Young Guy Kawasaki video on pitch decks.
So little has changed in the era of Canva and AI. Maybe that’s because our brains have adapted for thousands of years to hear stories in the same way.
For pitch decks that will be presented “live,” one requirement I ask of Founders is to have fewer than 20 words, or one graph, on each slide.
I call it the “Barebone Deck.”
Here’s why:
Read vs. listen: Investors, like most people, do one or the other. Brad Feld has a great post on that.
Story flow: Too much text distracts from your story. Great pitch decks can be understood by just reading the slide titles.
Founders “hide” behind text. Instead, they need to know their pitch so well it becomes a conversation.
A streamlined deck is a great foundation for more “meaty” versions, which can be shared before a meeting.
