You’ve probably hit the search engines with phrases like “how to craft a killer pitch deck” and discovered a lot. You have established that some of the keys to pitch deck success are personalizing it to match the unique target audience characteristics, using creative storytelling that includes the data, and perfecting your delivery skills. You’re off to a great start, but you may have likely overlooked the pitch deck design, more precisely, the common mistakes that could ruin a perfect pitch deck. Here is a quick look at four must-avoid pitch deck design mistakes.
Too much content on the slides
You might think that overloading the slides with images, animations, and text will help ensure you tell the whole story, but that only guarantees one thing: clutter! Clutter is your enemy because it makes it harder for the audience to capture the message quickly. It is also likely to distract them, meaning you’ll achieve the opposite of what you intended.
Instead of too much content, craft a clear, relatable, and engaging business story. This way, you can keep the pitch deck clean and focused while delivering a moving story that can get you into the investors’ hearts and wallets. There is power in minimalism, especially considering how much it alleviates the cognitive load, which can help ensure that the key points stand out and are clearly delivered and easily memorable.
Being too “colorful”
Graphics are essential in pitch decks since they help break down complex points into easily understandable points. Creative use of the graphics can help evoke emotions, which is what you want the pitch deck to do as you find your way into the audiences’ hearts. However, don’t let this drive you into a color fest.
You may be tempted to use loads of font and section colors, but that can prove quite destructive. A smart way to use colors is to stick to your brand colors and ensure you maintain enough white space. Aligning the pitch deck with your visual identity further reinforces your brand. The cohesiveness makes the pitch deck and your brand more memorable while exuding a sense of professionalism.
Creating such a design can be tricky, but not when you turn to professionals like Propitchdeckdesign.com for redesign or custom pitch deck designs that ensure you rely on a well-structured professional design. This way, you can creatively use the right colors to turn your pitch deck content into a captivating, visually appealing presentation.
Poor fonts and complex graphics
There are many fonts out there that seem fun and playful, but they don’t belong in your pitch deck. The last thing you want is an investor trying to read a word because they can’t quickly determine its letters. A quick pitch deck font hack is to avoid those fancy options and stick to clean and professional styles that are easy to read. Also, avoid using too many font types or decorative styles since that can distract the audience.
Much like the fonts, also avoid using complex graphics. Charts and graphs are meant to simplify the data. This means that using complex data visualization does the opposite, which can confuse and detract the audience from the main message in your pitch deck.
Inconsistent layouts
Imagine a layout that causes too much mental noise that the audience can hardly wait for the presentation to end. That’s the chaos you will likely cause if you fail to use a consistent layout and clear fonts. You should ensure a consistent layout throughout your deck, including text, images, and headings. Such consistency delivers an organized and properly polished deck that anyone can easily follow.
Creating a professional and impactful pitch deck increases your chances of success, considering that investors go through hundreds of pitch decks daily. Avoiding the above mistakes improves the chances of creating a clear, concise, and appealing design that’ll keep the investors glued to the pitch deck to the end and, with personalized content and creative storytelling, win their hearts.