What is an Elevator Pitch Deck [How to Make One]
- Ink Narrates | The Presentation Design Agency
- 4 days ago
- 9 min read
“A very real problem,” Ed told us halfway through our first working session. “I barely have time to pitch. The first pitch is just meant to generate interest. But people still expect a presentation.”
That tension is exactly why Ed hired us to build his elevator pitch deck.
After working on dozens of elevator pitch decks, we have seen the same issue again and again: people understand the idea of an elevator pitch but freeze when it is expected to live inside a presentation.
So, in this blog, we will break down what an elevator pitch deck really is and how you can build one that sparks interest instead of confusion.
In case you didn't know, we specialize in only one thing: making presentations. We can help you by designing your slides and writing your content too.
What is an Elevator Pitch Deck
An elevator pitch deck is a short presentation that turns your elevator pitch into a clear, visual narrative. Its only job is to generate interest and earn the next conversation, not to explain everything or close the deal.
What it's not...
It is not a full investor or sales deck
If you are explaining features, pricing tiers, roadmaps, or case studies in detail, you have already gone too far. That comes later, if you earn it.
It is not a document disguised as slides
Paragraphs, dense charts, and walls of text kill momentum. If it cannot be understood at a glance, it does not belong here.
It is not meant to answer every question
A good elevator pitch deck creates questions on purpose. If people leave with nothing to ask, you probably overshared.
We have also written a separate article detailing how this differs from an investor pitch deck, which you can read here: Pitch Deck Vs Elevator Pitch
How to Build an Elevator Pitch Presentation for Investors and Sales
Most people approach an elevator pitch presentation the wrong way. They start with slides. Or worse, they start with templates. They assume the goal is to compress a full pitch into fewer slides and talk faster.
That instinct is exactly what ruins it.
An elevator pitch presentation for investors or sales is not about compression. It is about selection. You are deciding what deserves attention now and what can wait. If everything feels important, nothing is.
Before we get tactical, you need to lock in the mindset. This presentation is not designed to convince. It is designed to intrigue. You are not proving your case. You are earning permission to go deeper.
Once you internalize that, building the deck becomes much simpler.
Start With the One Thing You Want Them to Remember
If someone walks away remembering only one sentence, what should it be?
Not your product name.
Not your feature list.
Not your valuation.
A belief.
A strong elevator pitch presentation is built around a single, sharp idea that reframes how the audience sees a problem. Everything else supports that.
For example, instead of saying: "We built a faster CRM for small businesses.”
You might be saying: "Most small businesses do not need more software. They need fewer decisions.”
That second idea creates tension. It invites curiosity. It gives context to whatever comes next.
Before you open a slide tool, write this sentence down. If a slide does not serve this idea, it does not belong in the deck.
Structure the Deck Like a Conversation, Not a Story
Stories are great. Conversations are better.
A conversation anticipates resistance. It answers unspoken questions. It moves in short, deliberate steps.
A simple structure that works for most elevator pitch presentations looks like this:
The problem as the audience currently understands it
Why that understanding is incomplete or flawed
A clearer way to look at the problem
How your solution fits into that new frame
What should happen next
This structure works for investors and sales because it respects time and intelligence. You are not teaching from scratch. You are updating their mental model.
Each slide should feel like a natural next sentence in a discussion, not a dramatic reveal.
Slide One: Name the Real Problem, Not the Obvious One
Most decks fail on the first slide because they state something everyone already agrees with.
“Hiring is hard.”
“Sales is broken.”
“Healthcare is inefficient.”
Those statements do not earn attention. They waste it.
Instead, you want to name the tension inside the problem. The part people feel but rarely articulate.
For example:
“Hiring tools optimize for resumes, not for decisions.”
“Sales teams are drowning in data but starving for clarity.”
This shows you understand the problem beneath the problem. Investors lean in. Buyers nod quietly. That is what you want.
Keep this slide visually restrained. One strong statement. Minimal text. Let the idea breathe.
Slide Two: Show Why This Problem Actually Matters
Once you name the real problem, you need to show the cost of ignoring it.
This is not where you dump statistics. One well chosen data point or a short scenario is enough.
For investors, this might look like:
A missed market opportunity
A systemic inefficiency that compounds over time
For sales, it might be:
Lost revenue
Burned out teams
Slower decision cycles
The key is relevance. Tie the problem directly to something the audience already cares about.
Time. Money. Risk. Growth.
If they feel the cost, they will want the solution.
Slide Three: Introduce Your Perspective, Not Your Product
This is where many people rush ahead. Do not.
Before you talk about what you built, talk about how you think.
This slide should introduce the principle behind your solution. The belief that guided your decisions.
For example:
"We believe most teams do not need more features. They need better defaults.”
“We believe speed matters less than direction in early-stage growth.”
This reframes the conversation. You are no longer pitching a thing. You are sharing a point of view. That is far more compelling in a short presentation.
When investors see this, they assess your judgment. When buyers see it, they assess alignment.
Slide Four: Show How the Solution Fits the Perspective
Now you can talk about what you actually do.
Notice the shift.
You are not saying, “Here is our product.”
You are saying, “Here is how our product expresses this belief.”
Keep it high level. One core mechanism. One differentiator. No feature lists.
