Copywriting: How to Create a Successful Pitch Deck

1. Introduction: Hi, I'm Nicky. In this class, you'll learn how to create a successful pitch that you'll learn, what you need to include in a pitch deck, how to structure it in the most effective way to make it stand out from the competition. Pitch deck is essentially a short business presentation. It could be used for startup, pitching, a new business idea to investors, a freelancer, pitching to find a new client, or an agency pitching new concepts to clients. If you're doing a pitch, It's very important to have a stronger pitch deck because it plays a big part in representing you or your business, communicating your ideas, making first impressions, and building trust. If you have a weak pitch deck, nothing happens. You're just unlikely to win the business, unlikely to get the investment, and you'll quickly be forgotten the boat, you always want to have a strong pitch deck because even if you don't win that specific piece of work, it's still important to leave a positive impression. So when the next opportunity arises, people still think if you in a good light. This lesson, It's for anyone who might need to create the pitch deck. That can include business owners, entrepreneurs, those who work within creative industries, such as copywriters, designers, client services, or anyone who would like to upskill in this area. There is both a science and an art to creating a successful one stack. And in the world of business, it can be an extremely valuable skill to have. And Nikki, I have a degree in advertising, a master's in communication design, and over ten years experience working with different agencies. I've worked on many pitch decks are really, I appreciate overwhelming they can do. If you don't know where to begin. I hope that this class act as a useful tool that breaks the process five simple steps and something that you can come back to each and every time you need them. I won't be teaching mainly from my experience, which is pitching to clients. From the perspective. I'll give a general overview of what to include in a pitch deck, how to structure it. And then I'll do a deep dive into how to pitch from multiple creative concepts. I'll also give you tips and advice on how to make sure your pitch sounds like from others. This class will be particularly useful if you work with in the creative industries, such as advertising, tech, innovation, or design. But don't worry, you sit outside of that bracket. I'll be giving lots of general advice that will be useful to anyone who's creating a pitch of any kind. Pitch decks don't have to be scary. They can be structured, organized, simple, and fun. Aside from the pressure, trying to win new business or persuade future investment, pitch decks, or an exciting opportunity to showcase your best work. They can be created beautiful and a real work of art. Once you've done all the hard work, bringing all the information together, you'll get a real sense of pride in what your deck represents. And you'll have the confidence to go into your pitch with your head held high that he'd put on a shoe? With like putting it off any longer. Let's jump right in and learn how to create a successful pitch deck. 2. Overview: First of all, let's understand the term. Why is a pitch deck called a pitch deck? It gets its name from two concepts. The first is pitch, which means to deliver a business presentation. The second word, debt, is more interesting. It comes from an old technology that was used for projecting slides onto the wall. Physical 35-millimeter slide was inserted into a carousel slide projector. All the slides that were used during the presentation, we're collectively known as the slide deck. Just like a deck of cards, the metaphor implies that the cards at a standalone cards and can be sorted out well. Some cards can even be left out of the presentation and it can still work. Pitching is quite a broad theme. You could be an entrepreneur pitching business idea to investors or script writer, pitching a movie idea to a film director. Another example is from American actress Emma Stone. She famously used a PowerPoint presentation to pitch project hollywood to her parents when she was 14 years old. It was an attempt to convince her parents to support her dream. And moving to LA. The famous actress suffice to say the pitch went well. They agreed to the moon, and Emma went on to win an Oscar for her leading role in la-la land in 2016. So whatever it is that you're pitching to do it successfully, It's all about understanding who you're talking to and what you want the outcome to be. Another thing to consider is that the pitch deck and presenting person may differ from the version you leave behind. The desk you present in person should be very simple and clean with slides that visually complement what you're saying. You don't want to overwhelm your audience with too much information. The version you offerings or send as a PDF has permission to hold a little more information. If there are key points or figures you'd like people to digest, makes sure they have all the information they need to make an informed decision after the pitch. In this lesson, I will be focusing more on the deck style. Real-life pitch. Pitch decks can take quite a bit of time and effort to get right. But by investing this energy upfront, you can be more efficient in the future. Each time you do a pitch, you can reuse certain slides. Some things never change. For example, your company history or your case studies. You can simply drop these slides in as and when you need them. However, it is important to keep your pitch deck up-to-date. Make sure all stats and data are relevant to each time and where appropriate to look for opportunities to personalize the deck for every audience. Make sure they're only seeing what is relevant to them. But essentially, once you've landed your story and your preferred structure, you shouldn't need to reinvent the wheel every time. So you can react quickly to new coaching opportunities. Over the next number of chapters that I'm going to outline seven steps for how to structure effective pitch deck. Treat these steps as guidelines, not rules. There's no cookie cutter format for how to create a successful pitch deck. It's all about understanding who you are pitching to and what the desired outcome looks like. Take