# Pitch deck template > A pitch deck is the short presentation a founder uses to raise money: it shows investors the problem, the product, the market, the traction and what the funding will buy. This template has ten slides for a seed round, from the one-line promise to the ask, and every slide has one job. The example is fictional but consistent: ARR matches customers times contract value, and the use of funds adds up to 100%. - Source: https://ai-presentations.com/templates/pitch-deck/ - Updated: 21 October 2026 - Language: English - German version: https://ai-presentations.com/de/vorlagen/pitch-deck/ For founders preparing a seed or pre-seed round, and for the CFOs and advisors who help them tell the story to investors. ## Slide by slide ### 1. Title: the company, the raise and the promise Investors decide in the first minute whether to keep listening. Say what the company does, how much you are raising and what changes for the customer. - Company name and the round, such as “Seed round, €2.5m” - A one-line promise in the customer's words, with a number if you have one - Presenter, role and date ### 2. Problem One sharp, quantified pain that your target customer recognizes immediately. If an investor has to ask “so what?”, the slide is too vague. - The problem as a full-sentence title with a number - Who has it and what they do about it today - One proof figure, such as the median close time of your target firms ### 3. Solution What the product does, in the customer's words and in no more than three pillars, each with one proof point. - Three pillars, each with a verb as its heading - One proof point per pillar, such as a match rate - No feature list and no architecture diagram ### 4. Market Bottom-up sizing turns the target into a plan instead of a percentage of a big number. It shows investors that you know who buys and what they pay. - TAM, SAM and SOM as three steps, each defined in a few words - The SOM as customers times contract value - A source line for every outside figure ### 5. Traction Momentum in one chart. The takeaway line says what the chart proves, so the investor does not have to work it out. - ARR, revenue or users over four to six periods - Customers, retention and churn in the takeaway - The growth rate in the title, with the period it covers ### 6. Unit economics The four numbers an investor uses to judge whether growth can be bought. If they are still early, show them anyway and say how many customers they rest on. - Average contract value and gross margin - LTV to CAC and CAC payback - The period and the basis, such as trailing twelve months, blended ### 7. Competition Honest positioning against the real alternatives, including spreadsheets and doing nothing. Investors know the alternatives, so a slide that claims you have none costs you credibility. - A table of three or four criteria your customers buy on - Your column highlighted, with a partial mark where you are not ahead - Spreadsheets or the status quo as one of the columns ### 8. Team Why this team wins: relevant experience, not titles. At seed stage the team is often most of what the investor is buying. - Four people at most, with role and one line of relevant history - Numbers where you have them, such as banks connected or ARR grown - Advisors or open key hires only if they change the picture ### 9. The ask The amount, what it buys and the milestone it reaches. Investors hold this slide against your plan, so the percentages and the milestone have to be specific. - The amount and the round - Use of funds in percentages that add up to 100% - The milestone, such as ARR and the date the next round becomes possible ### 10. Closing A calm close with one clear next step, so the meeting ends on an action and not on a thank-you. - One next step, such as the data room or a demo - A contact address - No new content ## Example deck The example is about Ledgerline, an invented company. Every figure in it is invented too. 1. Month-end close in two days, not ten. Ledgerline automates reconciliation for finance teams of 5 to 50 people. Mara Lindqvist, CEO · Investor presentation · October 2026 2. Mid-sized finance teams still spend 40% of month-end matching transactions by hand. 8.6 days Median close, firms with 50 to 500 staff. Spreadsheets, bank exports and ERP reports are reconciled line by line. Errors surface after the books are closed. 3. Ledgerline matches, explains and closes the books continuously: Auto-match: Connects bank feeds and ERP ledgers and matches 92% of transactions without rules.; Explain the rest: Every open item comes with the likely cause and the document that resolves it.; Close with evidence: Audit-ready close file with every decision logged, exportable in one click. 4. A €3.4bn serviceable market in Europe alone: TAM €11.8bn; SAM €3.4bn; SOM €96m 5. ARR grew 4.2x in twelve months to 46 customers. €1.09m ARR, net revenue retention 128%, no customer has left yet. 6. Every euro of acquisition comes back in under a year: Average contract value €23.7k; Gross margin 84%; LTV / CAC 3.1x; CAC payback 11 mo 7. Ledgerline is built for the mid-market close, not for the enterprise: Ledgerline, ERP add-ons, Enterprise close suites, Spreadsheets 8. Finance operators and engineers who have closed books at scale: Mara Lindqvist (CEO); Jonas Peeters (CTO); Aisha Rahman (Head of Product); Tomás Ruiz (Head of Sales) 9. €2.5m to reach €4m ARR and Series A readiness by Q4 2027. €2.5m Seed round. 