A storyteller is one of the most critical roles for a private company executive. Before milestones have been reached and revenue earned, companies must sell potential investors on the dream of what they believe the future holds. The investor presentation is the vehicle to tell this story; therefore, it is critical that the investor deck presents a clear message that excites potential investors about your vision for the future.
Below are a few tips to create a dynamic private company investor presentation.
- Be Clear and Concise. Keep your story to a manageable number of slides (typically between 20-30 content slides) that illustrate a clear and digestible message. Investors will have a wide range of sector knowledge. As such, we recommend creating a presentation that assumes your audience has little to no knowledge of your underlying science and avoids acronyms and scientific jargon. It is easy for investor presentations to become too scientific and overly technical. Tailor your deck to the generalist investor, and create an appendix of back-up slides for those who want to delve further into the weeds.
- Keep Slides Clean and Simple. Each slide should communicate a single message that is easy for the reader to understand. A clean and visually appealing deck allows viewers to quickly process and digest presented information. When possible, use graphics and images to support your talk tract.
- Arouse Interest Immediately. Potential investors will want to quickly understand the market landscape and market size. Do not wait until the very end of the presentation to explain this information. Pique their interest upfront! Answer key questions, such as: Why is your technology important? What is the address patient population? What is the competitive landscape? Why are you likely to succeed? And, most importantly, why should anyone be investing now?
- Provide Substance. While you want to avoid a deck full of overly complicated clinical data, it is important to clearly illustrate data that supports your technology and how this differentiates your product in the market. Be sure to clearly highlight future milestones so that investors know what to expect in the months and years ahead. Make sure these milestones are realistic and achievable. Don’t overpromise.
- Project Solid Management Expertise. Explain how your team is uniquely qualified to develop and potentially commercialize this technology. Strong leadership is critical to the success of any product. What experiences do your senior team, board of directors or advisors possess that distinctly position you to be successful in this market? Sharing information about the people and institutions who participate in your company will communicate credibility to the investor world about strategy and approach.
- Prepare and Practice. Before you enter a meeting, know the key points you want to convey and how to navigate away from disclosing information you are not ready to share. Practice your story so that you are familiar with your presentation, using the investor deck as support and not a crutch.
If you would like to learn more about how to create and deliver an effective investor deck, contact our team today.
Carrie Mendivil, Principal
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