📊 Essentials of A Killer Pitch Deck

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👋 Hi there - it’s Egemen. Thanks for reading this edition of Scalable.

Building a pitch deck can feel overwhelming.

But it doesn’t have to be. Investors don’t need all the nitty-gritty details right off the bat— and to be honest, they won’t care about those details at day 1.

Just a clear, concise deck gets them interested in your business. Today, I’m sharing a simple way to structure your pitch so it hits the mark.

Along with some solid SaaS tools and platforms I’ve discovered recently, this edition should get you up to speed in a bunch of things once you finish reading.

We’ve also updated our referral program so there is an amazing reward if you refer a friend starting from this week until the end of the year, make sure you get it - enjoy!

Here’s a snapshot of what’s on the menu today:

☝️ Scaled This Past Week: Supabase (YC S20)

Supabase (YC S20) has raised $80 million in Series C - it’s the scale of the week!

With this, Supabase has now raised a total of $196 million, including a Series B round in 2022, which was also an $80 million round.

40% of startups in the latest Y Combinator class use Supabase.

🧠 Deep-Dive: Essentials of a Killer Pitch Deck

Whenever I’m helping a founder craft their pitch deck, or I’m preparing for a talk somewhere, a considerable chunk of my time goes to creating presentations and refining content, which shouldn’t be a problem this day and age.

Gamma has been a recent discovery for me - a platform I wish I’d found out sooner.

I’ve been using their free tier for about a week now. I gotta say, if you are bashing your head around perfecting your deck, give it a shot.

The future of presentations, powered by AI

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A killer pitch deck should focus on these five areas and just hit the spot:

1. Team – Investors care most about the people, especially at the early stage. You need to show why your team is the right one to tackle this idea.

2. Problem – You’ve got to clearly explain the problem you're solving and why it matters. If investors don’t see a big enough issue, they won’t care about the rest of your pitch.

3. Solution – What makes your approach different? Investors want to know what sets you apart and why your solution works.

4. Market – Show that your business has room to grow, ideally targeting a market that can be worth billions down the line.

5. Traction – If you’ve got any early wins or proof that people want what you’re offering, highlight that. It helps build confidence in your business.

Keeping your pitch deck short is key - 10 to 12 slides max. It’s really just a teaser to get the investor to want to meet you. Overloading it with details will likely turn them off. Design-wise, it doesn’t have to be super fancy.

What’s more important is making authentic connections with investors. Building relationships and maintaining regular updates (through newsletters, for example) can go a long way.

After all, investors aren’t just betting on your idea, they’re betting on you as a founder and your future potential.

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🗺️ Method: Sequoia’s Guide To Pitching

I was reading a “Writing a Business Plan” article on Sequoia Capital’s website.

Here’s a PDF version that’s repurposed from that page, you can directly download it here:

If you wanna read the full article, go ahead and visit the link below, some good storytelling there:

👋 Working on a startup? Here’s how I can help:

📨 Keep in mind - you can also reply to this email, I read every reply.

💡 Spotlight: Fill Your Sales Calendar With Ava

Hire an AI BDR and Save on Headcount

Outbound requires hours of manual work.

Hire Ava who automates your entire outbound demand generation process, including:

• Intent-Driven Lead Discovery

• High Quality Emails with Waterfall Personalization

• Follow-Up Management

Let your reps focus on closing deals instead of writing emails.

Hire Ava to slash costs & boost productivity.

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⚾️ Catch: Next Billion-Dollar Startups

Forbes nominates 25 startups every year in their “Next Billion-Dollar Startups” list.

This year, the list is heavily dominated by startups in the artificial intelligence (AI) and data sectors.

Some notable companies include:

1. Codeium – An AI-powered tool that functions like autocomplete for code.

2. Scribe – An AI-driven platform that simplifies training processes.

3. Fireworks AI – Helps businesses rapidly develop and ship new AI products.

Aside from the AI-heavy startups, the list also features companies tackling more down-to-earth but important issues. For example, Promise is making waves by helping cities and utilities collect unpaid bills via text messages and interest-free payment plans.

This year’s startups have raised an average of $80 million, which is a bit lower than last year’s $104 million. Their revenues are also smaller, reflecting the current market vibes. Despite the AI boom, the list gives a nod to female leadership, with five startups led by female cofounders and CEOs, showing a growing trend in diversity.