5 Learnings from designing a Series-B Pitch Deck that Raised +$40M

As we all know when you’re working in startups, there is time when you’ll need to jump from your position and help on other stuffs you have experience with, and personally i think it’s fun and totally fine, as being a part of a startup you should be really IN, trying to help your teammates and trying to share your knowledge and help.

So the CEO just messaged me “ Hey Ayoub! You got any experience designing pitch decks? As you know we’re raising Serires B soon “ And i was all in, let’s do it!

We had couple of workshops where we followed a specific pattern, and we defined what needs to be highlighted, where, how, etc.. And thank god we were gathering data since the start cause it was very important and the only source of truth.

Without further do, here are my top 5 learnings:

1. Tell a Meaningful Story

Sharing a clear story about why our company matters and how it makes a difference resonates with investors. People want to understand the ‘why’ behind what we do. Highlighting our journey’s milestones, like user growth and partnerships, reassured investors that we’re making real progress and achieving goals. People want to see that we’re moving forward.

2. Explain the Market Opportunity

We learned that explaining how big the market is and why our solution fits perfectly into it helps investors see the potential. It’s like showing them a map of where we’re headed.

3. Make Numbers Understandable

Simplifying our financial projections made a big difference. Investors want to see realistic numbers presented in a clear and straightforward way, without complex jargon.

4. Connect on a Personal Level

We realized that investors also want to connect with us as people, not just as a business. Sharing our passion and genuine excitement about our vision helped build trust and confidence. So we always started with personal questions, we got to know them, their lives, what interest them, etc… People want to feel the trust.

5. It must look good! Good design tell people that you’re professional.

The deck would have maintained a consistent branding theme throughout, using Accern’s logo, colors, and typography. This consistency reinforces brand identity and professionalism. Each slide would have a clean and uncluttered layout. Minimalistic design helps focus the attention on the content and avoids overwhelming the audience.

Closing notes

After the successful raise, i remember having follow-ups from some investors that showed the interest to the design made, and wanting to hire me for design work, that’s why i said at the begining always try to help with anything even if it’s out of your scope, you never know where opportunities come from. And in the same time you end up learning new stuffs.