everything you've learned in this class and apply it in a way that works for your needs. For example, research may tend you. A pitch deck should include ten slides. But I was recently listening to a podcast by entrepreneur Stephen Bartlett. And he was explaining that he did a pitch to other CEOs looking for sponsorship and investment. And he made a conscious decision to make his pitch only two slides long. And he said he intentionally kept it short to make sure he didn't waste other CEOs time. And he also made sure he just focused on the steps and the figures because he knew that's what they would be most interested in. So for him, that was the right decision. There was a successful outcome. And it worked because he thought about who he was pitching to them, what they would care about most. So feel free to learn the theory of how to create a successful pitch deck. But when it comes to making your own, get creative and do what works for you. 3. Big Up The Client: The first step is to big up the client. That means to show that you understand their business. Explain why you want to work with them. Specifically. Acknowledge the work they've done and any challenges they faced along the way and begin to suggest how you can support them. First of all, there'll be impressed that you know so much about their business. Maybe even more than they do. They will take you more seriously knowing that you've done your research. By acknowledging the work they've done and the challenges they faced. They'll feel understood. And by suggesting you can help your create intrigue early on. So you've hooked their interests. 4. Introduce Yourself: Say who you are and what you do. This could be the story of your company, your mission, your values, outline your experience and expertise, and introduced the wider team. Put names to faces and highlight what unique skills or attributes they bring to the table. Like any achievements are accolades and showcase studies of past work. Don't be shy to inject a little humor or personality into this section. People buy from people. And this is an opportunity to showcase your human side. This introduction will give your audience confidence that you know what you're talking about. It should be inspiring, impressive, and should act as a leveler. It provides context of who you are and where you're coming from. And should plant everything you say in a foundation of credibility and authority. 5. Define The Problem: From your research, there should be a clear problem that you're trying to solve. Lean on stats, market research, and data to present this problem. But make sure you don't focus too much on the negative. The trick is to present the problem back as an opportunity, identifying room for improvement and growth. It's a subtle shift that makes a big difference. This shows that you are fully aware of the business challenge and you understand the bigger picture. It shows that you're not worried about the problem. You're excited because you have the solution. To turn it all around. Give hope, build trust, and reassure the client that they have nothing to worry about with you in control. 6. Give The Solution: Now it's the moment we've all been waiting for, the big reveal, the creative. This is the part where you really get to show how your solution solves the problem for the client. Don't worry if you spend more time on this section, because this is the bit that everybody really cares about. So take your time, enjoy it, and make sure that everybody really digest this because it's the meat of your pitch and it's the most important part. Of course, what the solution looks like depends on what type of pitch you're giving. So if you are a startup and your product is the solution, That's your one and only solution. Your product will be the answer. In my experience, it's been working for creative agencies. Typically, we'd like to give a variety of options, usually about three creative concepts. And there's a reason for doing this. First of all, by giving three different options. You might have one that does, have one angle, one that covers the opposite angle from one that does something completely wild. Or you might do a safe one, a daring one, something in the middle. And this gives the client something to think about. So instead of seeing an idea and just thinking, I don't like that, it gives them something to compare with. So they're able to think, why do I prefer one over another? Why does one work better than another? And that opens up a dialogue and allows people to be able to think a little more critically about what it is that they actually want. When I'm presenting multiple concepts, I've tried to make them easily comparable. To do that, I make sure I use the same format for each one. So typically, for the last pitch that I gave, I followed this format, I'd start with an insight, a concept. Hyatt works, the benefits, and then the reason to believe. I'll go into each one night and explain a little bit more about what I need to start each concept with a killer insight. Insight is something the context for why you've come up with an idea and bases that in something solid and undeniable. It proves you haven't just made something up. It demonstrates the logical thinking and facts that have led you to a certain decision. And inside should be one of the following things clearly stated, compelling the leaf. A truth about your customers place, a state of being that's true for your consumer. For example, in 2014, always feminine hygiene brand launched a multi award-winning campaign called hashtag, like a girl. It was all about female empowerment, social change. In 2017, a new insight led to the campaigns message. Subtly changing. The insight was at puberty, 49% of girls feel paralyzed by the fear of failure, leading them to avoid trying new things. With that research and understanding of how young girls really feel about trying new things and new ideas for the concept was to expand the original message and to empower girls to tackle their fear and keep going. Hashtag like a girl without the original insight. Unlikely that that idea would've been developed. Insights really helped tell the story of where ideas come from. The concept is essentially the big, overarching idea. It's typically a theme that can be applied to all creative executions. Whether it's a marketing campaign, a digital product, or