For example:
One workflow instead of five
One metric instead of a dashboard
One decision instead of a process
If you cannot explain your solution in under thirty seconds at this stage, it is too complex for an elevator pitch presentation.
Slide Five: Make It Real With a Simple Example
Abstract ideas stick better when grounded.
This is where a short use case, before-and-after scenario, or simple walkthrough helps.
Do not over-design this slide. Clarity beats polish.
For example: "Before using this, teams spent three weeks debating priorities. After, they make the call in three days.”
One example is enough. You are not proving scale here. You are proving sense.
Slide Six: Establish Credibility Without Bragging
Credibility matters, but subtlety matters more.
This is not the place for a wall of logos or long bios. Pick one signal that reduces doubt.
That might be:
A recognizable customer
A relevant background
A meaningful early result
The question this slide answers is simple: “Why should I take this seriously?”
Answer it quickly and move on.
Slide Seven: Open the Loop
The final slide of an elevator pitch presentation should not feel like an ending. It should feel like a pause.
Your job is to make the next step obvious and low-friction.
For investors, this might be:
A deeper product walkthrough
A follow-up meeting with the team
For sales, it might be:
A pilot
A tailored demo
A diagnostic call
State it clearly. Do not oversell it. Confidence beats urgency here.
Design Rules That Keep You Out of Trouble
Good structure can still fail if the design fights it. Keep these rules in mind:
One idea per slide
Fewer words than you are comfortable with
Visuals that clarify, not decorate
Consistent typography and spacing
If a slide needs you to explain what it means, it is doing too much.
How Long Should This Be
Most strong elevator pitch presentations land between six and ten slides.
Time-wise, you should be able to walk through it in five minutes without rushing.
If it takes longer, you are not prioritizing hard enough.
How Investors and Sales Audiences Differ Slightly
The core structure stays the same, but emphasis shifts.
Investors care more about:
Market dynamics
Leverage
Long-term implications
Sales audiences care more about:
Immediate relevance
Ease of adoption
Risk reduction
This does not mean you create two completely different decks. It means you adjust examples, language, and emphasis.
The spine stays intact.
A Final Gut Check Before You Share It
Before sending or presenting your elevator pitch deck, ask yourself:
Does this create curiosity or does it try to explain too much
Can someone retell the core idea after seeing it once
Does every slide earn its place
If the answer is yes, you are in a good place.
If not, cut more. Clarity almost always comes from removal.
An elevator pitch presentation works when it respects the audience’s time and intelligence. Do that, and the next conversation becomes much easier to earn.
Selecting What to Include in an Elevator Pitch Deck
An effective elevator pitch deck is defined more by what you leave out than what you include. With limited time and attention, every slide has to justify its existence. The goal is not to say everything.
The goal is to say the right things in the right order, so the audience wants to hear more.
Include only what supports your core idea
Every slide should reinforce the single belief or perspective you want the audience to remember. If a point is interesting but not essential to that idea, save it for the next meeting.
Prioritize clarity over completeness
You are not building a reference document. You are guiding attention. Clear, focused ideas will always outperform thorough explanations in a short presentation.
Leave room for questions on purpose
A strong elevator pitch deck creates gaps that invite conversation. When people ask questions, it means you have earned their curiosity, not lost their trust.
Delivering an Elevator Pitch Presentation That Holds Attention
A strong elevator pitch deck can still fail if the delivery works against it. How you present matters as much as what you present. The goal is not to perform. It is to guide attention, stay grounded, and make the conversation feel easy to follow.
Let the slides do some of the work
When a new slide appears, pause for two seconds before speaking. Let the audience read it.
For example, if the slide has one strong line, say nothing at first. Then add a single sentence that deepens it instead of repeating it.
Control the pace instead of rushing
Aim for one idea per minute, not one slide per minute. If you feel yourself speeding up, slow your voice slightly and shorten what you say. A calm delivery makes even a five-minute pitch feel unhurried.
Talk to people, not at them
Use simple check-in questions like, “Does this match what you are seeing?” or “Have you run into this before?”
This turns passive listeners into participants without derailing the flow.
Stop before you feel finished
End with a statement that naturally invites a response, such as, “That is the core idea. Happy to go deeper where it is most useful.”
Then stop talking. Let them choose the next direction.
How to Know If Your Elevator Pitch Deck Was Successful
The success of an elevator pitch deck has nothing to do with applause, compliments, or polite nods. Those signals are comforting, but they are meaningless. Interest is not proven by reactions in the room. It is proven by what happens next.
The only real measure of success is whether the presentation creates forward motion. If the audience asks for another meeting, a deeper walkthrough, a follow-up call, or additional material, the deck has done its job. If nothing moves forward, it did not. An elevator pitch deck exists to generate interest strong enough to earn the next step. Everything else is noise.
Why Hire Us to Build your Presentation?
If you're reading this, you're probably working on a presentation right now. You could do it all yourself. But the reality is - that’s not going to give you the high-impact presentation you need. It’s a lot of guesswork, a lot of trial and error. And at the end of the day, you’ll be left with a presentation that’s “good enough,” not one that gets results. On the other hand, we’ve spent years crafting thousands of presentations, mastering both storytelling and design. Let us handle this for you, so you can focus on what you do best.
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Just click on the "Start a Project" button on our website, calculate the price, make payment, and we'll take it from there.