Fundraising & Rounds
What should be in a startup pitch deck?
A pitch deck typically includes 10-15 slides covering: the problem, solution, market size, business model, traction, team, competition, and funding ask.
A pitch deck is your story compressed into slides. VCs see hundreds of decks; yours needs to be clear, compelling, and credible in under 10 minutes.
The standard structure (Sequoia's format is widely copied):
1. Cover — Company name, tagline, your name, contact info 2. Problem — What pain does your customer have? Make it vivid. 3. Solution — Your product and how it solves the problem 4. Why Now — What has changed that makes this possible today? (Regulatory shift, technology unlock, behavioral change) 5. Market Size — TAM (Total Addressable Market), SAM, SOM. Be specific, not vague. 6. Business Model — How do you make money? Unit economics? 7. Traction — Revenue, growth rate, user count, key customers, retention. This slide wins or loses you the meeting. 8. Team — Why are you the people to build this? Domain expertise, relevant history. 9. Competition — Who else is in this space? Why you win? 10. Financials — 3-year projection, key assumptions 11. The Ask — How much are you raising? What will you use it for? Milestones it gets you to.
Common mistakes: too many slides, burying traction, vague market sizing ('we only need 1% of a $1T market'), not clearly articulating the problem, weak team slide.
The best decks leave investors with one clear, memorable takeaway about why this company could be very big.
Related glossary terms
Related questions
How do startups raise venture capital?
Startups raise venture capital by building traction, crafting a compelling pitch, getting warm introductions to investors, and running a structured fundraising process.
How do VCs evaluate startups?
VCs evaluate startups on team quality, market size, product differentiation, traction, and whether the opportunity can return the fund — often summarized as 'team, market, product.'
What is a term sheet?
A term sheet is a non-binding document that outlines the key terms of a proposed investment — valuation, amount, ownership percentage, and governance rights. It's the starting point for negotiating a deal.