a service. Everything ties back to the same creative concept. To represent this in a pitch deck, you should try to distill the concept down into a headline, a straight line. And the key visual. This gives the audience one single slide to digest and refer back to. Successful Freed concepts are simple, distinct, and memorable. For example, Nike's Just Do It concept. The iconic slogan doesn't mention the name of the brand or the fact that they produce sports clothing. Instead, it taps into a key emotional insights that connects with the consumer in a positive way when they are about to exercise. One based on motivation, drive, and ambition. It doesn't matter how the concept is executed. It simply works every time. With everyone understanding the creative concept. We then give some examples of why that might work. Real life. It depends on what you're pitching. Of course, if it's a digital product, you might showcase key features for product will have. If it's a marketing campaign, you might show how the concept works across three different touch points. For example, on a billboard, as a website banner. And there's a physical installation. It could be a storyboard or a script for TB effort. The examples to read the concept and how far the idea can go. It should leave the audience being excited and inspired. The benefit is something positive to consumer will get from the product, service, or campaigns. When writing benefit statements, it's best to write from the perspective of the consumer. For example, if you're selling a product and the mother is the target audience, you can start your benefit statement with, my baby gets X, Y, and Z. If you're pitching to a pharmaceutical company and the doctor is the target audience, you can start your benefit statement with, my patient gets X, Y, and Zed. A benefit can be either functional or emotional. But what's important is that it answers the original insight presented. And it's supported by reasons to believe. The reasons to believe, or the proofs that consumers will actually get what was promised in benefit. It's the opportunity to prove why it will work. This could be in many different formats depending on what your picture. It could be a key stack from external research about consumer behavior. It could be the technology that supports the products. It could be anything significant about the product, ingredients, the process, but history. That could be like the brand and why consumers trust the company. It could be testimonials, showcasing how it worked for other people. Anything that routes your benefit and something strong and undeniable. When crafting your reasons to believe. Go back to the insight, lineup, the benefits. And then right, reasons to believe as phrases such as that's because unlike line three, specific bullet points, if you're presenting more than one concept, tries to make sure you have reasons to believe are different for each concept. Number one, write the insight concept, how it works, benefits, and reason to believe in outline form first, do that. See if it a logical story before you spend too much time crafting the copy. Number two. Once you're happy with it, let other people read over it and see if it makes sense to them. Number three, once you think it's correct, go back, flesh it out, and add a little flavor to the coffee. For example. If it's a food product, add inwards around taste. If it's a cleaning product, adding words wrong strength. And if it's a service provided, include words around speed. This gives the pitch and element of polish and can make people smile. 7. Show Your Services: Next, clearly outline the services you offer. Explain why you should solve the problem over competitors. And be sure if his shoe, only two services that are relevant to the client. Dive a little deeper into your process. Explain details like, I often like to check in with the client, how you turn on measuring success, how you'd like to collaborate with them. If that's something you're trying to encourage, showcase the specific team and you're planning on dedicating to the current, highlight their expertise and what they'll be focusing on. This reminds the audience why they should choose to work with you over any other competitor. It shows that you've taken the time to put forward a plan and that you're ready to hit the ground running. It helps to give an insight into the kind of relationship you would like to have. And by showing the team they'll be working with, it brings that human element that people can relate to. 8. Outline The Cost: When it comes to a pitch, a lot of the decisions can come down to the budget availability. Although it can be a little more uncomfortable talking about money than showcasing creative concepts, it's important not to shy away when discussing figures. Be clear on what pricing model you would like to work with. For example, retainer, project-based, commission-based, or value and performance to be as detailed as possible with timings and costs. And if you can't be specific, I try to at least provide ranges to people from start to get a sense of scale. Reinforce that if the costs are not what the client expected, not to panic through conversation and re-planning. Alternate options can always be explored through collaboration. This is all about being open and transparent. It's important to build trust from the beginning to make sure there are no unwanted surprises. Later down the line. It's all about finding out what each party feels comfortable with and what's financially feasible. Encourage the client to go away and have a think as a team before making any rushed decisions. 