One-on-one call to help you fix your fund’s pitch deck
I'll tell you how to fix your LP deck
I’m actually honest
We discuss your fund and pitch deck for an hour.
I provide you clarity and actionable advice to improve.
Will LPs see value of making a commitment?
It’s impossible to find quality feedback. You’re in the right place!
Stuck on the rollercoaster that is raising a fund?
One day, it seems like you have a cornerstone LP, the next- you’re crashing in the storm of uncertainty as leads dry up.
“Did I say something wrong? Why did the LP just ‘ghost’ on me? How often to follow up without seeming desperate?“
Or maybe it’s one of those draining days when nothing seems to align. Inconsistent investor leads, sales are down, and you feel trapped in a cycle of stagnation.
More than anything, you want clarity, advice you can trust, from someone who has been there before… a lifeline to pull you out!
The answers you need is one call away with a piitch deck fund review.
It doesn’t matter if you have a great fund, if you can’t explain it, you simply won’t get funded.
How do you know if your deck is good enough without wasting meeting learnings with LPs?
There’s a lot of basic stuff for startups, but when it comes to raising a fund, there’s almost no content to learn from.
Futhermore, there are very few examples to learn from (See a collection: VC decks).
A few funds ‘might’ help you, but not everyone has contacts.
Are these folk going to allocate time to helping with a pitch deck?
You don’t know a real expert, and “Jim’s” feedback is lame.
After the Googling and weeks of messing about making slides and moving them about, you have a fund to raise!
For emerging managers, the cost to setup is brutal so you can't afford to waste more time.
Topics such as investment thesis, fund reserves etc are not simple topics with clear answers and you need to talk them through with someone.
With a fund deck review, I help more with the 'thinking' than in telling you to use a prettier image.
Don’t make your first impression negative with investors
Your pitch deck is the output of your thinking.
Fixing your deck is less about ‘pretty’ and more about complex ideas
Know what it takes to raise in the current environment
Present a more structured deductive method reasoning for how you’ll make money
Comprehend not only what slides matter, but what LPs look for
Get structures to present the right level of information
See structured tables of how to present your investments
Informed as to what you actually need to present on the slide
Radically improve your chances of getting meetings with investors within one call
Is your pitch deck going to help or harm you with LPs?
Are you telling an investible story to investors?
Is your content structured in a way that is easy to comprehend rapidly?
Are you presenting the right content that LPs care about at?
How do your fix things now you understand what’s wrong and missing?
Ensure you know your next steps and follow-ups.
We get on a call, go through your deck, and you get told exactly what’s wrong and how to fix it.
Some decks need a bit of love, most are shocking and need to be redone. I'll help you understand your situation
I'll teach you how investors think and they why behind what you are doing so you 'get it'
We will go through the slides worth keeping and explain why the ones you did won't cut it
I'll teach you how to redo your narrative and slide structure, and what steps you can take to get the most value in our time
It’s easy to get the expert help you need now.
My system is integrated so there is no messing about. Pay, pick a time, prepare questions and turn up ready to improve
Pay in the system (via Stripe so it's secure).
System is integrated with my calendar so you pick a time and it will happen
You don't need to prepare, but it's best to list your questions as it helps you gain clarity
I look at your deck on the call so you can listen to me think out-loud as an investor would
Having been asked so many questions over the years, here are answers to the questions that you might have!
We get on a zoom call and we run through your deck slide by slide. I will give you unfiltered feedback on it and whether you will have a shot with investors.
It's quite likely you have done the basics wrong, or there is an issue with your business model. We can get into that if you want.
There is very little we can't talk about. If I don't know I will tell you and lie to save face. It's also a great way to figure out if you want more hands on help.
You leave the call with a clear action plan to improve your deck.
Any fund that genuinely wants to improve. Ideally:
I offer these calls because I genuinely want to help and level the playing field for those that don't have access to insiders. I am willing to work with anyone that genuinely wants to improve. Life is short so I will refund snowflakes.
On the knowledge level, there is no one that won't benefit from a call. In fact, I find that more experienced people can benefit the most because: 1/ they have the foundation to engage at a higher level, and 2/ I can get into details that you they will never be able to Google.
The only people I don't recommend a call for are those that are really cash strapped and haven't spent much time reading. I can provide you with a reading list to level up for free first so when we talk you get real value add. I've been a poor founder so I don't want to take your money.
I work with all kinds of funds, whether they are VCs, alternative investments, property etc.
Most of my clients are in their 30-50s and have actually raised before (but as founders).
Clients are mainly in the US and Canada, but it doesn’t matter where you are based.
I can help from fund one to three, but I wouldn’t want to push my luck after that!
First time funds (emerging managers) will get a lot of learnings on the basics.
Repeat funds will get feedback, challenges and perspectives.
The foundation of a deck is the same for everyone. Established entities may have existing relationships with investors, so if you are doing an 'inside round' from existing LPs, one might do things differently. I have to understand your individual situation to advise.
Knowing how to curate a deck for all your variables requires having a lot of experience and knowledge. When you hire me you aren't getting cookie cutter feedback from a Medium blog. What I recommend is a facet of learnings for your situation.
I have worked with thousands of founders of startups across stages, sectors, and geographies, and I’m more than happy to help your portco too.
Whether you are paying or they are is the same to me.
Yes. I mainly help emerging managers and don't have the ego to pretend I know more than a fund IV VC.