55% product: ERP connectors and the audit module; 30% go-to-market in DACH and the Nordics; 15% operations and compliance (SOC 2 Type II) 10. Let's close the books faster, together. Data room and product demo available on request. ## What are the 10 slides of a pitch deck? A seed pitch deck has ten slides: title, problem, solution, market, traction, unit economics, competition, team, the ask and a closing slide. Each slide has one job, and the example deck shows each job as a finished slide title. The company and every figure in the table are invented. | Slide | Its one job | Example title from the Ledgerline deck | | --- | --- | --- | | 1. Title | Name the company, the raise and the promise in one line | Month-end close in two days, not ten | | 2. Problem | One quantified pain that the target customer recognizes | Mid-sized finance teams still spend 40% of month-end matching transactions by hand | | 3. Solution | What the product does, in three pillars with one proof point each | Ledgerline matches, explains and closes the books continuously | | 4. Market | Bottom-up sizing, so the target is a plan and not a percentage | A €3.4bn serviceable market in Europe alone | | 5. Traction | Momentum in one chart, with the takeaway stated | ARR grew 4.2x in twelve months to 46 customers | | 6. Unit economics | The four numbers that show whether growth can be bought | Every euro of acquisition comes back in under a year | | 7. Competition | Honest positioning against the real alternatives | Ledgerline is built for the mid-market close, not for the enterprise | | 8. Team | Why this team wins: relevant experience, not titles | Finance operators and engineers who have closed books at scale | | 9. The ask | The amount, what it buys and the milestone it reaches | €2.5m to reach €4m ARR and Series A readiness by Q4 2027 | | 10. Closing | One clear next step, so the meeting ends on an action | Let's close the books faster, together | ## How many slides should a pitch deck have? Ten for the main story, presented in about 20 minutes. Guy Kawasaki's 10/20/30 rule names ten slides, twenty minutes and a font of 30 points or more. Keep the financial model, roadmap and detail in an appendix that you show only when an investor asks. A deck that investors read on their own can run longer, as long as the main story fits on ten slides and the rest sits in the appendix. ## Tips - **Size the market bottom-up.** Write the SOM as customers times contract value, for example 4,000 customers at €24k. Investors distrust “1% of a €50bn market” because anyone can write it, and they trust a number they can check against your pipeline. - **Write action titles.** Each title states the conclusion: “ARR grew 4.2x in twelve months to 46 customers”, not “Traction”. An investor who skims only the titles should still get the story. - **Build a reading version and a presenting version.** A deck you email has to work without you, and a deck you present needs less text on each slide. Write the sendable version first, then cut it down for the room and move the explanations into speaker notes. - **Define every metric once.** State once what ARR means, for example contracted recurring revenue at the end of the quarter, and use it the same way on every slide. Investors reconcile your numbers in diligence, and a mismatch between two slides costs more trust than a modest figure. - **Say what the money buys.** Show the use of funds as three or four lines that add up to 100%, plus the milestone they reach, such as €4m ARR and Series A readiness by Q4 2027. “General corporate purposes” tells the investor nothing. - **Treat the 10/20/30 rule as a ceiling.** Guy Kawasaki's rule asks for 10 slides, 20 minutes and no font smaller than 30 points. Take it as a limit, not a target: a slide you cannot place among the first ten usually belongs in an appendix that you keep for questions. ## Common mistakes - A market slide that takes 1% of a huge number instead of multiplying customers by price - A hockey-stick forecast with no drivers behind it: no customers, no price, no hiring plan - Claiming there are no competitors, which tells investors you have not looked - Paragraphs on the slides, so the investor reads instead of listens - An ask that says “we are raising” with no amount, use of funds or milestone - Traction on slide 9 when it is your strongest proof ## Brief for the AI A complete brief for the AI. Replace the [placeholders] with your facts. ```text Create a 10-slide seed pitch deck for [company name], a [B2B SaaS] company raising [€2.5m]. Slide 1: title with the one-line promise: [what changes for the customer, with a number]. Slide 2: the problem, one quantified pain of [target customers]. Slide 3: the solution as three pillars with one proof point each. Slide 4: the market, bottom-up as TAM, SAM and SOM, where the SOM is [4,000 customers at €24k contract value]. Slide 5: traction as a chart of ARR over the last [5 quarters], with customers and retention in the takeaway. Slide 6: unit economics: average contract value [€23.7k], gross margin [84%], LTV to CAC [3.1x], CAC payback [11 months]. Slide 7: a competition table against [three real alternatives], including spreadsheets. Slide 8: the team, four people with one line of relevant experience each. Slide 9: the ask, [€2.5m], with use of funds in percentages that add up to 100% and the milestone it reaches. Slide 10: closing with the next step and a contact. Use action titles and a calm, dark investor style. Use only the figures I give; mark anything missing as a placeholder. ``` [Open this brief in the editor](https://app.slaide.de/registrieren?prompt=Create+a+10-slide+seed+pitch+deck+for+%5Bcompany+name%5D%2C+a+%5BB2B+SaaS%5D+company+raising+%5B%E2%82%AC2.5m%5D.