9. Summarise: Wrap-up. Take a moment to summarize the different concepts presented and recap what makes each one unique. Remind them why you're offering is unique to competitors. Outline your next steps. Say what you're going to do after the pitch. Such as, we'll send you a copy of this presentation. We're happy to answer any questions over e-mail. We can always arrange a follow-up call and say what you expect them to do after the pitch. Such as read through everything we've shown you today, send the deck to anyone who couldn't be here today. We'd love to get your feedback by the end of next year. N, on a memorable note, a funny message. Quote, an image, something that leaves a positive note in the air. And finally, say thank you and open up the floor for questions. This will help the audience remember key points to take away from your pitch. It will give them lots to think about it. And hopefully feeling positive and inspired by the ideas you've presented. By leaving the conversation open to questions, it shifts the energy back to the client. So they feel it's hard to respond and ask questions. Their response at this point is often a good indicator of how the overall pitch when I ever, some clients also keep their cards close to their chest and don't give much away. So if they don't burst into applause, don't permit. It doesn't mean it's gone badly. Just stay professional and say thank you for your time. Big up the client. Introduce yourself. Define the problem, give the solution. Show your services. Outline the cost. These are the essential building blocks of a successful pitch deck. If you're unsure where to begin, start with these seven steps. Once you get into it, you'll be able to spot any tweaks or changes you'll want to make to your own pitch. 10. Real-life Examples: Let's take a look at some of the most famous and successful pitch decks from the real-world to see what we can learn from them. Number one, Facebook. Facebook's pitch deck contains the company's value proposition. Key metrics and marketing services that were used to sell ads to potential clients. Focus a pitch deck was based on solid numbers, such as their user engagement, traffic, and growth trajectory. Remember to Airbnb. Airbnb is one of the greatest startup success stories of our time, and its pitch decks become the most used referenced. Entrepreneurs run through. Airbnb, used a very simple structure of problem solution product into line with successful hooking the audience's attention, they were able to distill the business proposition into one simple line. Book rooms with locals rather than hotels. Simple but effective. Steep. Plus b has raised over $240 million. And what we learned from their pitch deck, just that it doesn't hurt to lead with social proof. That means they start off showcasing some big numbers. They show things like how many millions of users visit the site on a monthly basis. And then they lay out why they want to build on from that. This creates confidence and trust. Early on for the investors. Youtube, YouTube satellites to be the primary outlet for video content. And it succeeded in doing just that. They're simple pitch deck clearly outlines the problem and the solution, showcasing potential of their product. This just goes to show a good idea, doesn't need to be over complicated. Skillshare. What a better example. I'm from the platform you're currently using. The CEO and co-founder of Skillshare, put together an effective pitch when trying to get the Skillshare platform off the ground. He started off with a personal story as a way to grab the audience's attention, clearly outline the problem, and then gave a solid solution. He also ended with an impactful quote from Albert Einstein. It's a wonderful example in storytelling theory, the pitch was a major success. 11. Add The Magic: Over the last ten years, pitch decks have really evolved. Companies are investing more time, effort and money into making sure they are beautiful, effective, and shows whether you have access to design team or not. Here are some tips of how to turn your pitch deck Until work of art. As with any presentation or slide design, pitch decks should be simple. No cram, too much information or too many visuals onto each slide. Or your prospective clients might get distracted. Even if you're pitching. See two very corporate business. Remember, they're still human. Give your potential client an opportunity to get to know the team Kalbe working. When designing your deck, makes sure they know it's coming from your agency or business. Use your brand colors, font, and logos. Unless you've been asked specifically to reflect their brand. Make texts visible from a reasonable distance. To keep the information as digestible as possible. Stick the big, bold fonts on highly contrasting backgrounds. Don't type up your entire pitch. Slides. They are just visual pointers for you to talk over. Don't read them out loud. If you need support, use subheaders notes at the bottom. People remember what they see compared to what they hear and use photos, illustrations, charts, or even emojis. If they fit with your brand guidelines. Central in your presentation around a story, instead of a list of facts or figures, is essential for keeping people interested and leaving a lasting impression. You might think you're already simplifying your content, but take it a step further. Each slide, she'd convey a single, simple idea, not multiple ideas. The point of each slide should be obvious. Your audience shouldn't have to work to understand what's going on, especially when graphs or charts are involved. Spell it out for them. If you simply tell investors that your product is good, that is nowhere near as effective as having honest customer of declaring their love for the product. Make your pitch deck. There are loads of templates you can download online, such as Canva. It's like being Google Slides and beautiful. There's the pitch that you present on the one you leave behind. Makes sure the one you present a short and sharp. And the one unique behind includes all the essential detail. You don't start from scratch every time you want to do a pitch. Repurpose, reuse, recycle your slides, even though you might get used to your slides. Remember, it's all new to the audience. 12. Final Thoughts: You now know everything there is to know about creating a successful pitch deck. Whether you're pitching for investments, trying to win over a new client, or simply outlining ten reasons why you deserve to go on holiday. You should have a good idea of what to include in a pitch deck prior to structure it and how to make it stand out. It's hard work. But the result should be something you're very proud of. And what's more, the opportunities it could open up for you are endless. My final words of advice for keep it simple. Remember that the audience are humans. And all you can do is your best, wishing you all the best of luck in your next pitch. And remember to enjoy it. It's your time to shine. Thank you for taking this class. If you find it useful, be sure to follow me for more copywriting inspired lessons.