VC is a tiny industry, so there are way less funds than startups. I've advised a dozen funds over the years. The thing though is if you think enough you figure out the fundamentals which apply to every fund. Startup is a lot more nuanced since they do the hard work and you just throw cash at them. VCs need to do high-level thinking (investment thesis) and that applies to all funds.
In my experience, every deck can be improved. I've seen a couple of pretty good decks in my time, but 99.9% of decks are fundamentally flawed.
No matter how good your deck is, it can be improved. I'm very good, but I cringe when I think about decks I made even 2 years ago
I do not care who you are, nor how many times you have raised, everyone needs help with their pitch deck. Heck, I need help with this website about pitch decks!
The reality is that pitch decks are all about communication and we all suffer from biases. Fundraising is a highly specialised skill which few will do more than once if they are unfortunate or lucky to need to (depending how one thinks about it!).
I am only an 'expert' on fundraising because I spend more time on it that you have. But knowing technical aspects of fundraising is only part of it:
In my experience, totally not! There are very few people who know how to actually write a fund deck and that includes investors.
The only reason I know more than you do is I blew a lot of time learning for a number of years. It is something you can get better at, but then that's not your job!
It very well might be the case that you do a feedback call and learn that your deck is beyond help and needs to be redone from the ground up. In that case, you have two options:
1/ You can apply the feedback yourself and improve
2/ You can book a custom deck with me and I'll run you through my structured process and get your deck done (finally)
You can get as much out of the call as you like as it is your call and time.
If you have a list of questions you want to run through, we can do that. On the other hand you can just show me your deck and I'll take control of the wheel and prioritise what I believe will be the most value add for you.
This is an educational call and a 'safe place' so you can genuinely ask any question that you have.
You only need to have your deck to hand to do a call.
The best situation is to pull together a list of big questions you have to make sure I cover what you has been stressing you. What you say are issues are normally just the start. I'll likely find bigger ones fast you aren't aware of.
Don’t worry about having to do this though. I know what I’m doing and I will tell you what you need to know depending on your situation.
No. If you book an hour of my time, you get an hour.
I like to look at your deck for the first time on a call so you (over screen share) can see how an investor will flick through your deck and give you my live feedback.
Once you are aware that your pitch deck is bad and you are blowing time trying to fix it, now is absolutely the best time to book a call with me.
In an hour I can diagnose the problems and give you concrete steps to dramatically improve your deck.
I charge per hour. If you want more time, you just book another session. This makes things super flexible to your specific circumstances
If you need help to get your deck redone from scratch then we can do that too.
Of course you can!
I can teach you a lot on everything related to pitch decks (and fundraising).
It's actually beneficial to book a call then to go away and 'noodle' on my learnings, or just apply it!
Then come back and learn more once you have foundations to build knowledge on.
One to two hour calls are the ideal amounts of time to do calls with me because they are intense.
You not only can, but I encourage you to book a call and then only book additional calls when you need to. I actually care that you have a limited budget.
Absolutely. You can bring anyone on your team, advisors, whomever.
The only thing I would say is that you should only bring people on calls with me that can have access to all knowledge about your fund. I need you to answer all my questions fully and without worrying a 'junior' will hear about skeletons in your closet. I don't give generic advice (unless needed) so I can only give you good advice if I understand all the dirty details.
I do calls Monday to Friday from midday to midnight GMT. I would prefer not to do calls on Friday night so I can have fun!
There is a constraint that you must book 24 hours in advance because I don't want to miss your call in 15 minutes time because I didn't know it was in my calendar.
If you are super stressed and need help ASAP, then message me online and if I am free I will jump on a call with you if I am available.
Finally, I can do calls on the weekend if things are really urgent (and I like you). You need to message me to arrange this.
I do calls Monday to Friday from midday to midnight GMT. I would prefer not to do calls on Friday night so I can have fun!
There is a constraint that you must book 24 hours in advance because I don't want to miss your call in 15 minutes time because I didn't know it was in my calendar.
If you are super stressed and need help ASAP, then message me online and if I am free I will jump on a call with you if I am available.
Finally, I can do calls on the weekend if things are really urgent (and I like you). You need to message me to arrange this.
You can reschedule the call up to 24 hours in advance. I’m not dealing with people who cancel 10 minutes before the call.
It costs me money when you book a call. If you plan on cancelling, simply don’t book a call with me! I’m not interested in spending time refunding you etc.
I’m currently based in Lisbon, Portugal (Same as London time).
99% of my clients are in America and Canada though so I organise my availability for North America.
I am aware that this is a bit crappy for people in Australia, but break out a schooner and strap in because I'm hilarious so it's worth staying up for.
Yes. I automatically record every call on Zoom (Unless you ask me not to). You also get a transcript.
I will send you the call recording after the meeting through wetransfer.
I will never share this recording with anyone else and I delete your call after
Short version, they're a total waste of time, so just choose who to trust.
My first job was in M&A where 'snitches get stitches', so I was brought up professionally keeping things secret.
NDAs are BS as no one ever gets sued on them (Never ask an investor for one).
I've written a long blog on this topic. Read: Non disclosure agreements (NDA) for startup fundraising don’t matter
Trust me, nothing you have to say is ever actually confidential.
I've advised literally thousands of founders and I wouldn't have a business if I didn't know how to keep my mouth shut.
Yes, I wouldn't have a business if founders didn't trust me.
The honest answer is that I just don't think about you after a call, so it doesn't cross my mind to share something you say to me. I take founders trusting me seriously.
Dramatically incrase the speed and efficacy of your fundraising with fundable material and consulting.
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If you have any questions prior to booking a service, you can email me.