+Slide+1%3A+title+with+the+one-line+promise%3A+%5Bwhat+changes+for+the+customer%2C+with+a+number%5D.+Slide+2%3A+the+problem%2C+one+quantified+pain+of+%5Btarget+customers%5D.+Slide+3%3A+the+solution+as+three+pillars+with+one+proof+point+each.+Slide+4%3A+the+market%2C+bottom-up+as+TAM%2C+SAM+and+SOM%2C+where+the+SOM+is+%5B4%2C000+customers+at+%E2%82%AC24k+contract+value%5D.+Slide+5%3A+traction+as+a+chart+of+ARR+over+the+last+%5B5+quarters%5D%2C+with+customers+and+retention+in+the+takeaway.+Slide+6%3A+unit+economics%3A+average+contract+value+%5B%E2%82%AC23.7k%5D%2C+gross+margin+%5B84%25%5D%2C+LTV+to+CAC+%5B3.1x%5D%2C+CAC+payback+%5B11+months%5D.+Slide+7%3A+a+competition+table+against+%5Bthree+real+alternatives%5D%2C+including+spreadsheets.+Slide+8%3A+the+team%2C+four+people+with+one+line+of+relevant+experience+each.+Slide+9%3A+the+ask%2C+%5B%E2%82%AC2.5m%5D%2C+with+use+of+funds+in+percentages+that+add+up+to+100%25+and+the+milestone+it+reaches.+Slide+10%3A+closing+with+the+next+step+and+a+contact.+Use+action+titles+and+a+calm%2C+dark+investor+style.+Use+only+the+figures+I+give%3B+mark+anything+missing+as+a+placeholder.&utm_source=ai-presentations.com&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=template%3Apitch-deck&utm_content=markdown) ## Frequently asked questions ### What should be in a pitch deck? A seed pitch deck usually covers the problem, the solution, the market, traction, unit economics, competition, the team and the ask, framed by a title and a closing slide. Show your strongest proof early: if traction is the best thing you have, put it ahead of the market slide. Details such as the financial model or the product roadmap belong in an appendix that you keep for questions. ### What is the 10/20/30 rule for a pitch deck? It is Guy Kawasaki's guideline: no more than 10 slides, a pitch of 20 minutes at most and a font size of 30 points or larger. Treat it as a limit, not a target. A deck that investors read on their own can run longer, as long as the main story fits on ten slides and the rest sits in an appendix. ### Should the deck I email differ from the one I present? In most cases, yes. An emailed deck has to make sense without you, so the titles carry the argument and the slides carry a little more text. A presented deck can be sparser because you add the explanation yourself. Build the sendable version first, then cut it down for the room. ### Can ChatGPT or another AI create a pitch deck? As of October 2026, general chat assistants can draft the outline and the wording of a pitch deck, and some can also produce a file. The AI builds the whole deck: you describe the company, it asks up to four questions where your brief leaves something open, shows a page plan for your approval and then builds and checks one page after another. The result is an editable PowerPoint file. The AI is instructed to label assumptions, and you stay in charge of every figure, so check the numbers against your model before the deck goes to an investor. ### Is this pitch deck template free? Reading the template and copying its prompt costs nothing. In Slaide, the Free plan includes one free document, planned with up to 12 pages, of which the first 3 are built; finishing a 10-slide deck needs a paid plan. Free exports carry a small “Made with Slaide” mark, and paid plans export without it. The free document needs no credit card. ### Are the numbers in this template real? No. Ledgerline and all its figures are fictional. The arithmetic is consistent, so the deck works as a model: 46 customers at an average of €23.7k come to about €1.09m ARR, 4,000 customers at €24k give the €96m target, and the use of funds adds up to 100%. ## Related pages - [Investor update](https://ai-presentations.com/templates/investor-update/): An investor update template with 9 slides: summary, metrics, ARR bridge, plan against actual, lessons, cash and runway, next-quarter plan and asks. - [Business plan](https://ai-presentations.com/templates/business-plan/): A business plan presentation template with 10 slides: summary, problem, customers, model, revenue, profit and loss, use of funds, milestones and the ask. - [Executive summary](https://ai-presentations.com/templates/executive-summary/): Lead with the recommendation, the one number that matters, the options compared and the decision you need. Template with an 8-slide example. - [Company profile](https://ai-presentations.com/templates/company-profile/): Show who you are, key facts, growth, offering, customers, history and leadership, and end on a clear next step. A 9-slide company profile deck with an example. --- ai-presentations.com is published by Slaide (https://www.slaide.de), a sole proprietorship run by Nathalie Scholl in Heilbronn, Germany. [How this site is written, checked and corrected](https://ai-presentations.com/editorial-policy/).