Pitch deck FAQ: 50 questions answered
Practical answers for founders raising money anywhere in the world, from how many slides to use to sizing the market, making the ask and following up with investors.
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Getting started
What is a pitch deck?
A pitch deck is a short slide presentation, usually 10 to 20 slides, that explains a startup to potential investors: the problem, the solution, the market, traction, the business model, the team and how much money the company is raising.
What is the purpose of a pitch deck?
To get a meeting, not to close the investment. A good deck makes an investor curious enough to talk to you, and then supports the conversation in that meeting.
Who needs a pitch deck?
Any founder raising money from angels, accelerators, venture capital firms or corporate investors. Decks are also used for startup competitions, grant applications, partnerships and recruiting senior hires.
What is the difference between a pitch deck and a business plan?
A business plan is a long written document covering operations, finances and strategy in detail. A pitch deck is a short visual summary designed to be read in minutes. Most investors ask for a deck first and a financial model later.
What is the difference between a pitch deck and an elevator pitch?
An elevator pitch is a spoken summary of about 30 seconds. A pitch deck expands it into slides with evidence. Your elevator pitch should match the tagline and story of your deck.
How long does it take to make a pitch deck?
A first draft takes one to two days if you know your numbers. Plan for several rounds of feedback and edits over the following weeks.
Can I make a pitch deck for free?
Yes. Free tools such as the Gachi Foundation pitch deck builder let you fill in the standard investor slides, choose a design and export to PowerPoint, PDF, PNG or HTML without signing up.
Slides and structure
How many slides should a pitch deck have?
Most investor decks have 10 to 20 slides. Aim for about 10 to 15 for a presentation and up to 20 for a deck you send, with extra detail in an appendix.
What slides should be in a pitch deck?
The common slides are title, problem, solution, how it works, why now, market size, competition and advantage, traction, business model, target customer or go-to-market, roadmap, team, financial projections, the ask and a closing slide.
What order should pitch deck slides go in?
Start with the problem and solution, then show why now and the market size, then traction, business model and competition, then team, financials and the ask. Move your strongest slide, often traction or team, earlier.
What is the 10/20/30 rule for pitch decks?
A widely quoted rule of thumb: about 10 slides, a 20-minute presentation and no font smaller than 30 points. It is a guide for presented decks, not a fixed requirement.
What is the most important slide in a pitch deck?
Traction usually carries the most weight once you have customers. Before that, the problem and team slides matter most. Whatever your strongest evidence is, put it early.
Should I include an appendix?
Yes. Put the detailed market calculation, financial model summary, customer case studies, product detail and team biographies in an appendix after the closing slide, ready for questions.
Do I need a why now slide?
It is strongly recommended. Investors want to know what has changed that makes your idea possible or necessary now. It can be a separate slide or part of the problem or market slides.
Should the team slide go at the beginning or end?
Near the end in most decks, but move it to the start if the team is your strongest asset, which is common for first-time raises and deep-technology startups.
Numbers and metrics
How do I calculate TAM, SAM and SOM?
TAM is the total annual revenue if every possible customer bought. SAM is the part your product, region and channels can serve. SOM is the share you can realistically win in three to five years. Calculate bottom-up: number of target customers × annual price.
What traction should I show if I have no revenue?
Show demand: customer interviews, a waitlist, letters of intent, pilots, pre-orders, active users or engagement. Be clear about what each number means.
What metrics do investors look for?
It depends on the model, but common ones are revenue and its growth rate, active users, retention or churn, gross margin, customer acquisition cost (CAC), lifetime value (LTV), payback period and burn rate.
What is the difference between MRR and ARR?
Monthly recurring revenue (MRR) is the repeating revenue in one month. Annual recurring revenue (ARR) is the yearly equivalent, often MRR × 12. Neither should include one-off fees.
Should I include financial projections?
Yes, usually three to five years of revenue with the main costs and the assumptions behind them. Keep the slide simple and the detailed model in a spreadsheet.
How realistic should projections be?
Ambitious but explainable. Tie growth to drivers you control, start from your real numbers and make sure spending matches your use of funds. Unexplained hockey-stick curves reduce trust.
What is a good LTV to CAC ratio?
Around 3:1 is often quoted as healthy for subscription businesses, but benchmarks differ by sector and stage. Show how you calculate it and how it is improving.
What is burn rate and runway?
Burn rate is how much cash you spend each month; net burn subtracts revenue. Runway is how many months you can last at that rate: cash in the bank ÷ net burn.
The ask and investors
How much money should I ask for?
Enough to reach the milestones that make your next round or profitability possible, plus a buffer, usually 18 to 24 months of runway. Build the figure from your plan rather than picking a round number.
Should I include my valuation in the pitch deck?
