You are sitting in a small meeting room full of people, ready to see your offer. You've been working really hard on the deck, so you can't wait to hear all the praises. Instead, you see confused faces. Yes, the data is good, but is it easy to digest? Complexity ≠ Expertise For years, the business world has held the belief that the more complex the data, the more professional it appears. But the catch is, sometimes that complexity works against you. People are naturally drawn to what they can understand the fastest. Most of the metrics martech teams operate on are not what investors want to see. They talk profit. Your presentation serves as a high-speed filter: its purpose is to tell a story, with or without the presenter, using plain language instead of complex terms. People Choose What They Understand Investors don’t read minds or spend hours pondering each of your slides. They do not digest information, but scan it, since they have to watch dozens of presentations a day. Investors review decks quickly, with an average viewing time of under 3 minutes. The same goes for any audience: your boss, your client, or anyone to whom you present. Now that we all work in an environment of information overload, we need to get to the point as quickly as possible. Complex technical terms won’t do that. under 3 minutes under 3 minutes If your deck doesn’t explain the point in seconds, the context switches and interest drops. Why 90% of Decks Fail Most presentations fail not because the product is weak, but because the message is unclear. Here are some of the most common reasons for failure: 1. Unclear problem 1. Unclear problem Many teams are so obsessed with their solution that they stop explaining what it solves. If it’s not clear after the first two slides what issue you’re fixing, people simply stop listening. 2. Unclear audience 2. Unclear audience Early on, it's tempting to build a product for everyone. But if you're for everyone, you're for no one. Investors want to see a specific buyer persona: their role, behavior, budget, and motivation. 3. Lack of narrative: slides, no story 3. Lack of narrative: slides, no story DocSend research shows that successful presentations tell a logical, understandable story. Without it, a deck becomes a collection of snippets, data, visualizations, and random thoughts. shows shows 4. Chaotic visual presentation 4. Chaotic visual presentation A complex design does not make a presentation better. When slides are overloaded with text and complex diagrams, the brain simply cannot grasp what to take away. 5. Too much technical detail 5. Too much technical detail Most products are technologically complex, and that’s okay. But technological complexity should not take center stage. The investor wants to understand “what will we get?”, not “how does your technology work in detail?” How to Create a Deck That Works I have been working with startups and products at various stages for many years, and a few golden rules always guide us. Start with a one-liner that explains the product. Start with a one-liner that explains the product. According to DocSend, the most effective presentations have a one-liner that’s understandable in 5–7 seconds. Being concise is a sign of a strong team that understands its idea and product so well that they can explain it to anyone in 30 seconds. According to DocSend Build a story, not a set of slides. Build a story, not a set of slides. A presentation is not a collection of pictures, but rather a sequence in which each slide reinforces the one before it. One slide = one idea One slide = one idea The human brain can process 1-2 key signals at a time, no more. If there are five messages on one slide, a person will not understand any of them. Make the complex simple Make the complex simple Do not treat your decks like a scientific dissertation, filling them with slides full of technical diagrams and overly complicated jargon that even your own teams struggle to understand. Final Thoughts Creating a deck is not about the beauty of the slides, but about managing attention. You need to make sure that an investor, potential partner, or manager immediately understands: "Yes, this makes sense." If you can't explain your complex product simply and build a story around the solution (not the technical specs), then hand the deck over to a professional design agency. It’s going to save you time on both creation and explanation.
