First, let me start by saying that there is no “one way” to go about this. In the end, your goal is to get an investor’s attention and make him/her realize that they should invest in you and your venture.
To do this, there is certain information your potential investor will want.
Below is a list of topics you’ll want to cover in your presentation. Each topic should take one slide with one or two exceptions taking up two slides.
Slide 1 – Overview
The first slide is an overview of your presentation – a list of topics you’re going to cover so the investor knows what to expect. Think of it as a table of contents.
Slide 2 – Introduction
Introduce your company in a few bullets. Consider what you’d want the investor to know if this was the only slide he/she looked at.
Examples:
What your company does in one sentence, your unique selling proposition, how many employees are in your company, recent revenue growth, major partners or clients…etc.
Slide 3 – The Problem and Market
This can sometimes be two slides, depending on the amount of important information you want to convey. Here is where you present your industry market and the problem, or need, that your company solves. Provide solid facts and statistics – things that can be proven. How much is your market worth? How big is your target audience? How big is their need for a product or service such as yours?
Slide 4 – Your Solution
After you’ve explained to the investor in the previous slide about this big need and huge potential to make revenues, you explain your solution and why your company is perfect to fulfill that need and leverage it. What makes you different and why should the target audience want your solution?
Slide 5 – Competition
This is the painful slide where you have to be honest. A big no-no is to say “well, there really isn’t any competition out there because no one has the solution that we do”. When you say that, what you’re actually telling the investor is that there isn’t much demand out there for your product or there would be competition. So find competitors in your industry, list who they are and what they offer in a few words and end the slide with why you’re better than them. You’ll also want to say if there is a competitor with an advantage over you, such as a feature, a huge marketing budget or a major brand name. Be honest!
Slide 6 – Your Business Model
Here’s where you tell the investor how your company makes money. What is your business model? How do you reach clients and convert them into revenues? Show numbers to back up your business model so you can prove that it is a success thus far and, if possible, write the expected growth as a result of any recent change you’ve done in your strategy.
Slide 7 – Your Team
Introduce your executive team with one or two bullets about each. You’ll want to show the investor that you have a great team to back up your venture and that they have the capabilities to make it happen. In the end investors invest in people more than ideas.
Slide 8 – Financials
This can sometimes be two slides but if possible, try to keep to one. If possible, include a slide with financial information from the previous quarter, or year, along with a comparison between the two last quarters and your forecast for the upcoming quarter. Stick to the basics, expenditures and revenues.
Slide 9 – The Investment
Explain to the investor what you’re asking for. Say how much you want in investment funds and how you intend to spend it. Don’t just say $X for salaries, marketing and development. Break it down to how much you intend to spend on each and for how long. Is this an investment that will last the company a year or only six months? Give the investor information as to what you are offering in return for the investment. If you have room, include contact information. If not, put it in the last slide.
That’s about it! Try to keep each slide short and to the point. Include only vital information that will help you convey to the investor why you’re such a great investment. You don’t want to distract them with unnecessary information. Get them interested so they ask for more information.
This was part one, in part two we will discuss the design of your investors presentation so stay tuned!
