The past twenty years have seen phenomenal growth in the launch and growth of cloud-based SaaS startups. Investors are flooded with pitches every day, making it crucial for SaaS companies to stand out right from the get-go. Easier said than done, right? Suppose you are thinking about raising capital for your SaaS business. In that case, a compelling and engaging SaaS pitch deck is an important hook to capture investors’ attention and convince them of your company’s potential.
Despite their knowledge, expertise, and resources, it is worth remembering that investors are people just like you and the last thing you want to do is bore them with dull and flat SaaS pitch decks.
As a founder, you need to be very clear about the content of your pitch deck. Gone are the days when a 25-30 slide deck would do the job.
This article highlights the key elements you must include in your SaaS pitch deck. We will walk you through the order in which you can arrange your slides to increase your chances of securing an investment.
Which slides to include in your SaaS pitch deck?
On average, venture capitalists (VCs) spend just over 2 minutes reviewing a pitch deck. Yup, that’s not much time, right?
The ‘one format fits all’ formula may not apply to all business pitches. Yet, it is a good idea to stick to the winning structure used by many successful startups across the world. The content or the structure of your pitch deck will also depend on your company’s growth trajectory.
For instance, in the seed stage, investors are more interested in knowing about the problem they are trying to solve, the founding member’s journey, unique value proposition, etc.
Here is a rundown of the different slides founders must include across all stages including pre-seed, seed, Series A, Series B, and more.
1. Introduction
The first slide of your SaaS pitch deck should ideally include a short and crisp introduction to your SaaS startup. Some founders also throw a question in the introduction to invoke curiosity.
Here’s an example.
Can you guess how many hours analysts spend on data analysis every week?
While you can get a bit creative, it is a good practice to introduce your product in a single line.
2. State the problem
The “who” part is done. Now, onto the “why”. What problem are you solving? You can share anecdotal experiences or talk about the challenges faced by your target audience.
Here are some of the questions you can address:
- What exactly is the problem?
- Why is it worth solving?
- Who are you solving the problem for?
- What is the scope?
Here’s a pro tip: Be clear. You may be solving a big problem, but if it isn’t obvious, you may fail to convince VCs to invest in your company. Link to any external studies or client questionnaires you have studied to back up your claims.
3. Solution
After stating the problem, the next slide should dive straight into the solution. How does your SaaS product address the problems mentioned in slide 2? The best way to do this is by highlighting the existing solutions that solve the stated problems and what you do that makes your product or solution better. This shows that you are familiar with the latest market trends and what your competitors are doing.
Investors are very keen to know how big the market is and its growth rate. This slide should include some important figures including the total market size, market growth, total addressable market (TAM), projected growth rate, etc. You can use visual elements including graphs, charts, and pie diagrams to present data appealingly.
Read also: 4 best strategies that save startups money
4. Market overview
Investors are very keen to know how big the market is and its growth rate. This slide should include some important figures including the total market size, market growth, total addressable market (TAM), projected growth rate, etc. You can use visual elements including graphs, charts, and pie diagrams to present data appealingly.
5. Market competition
Here, you can talk about the competitive landscape and how you stand out from the competition.
This slide can answer:
- Who are your competitors?
- Are there any big names in the market? If yes, who?
- What makes you stand out?
- What are you doing differently?
This part of the SaaS pitch deck is a slippery slope. Investors want to know how big the market is. The size of the competition is a good indicator. However, they also want to know how you can stand up to intense competition.
You do this by taking the question head-on and showcasing your strengths relative to vis-a-vis the market leaders. Here is one way to do this.
6. Showcase your SaaS product
Arguably one of the most important parts of your SaaS pitch deck, this slide is when you introduce your product to investors.
The slide should highlight:
- Key features of your SaaS product
- Unique selling points (USPs)
- How user-friendly your product is
It always helps if you do not use a lot of buzzwords and jargon while showcasing your product and explaining what it can do.
Read also: Top 11 SaaS metrics every B2B business should track
7. Go-To-Market (GTM) strategy
You have now defined the problem and the solution. The next step is to propose your Go-To-Market strategy. This is a clear step-by-step framework for how you plan to bring the product to the customer.
While your GTM strategy deserves to be an entire deck in itself, your pitch deck needs to outline the key highlights of your framework – namely, the product-market fit, the target audience, and your marketing or sales distribution channels, and your business proposal. It also helps to share details of your current competitors and what has worked for them.
8. Revenue model
This slide explains how your SaaS company makes money and your pricing strategy. You can also mention the additional services you provide the company earns. Some popular pricing models in the SaaS ecosystem include per-user, flat-rat, usage-based, and more.
Here’s a quick note – while revenue generation is tricky in itself, investors are also keen to understand the sustainability of this revenue. This means volatile channels like SEO or social media would be less attractive to them compared to email newsletters or partnerships.
9. Traction
What has your SaaS business achieved so far? What was the net profit in the last quarter? How many new and returning customers do you have? This data instills trust and also paves the way for informed decision-making.
The goal here is to convince them that there isn’t a lot of risk and that you will become or remain profitable in the future.
10. Founders, co-founders, team
It is now time to introduce your team of superstars. This is a great way to introduce the key figures of your SaaS company including the founders, co-founders, board of directors, and other important team members. While it is important to highlight the credentials of the founding team, keep it brief.
This slide is very important for early-stage SaaS companies since many investors bet on the team even if they aren’t convinced about other aspects of your SaaS pitch deck.
11. Your ask
What is your ask? Mention it clearly in this slide with a crisp explanation of how you will use the funds. Will product development be your primary focus or are you planning to use the money to expand? You can also give a breakdown of how you are likely to utilize the money.
Read also: What is product-led growth and how can it help SaaS businesses scale?
SaaS pitch deck: Do’s and don’ts
You don’t have to follow all the guidelines to the tee, but it always helps to know what makes investors happy.
After analyzing a few SaaS pitch decks, we can pinpoint a few do’s and don’ts to keep in mind while creating a SaaS pitch deck.
Do’s
- Make sure that the deck you send out is either a PowerPoint presentation or a PDF document. Other file formats may not render uniformly and must be avoided.
- Chalk out a clear strategy and framework on a few crucial things including tone, visuals, color scheme, and storytelling
- Share your pitch with friends, acquaintances, and family. A fresh pair of eyes never hurt
- Be humble and grounded. But do not let that get in the way of showcasing your traction, achievements, and progress
Don’ts
- Do not create lengthy decks. Investors do not have enough time to go through a 30-40 slide pitch deck. Keep it short and crisp
- Avoid cluttering your slides with a lot of text. It is a good idea to add a perfect blend of text and visuals to make your pitch more engaging
- Do not sound arrogant and acknowledge the good work done by your competitors. While doing so, you must talk about how you are different and a better alternative
It is important to note this – the job of a pitch deck is to get you a foot in the door. The ultimate selling happens in your interaction with the investors. So, make sure that your SaaS pitch deck covers enough details to get you the meeting, but not so detailed that a meeting may not be necessary.
Wrapping it up
Your SaaS pitch deck is a powerful tool that can define the success of your business. While there isn’t a standard format, it always helps to take inspiration from pitch decks that have worked.
As a founder, the onus is on you to decide what needs to be part of your SaaS pitch deck and what needs to be left out. All said and done, it is very important to be honest and transparent.
The points mentioned in this article serve as a guiding light to give you a direction and set the tone for a successful fundraising round. The ball is now in your court!
