Don’t use builds, reveals or animations in your pitch deck

Your pitch deck is your pièce de résistance when you’re trying to convey a ton of information about your startup to a would-be investor in as few slides as you can. Sixteen, in fact, seems to be more or less the right number.

From time to time, I see founders trying to get a little bit too clever for their own good. I get it. In a world of ever-advancing technologies, it can be tempting to embed your pitch deck with all the latest bells and whistles. Build-ins, reveals, animations — many such elements have become more accessible thanks to advanced presentation software.

But are these elements always necessary, or even beneficial, when presenting to potential investors?

TL;DR: Just don’t.

Oh, you wanna know why? Fine . . .

Fancy but flawed

There’s no denying that animations can add a dash of glamor and pizazz to your story, especially if it’s a well-rehearsed pitch. Are you taking the stage at TechCrunch Disrupt for Battlefield? Or perhaps you’re delivering a keynote at CES? Go wild, if you must; let those slides shimmer and pop.