Usually not. Valuation is negotiated, and stating it too early can end conversations. Share it in discussion once an investor is interested, unless you are raising on a SAFE with a fixed cap.
What is use of funds?
A breakdown of how you will spend the money you raise, usually three to five categories such as product, sales, marketing and operations, with percentages and the milestones they reach.
What is a SAFE?
A simple agreement for future equity: an investor pays now and receives shares at a future priced round, usually with a valuation cap or discount. It is common in the United States; other countries use their own instruments.
What is the difference between pre-seed, seed and Series A?
Pre-seed funds an idea or prototype, mainly on the strength of the team. Seed funds a launched product with early traction to find product-market fit. Series A funds a company with proven demand to scale a repeatable growth engine.
What do angel investors look for in a pitch deck?
A team they trust, a problem they understand, early evidence of demand and a realistic plan for the money. Many angels invest in sectors they know personally.
What do venture capitalists look for?
A very large potential market, a team that can execute, evidence of demand, a defensible advantage and a business that could return a large multiple of the investment.
How do I find investors to send my deck to?
Look for investors who have funded similar stages and sectors, using public portfolio pages, startup databases, accelerator networks and founder introductions. A warm introduction from someone they know gets far more replies than a cold email.
Should I ask investors to sign an NDA?
Usually not. Most investors will not sign one to read a deck because they see many similar ideas. Leave out anything you could not afford to have shared.
Design and sending
What makes a good pitch deck design?
One idea per slide, a full-sentence headline that states the takeaway, large readable text, consistent colours and fonts, real product images and simple charts. Clarity matters far more than decoration.
How much text should be on each slide?
As little as possible: a headline and up to about 40 words. A deck you send can carry a little more than one you present, but should still be skimmable.
Should I send my deck as a PDF or PowerPoint?
Send a PDF so it looks the same everywhere and cannot be edited. Use PowerPoint, Keynote or Google Slides for presenting.
Can I send a link instead of a file?
Yes, a view-only link works and can show you when it is opened. Make sure it does not require a login, does not expire too soon and works on a phone.
What should I write in the email when sending a pitch deck?
Keep it to a few lines: who you are, what the company does, your strongest number, how much you are raising and why this investor in particular. Attach the PDF or link and make the next step clear.
Should I use a pitch deck template?
Yes, it saves time and keeps you to a structure investors recognise. Adapt it to your story rather than filling every slide for the sake of it.
Should I have a different deck for sending and presenting?
Ideally, yes. A send deck needs enough text to read alone. A presentation deck needs less text because you are speaking. Both should tell the same story with the same numbers.
Pitching
How long should a pitch presentation be?
Usually 10 to 20 minutes, leaving the rest of the meeting for questions. Competitions and demo days often allow only two to five minutes, so prepare a short version too.
How do I practise a pitch?
Rehearse aloud with a timer, then pitch to mentors and founders who will ask tough questions. Record yourself, cut anything that does not land and know your key numbers without looking.
What questions do investors ask after a pitch?
Common questions cover why you, the size of the market, competition, customer acquisition cost, retention, the use of funds, what could go wrong and why now. Prepare short, honest answers and appendix slides.
What should I do if I do not know an answer?
Say so, say how you would find out and follow up quickly in writing. Investors respect honesty more than a guess that turns out to be wrong.
What are the most common pitch deck mistakes?
Too much text, unclear problem, made-up or unsourced market sizes, unlabelled traction numbers, claiming no competition, unrealistic projections, a vague ask and sending an editable or oversized file.
How do I follow up after sending a deck?
If you have not heard back, send one short follow-up after about a week with a genuine update, such as a new customer or milestone. Then move on and keep the investor in your monthly update list.
How often should I update my pitch deck?
Update the numbers every month during a raise and revise the story whenever investor questions show something is unclear. Always send the latest version.
India
What do Indian investors look for in a pitch deck?
Broadly the same as investors elsewhere: team, market, traction and unit economics. Many also look closely at capital efficiency, the path to profitability and how the business will reach customers beyond the largest cities.
What is DPIIT recognition and should I mention it?
DPIIT recognition is the Indian government’s recognition of a company as a startup, which unlocks Startup India benefits and some schemes. If you have it, a short mention on the team or closing slide is useful.
Should an Indian startup show figures in rupees or dollars?
Use the currency your investors think in. Indian investors are comfortable with rupees, often in lakh and crore; foreign investors usually prefer dollars. Many decks show both, with the exchange rate used.
Are SAFEs used for Indian startups?
Standard US SAFEs do not fit Indian company law directly. Indian early rounds commonly use equity, compulsorily convertible preference shares (CCPS) or convertible notes, and some platforms offer India-specific SAFE-style instruments. Take legal advice before choosing.
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