A seed round pitch deck is a well thought-out sales pitch that aim to sold the vision, Business Model Canvas, key performance indicators and other relevant information that are relevant to early-stage investors about your start up. A pitch deck for startups, therefore, is meant to give a general outlook of the business in consideration and therefore sell the idea in the market. In this article, we will be revealing procedures step-by-step of constructing your seed round pitch deck.

A 6-step guide to building a seed round pitch deck

The first pitch decks the seed-stage startups really have to be created differently compared to the other rounds because most of them will not have mountains of stats or users’ data to survive on. It is what makes storytelling such a key element. To help investors understand the future value of your startup you have to concentrate on aspects such as the team, advantages, and opportunity. 

All these elements can try to avail the desired impression of the potential of your startup, even if there isn’t sufficient data or information in this particular stage. Here is a breakdown of the 6 step process for making successful seed round pitch deck for startups.

Creating the cover/title slide

It is common knowledge that your cover or title slides are often the first impression that investors have about your pitch. Therefore, it needs to count. It should look good: It must contain the name, logo and the tagline of your startup that will endeavour to sum up your mission. 

A successful title or cover slide generally includes:

• The name of your startup is clearly displayed at the top.

• Your logo should be positioned near the name for brand recognition.

• A short yet compelling tagline regarding your mission or value proposition.

• High-quality images or graphic visuals that will seek to align with your brand.

Introducing the team

Regarding a seed round investment, your team is going to be one of the most critical factors for pitch investors. A strong and efficient team is often seen as a key to a company's success. 

You need to highlight how every team member brings a unique and beneficial aspect to your startup, including their roles, relevant experience and expertise, and contributions to the mission of your startup. This will set a solid foundation for the rest of your presentation, thereby enabling pitch investors to understand who they're engaging with and lend credibility to your pitch.

A successful team slide includes:

• Photos of each team member.

• Names and titles of each person.

• Brief bios of every member.

• Unique contributions of each member.

Diagnosing the problem 

You need to clearly articulate the problem that your startup seeks to solve. You should help pitch investors to understand the significance of the issue and its impact on specific groups of people or on the entire world in general. You need to explain why this problem needs to be addressed quickly and why the existing solutions, if any, are nonexistent or inadequate.

Your main goal is to make the problem relatable and compelling enough, thereby showing that there's a genuine need for a solution. This will certainly set the stage for introducing your product as the perfect answer. 

Proposing the solution 

You need to state that the right solution to your stated problem hasn't been solved yet or can still be significantly improved upon. You ought to describe how your startup has creatively created a solution to the issue, why your stated solution will be able to address the existing problem, and why your startup is uniquely positioned to execute it. 

This is going to be your elevator pitch essentially, and it needs to be short, compelling, and to the point, so aim for anything around 30 seconds. 

An example of a successful solution slide will include:

• Concisely describing your innovative solution,

• Highlighting how your solution is going to benefit customers and cater to their requirements and 

• Explain why your company is the best suited to deliver this particular solution.

Proving that your product has traction 

You should use this slide to demonstrate the traction your product has achieved so far. In case you haven't gained any metrics yet, you should focus on showcasing the development of your product and any other qualitative feedback that you've received so far. Moreover, if you have data tracking Key Performance Indicators, this is the slide for you to highlight them. 

A successful traction slide can include:

• Key metrics- Such as user number, revenue, or other KPIs.

• Growth charts- You can employ charts and graphs to visualise your growth.

• Qualitative feedback- You should include customer testimonials or quotes in case your quantitative data is limited.

Defining market size and opportunity 

In this particular section, you need to include all relevant information regarding the opportunity that you're aiming to seize and the size of that particular market. It is important to highlight why this market is attractive and how your startup is going to dominate it. The pitch investors value the potential for growth and scalability over the initial market size. 

In order to effectively define your market size, alongside the opportunity, you should consider the following:

• Total Addressable Market- Estimate the total market demand when it comes to your service or product. This is the broadest measure of your market opportunity.

• Serviceable Available Market- You need to narrow down the TAM to that portion of the market that you can easily and more realistically target. 

• Serviceable Obtainable Market- You should further narrow down the SAM to that market segment, which you can effectively capture in the short term.

Conclusion 

At the end of your presentation, it is of primary importance that you pitch yourself, your team's experience and expertise, and the unique advantages of your startup over other companies. You should emphasise all that seeks to make your team and its abilities the perfect blend for success. Reiterate the strengths and relevant experience of your team besides highlighting the skills and achievements that make your team of workers uniquely qualified to solve the problems and succeed in the market of your choice.