjustments and targeted follow-ups.
Capture email: You can capture email of each viewer and check if it is real email
3. Professional Presentation
Branded Front Pages: Customize landing pages on Papermark to host your pitch deck, reinforcing your brand identity.
Seamless Viewing Experience: Ensure a consistent and smooth presentation across all devices, thanks to Papermark’s optimized viewing platform.
4. Increased Flexibility and Convenience
Immediate Updates: Quickly update your pitch deck on Papermark without needing to resend links, ensuring viewers always access the most current version.
No File Size Limitations: Bypass email attachment size limits, allowing for a rich, graphically intensive pitch deck to be easily shared.
5. Direct Call to Action (CTA) Opportunities
Immediate Response Options: Embed CTAs within or following your deck on Papermark to encourage viewers to take immediate action, like scheduling a meeting or signing up.
Customizable Paths: Guide potential investors on the next steps directly within the viewing experience, streamlining the engagement process.
6. Feedback Collection
Interactive Elements: Papermark supports interactive element:" Reactions" allowing viewers to leave feedback or questions on specific slides, providing invaluable insights for refinement.
Surveys and Forms: Collect structured feedback or gather contact information from interested investors.
Step 1: Prepare Your Pitch Deck
A. Content Refinement
Clarity and Conciseness: Your pitch deck should be a clear, concise document that articulates your business model, the problem you're solving, your solution, market size, and competitive advantage. Aim for a 15-20 slide maximum to maintain investor attention.
Visual Appeal: Use high-quality images, consistent font styles, and colors that align with your brand. This visual coherence makes your deck not just more engaging but also professional.
B. Peer Review
Gather Feedback: Before finalizing, share your deck with trusted mentors or peers. Their feedback can offer new perspectives and highlight areas of improvement you might have overlooked.
C. Final Touches
Format: Ensure your deck is in a PDF format for universal compatibility and to preserve your layout and design integrity.
Proofreading: Double-check for any typos or grammatical errors. Your pitch deck is a reflection of your attention to detail and professionalism.
Step 2: Find the right investors
Access open investor database with over 8000 investors around the world
Database Overview: Familiarize yourself with the database's layout and filtering options. Papermark's investor database includes:
as investor type (e.g., angel investors, venture capitalists, private equity), sectors of interest, investment stages, and geographical focus.
by round
search by country
search by name
Step3: Choosing the Right Sharing Method
A. Sharing as a Link
Opting to share your pitch deck via a link has several advantages:
Ease of Access: Investors can view your deck without downloading files, offering instant access with a single click.
Security and Control: Sharing as a link allows you to control who has access to your information and revoke access if needed.
Step 3: Securely Sharing Your Deck
Upload Your Deck: Log into your Papermark account and upload your pitch deck. Papermark will generate a secure, shareable link.
Set Permissions: Adjust the settings to control who can view, download. For added security, you might add a password or verification step.
Step 4: Send Your Pitch Deck
Copy Papermark link with all setting for your Pitch Deck and add it in email or other service.
Email: Draft a personalized email to each potential investor. Include the secure link to your pitch deck and a brief, compelling message that encourages them to view your presentation.
Step 5: Track Pitch Deck views
A. Comprehensive Tracking
Papermark provides detailed analytics to help you understand how your pitch deck is being interacted with. Here's what you can track:
Time: See how long investors spend viewing your pitch deck and each page. This can indicate their level of interest.
Activity: Track the actions taken by viewers, such as downloading or forwarding your deck.
Email: If you've shared your deck with specific email addresses, you can see which particular investors have opened and engaged with your content.
Reactions: Papermark allow viewers to leave feedback or reactions directly on the document on each page. This immediate response can be valuable feedback.
You can revoke access to your link at any moment.
Step 6: Following Up to Investors
A. Analyzing Engagement
Interest Indicators: Use the analytics to identify which investors spent the most time on your deck and which slides garnered the most attention. This information can tailor your follow-up communications.
Tailored Follow-Ups: For investors who showed significant interest, personalize your follow-up messages. Reference specific parts of your pitch that might have resonated with them based on the analytics.
B. Engaging Further
Offer More: Be prepared to provide further information or detailed discussions based on the initial feedback and questions from investors.
Schedule Meetings: For engaged investors, propose a meeting to discuss your venture in greater depth. Use the insights from Papermark to steer the conversation towards topics of proven interest.
Setting Up a Data Room
More advanced step for your fundraising process is to set up the Data Room.
Setting up a data room efficiently involves several key steps.
Firstly, organize the information clearly and in a structured manner into folders.
Categorize documents based on their importance and relevance to the investor pitch deck.
Restricted access and maintains confidentiality via Papermark
Ensure all necessary documentation is included in the data room setup.
This involves thorough preparation and attention to detail, covering financial projections, business strategies, team information, and pitch deck slide design.
By following these measures, you as a founder can protect your business data, track investor interest, and easily update information to make a successful impression on potential investors.
A well-utilized data room can be a valuable asset in the startup funding journey.
Securing Funding Opportunities
Founders seeking funding need to identify potential investors or funding organizations first. A well-prepared pitch deck is a powerful tool to present key details, financial projections, and data room information. It's important to maintain confidentiality and protect sensitive information when sharing the pitch with interested parties. Platforms like SeedLegals or PitchBob can help securely share pitch decks and track investor interest.
Following up with investors post-presentation is essential to keep them engaged and updated on startup progress. Slide design, communication strategies, and a strong team are factors that can impress investors and lead to successful funding. Avoiding pitch preparation mistakes and having a clear scale-up strategy can be beneficial in securing funding for the business or project.
Core tips on sharing Pitch Deck with investors
When sharing your pitch deck with investors:
Keep it concise and focused on key points.
Provide a clear overview of your business idea, target market, competitive landscape, and financial projections.
Tailor your pitch deck to important investor's interests.
Send it via document tracking tool
Track activity and feedback on each slide
Follow up and Improve the Pitch deck
Conclusion
Sending your pitch deck with investors is more than just sending them information. It's about presenting your vision in a compelling, professional manner and then understanding how that vision is received. Using a tool like Papermark not only secures your intellectual property but also gives you a deeper insight into your potential investors' engagement. By meticulously preparing your pitch deck, choosing a secure sharing method, and effectively leveraging analytics, you increase your chances of making a meaningful connection with the right investors. This strategic approach enables you to follow up smartly, deepening those connections into fruitful discussions and, hopefully, successful investments.