How to Make the Ask Slide [Of your pitch deck]
- Ink Narrates | The Presentation Design Agency
- Feb 19, 2023
- 6 min read
Updated: Aug 3
Our client Piers asked us an interesting question while we were building his pitch deck ask slide.
He looked at the first draft and asked,
“How do I show ambition without looking unrealistic?”
Our Creative Director answered:
“By making your ask about the next chapter, not the entire book.”
As a presentation design agency, we work on many pitch deck ask slides throughout the year. And in the process, we’ve observed one common challenge: founders either underplay the ask or overshoot it completely.
So in this blog, we’ll talk about how to confidently craft your ask slide without looking greedy, vague, or unsure.
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.
Why the Ask Slide Matters in Your Pitch Deck
If the pitch deck is a story, the ask slide is the final page that tells us what happens next.
Most founders spend 90% of their time polishing the problem, market, and product sections — and treat the ask slide like an afterthought. That’s a mistake. Investors aren’t just evaluating what you’ve built. They’re evaluating what you want to build next and whether you’ve thought it through.
The pitch deck ask slide is where you do three things at once:
State how much money you’re raising
Explain what you’ll use it for
Frame why this is the right moment for them to come in
Simple? On paper, yes. But most people mess this up.
Some founders ask for too little because they’re afraid of seeming too bold. Others ask for too much with no clear plan. And some skip the slide altogether, assuming investors will figure it out on their own. They won’t. And they shouldn’t have to.
Think of it like dating. You don’t spend the whole evening talking about your childhood and hobbies, then vanish before saying what you’re looking for. Investors need clarity. They want to know the size of your ambition, the logic behind your numbers, and whether this deal feels timed right.
That’s why your ask slide matters. It’s not a courtesy. It’s the moment where you show maturity, vision, and intention.
How to Make the Pitch Deck Ask Slide
Let’s get to the part you came for: how to actually build the pitch deck ask slide. Not the vague fluff you find in startup Twitter threads, but the stuff that actually works — the kind that gets investors to lean in, not tune out.
We’re going to break it down into five very real parts:
Nail the number
Break it down
Anchor it to a milestone
Signal confidence, not desperation
Avoid what everyone else is doing wrong
Let’s walk through each.
1. Nail the number
This is the part where many founders freeze.
“How much should I ask for?”
You’d be surprised how many pitch decks we’ve redesigned where the ask slide either says something vague like “We’re looking to raise seed funding” or worse, “TBD.” That’s not just lazy. It signals you haven’t done the math. It tells investors you’re not clear on what you need to reach your next big milestone.
Let’s be clear: the number you ask for isn’t just about what you want — it’s what you need to reach a specific set of outcomes.
So how do you land on that number?
Start from the bottom up. What team do you need? What resources? What marketing, legal, operations, R&D costs are coming up? Add it all up. Then cushion it with 15-20% for contingency. That’s your raise amount.
Don’t make the number sound safe. Make it sound smart.
Safe sounds like, “We’re raising $500K to keep building our MVP.”
Smart sounds like, “We’re raising $750K to finish our product development, onboard key hires, and reach 10K users over 14 months.”
See the difference?
Investors respect specificity. They can’t trust your ask if they don’t know where it’s coming from. So show them you’ve done the thinking. Better yet, show them you’ve reverse-engineered the number from the outcomes.
2. Break it down
Once you’ve got the number, your job isn’t done. Investors want to know how the money will be used — not in vague categories, but in real, thoughtful allocations.
“We’ll use the funds for growth” doesn’t mean anything. “We’ll allocate 45% to marketing, 35% to team expansion, and 20% to platform upgrades” does.
Here’s an approach we recommend using on the slide:
Total raise: $1.2M
Use of funds:
Product development: 35%
Marketing & customer acquisition: 40%
Key hires: 20%
Legal and operations: 5%
You don’t need to turn this into a budget spreadsheet. Keep it high-level, but clear. Visuals help. We often use icon-based breakdowns or a simple bar graph, depending on the deck’s style. But don’t get too clever — clarity wins every time.
Breaking down the use of funds also signals maturity. It shows you’re not just asking for money — you’re asking with a plan.
3. Anchor it to a milestone
This is where your ask gets its meaning.
Investors don’t invest in your current stage. They invest in the next stage — the one your raise is supposed to unlock. So tell them what that looks like.
What will this round help you achieve? Is it product launch? Market expansion? Revenue targets? New hires?
Your slide should make that cause-effect relationship unmistakable:
“This $1M raise will help us:
Launch our beta in 3 months
Grow to 50,000 users by Q3 next year
Reach $1M ARR in 18 months”
That’s a lot more compelling than simply saying “We need money to grow.”
We’ve seen decks where this one slide made all the difference. Why? Because investors saw that the raise wasn’t random. It was designed to lead to a clear, measurable outcome. That builds trust. It also gives them confidence that you know what traction looks like — and that you’re focused on the right levers to get there.
Another tip: make sure your milestones are believable. Don’t promise to go from zero to unicorn in one year. Ambition is respected. Delusion isn’t.
4. Signal confidence, not desperation
You’d be surprised how many ask slides feel like a last-minute plea for help.
Language like:
“We’re hoping to raise...”
“We’d love any help...”
“We’re open to discussing...”
That kind of language doesn’t build confidence. It raises red flags. Investors want to back someone who knows where they’re headed and what it’ll take to get there.
Use declarative language instead:
“We are raising $1.5M to execute our GTM strategy and expand into three new markets over 12 months.”
“This raise will cover product completion, core hires, and key partnerships to position us for a Series A next year.”
There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance. Stay on the confident side. Be grounded, but firm. You’re not begging for money — you’re offering an opportunity.
One of our clients asked us, “But won’t it sound too aggressive if I’m direct?”
Not if you’ve done the math, framed the logic, and tied it to real outcomes. Being clear is not aggressive. It’s respectful. It tells investors, “I value your time, and I’ve thought this through.”
5. Avoid what everyone else is doing wrong
We’ve reviewed hundreds of decks. The mistakes repeat themselves. If you can avoid these, you’re already ahead of the curve.
Mistake 1: No ask slide at all
Yes, some people still skip it. They think the deck should just “spark a conversation” and that the ask will come up naturally. Don’t count on it. Show the number. Show the plan. Be upfront.
Mistake 2: Being too vague
“We’re raising for growth” is as useful as saying “We want to do stuff.” You’re not a teenager asking for pocket money. You’re a founder pitching a plan.
Mistake 3: Overloading the slide with jargon
We once saw an ask slide with phrases like “dilutive-friendly,” “equity-agnostic,” and “strategic vertical cash runways.” Nobody knew what it meant. Keep it human. Clarity beats cleverness.
Mistake 4: Making it a slide about valuation instead of outcomes
The ask slide is not your Shark Tank moment. You don’t need to explain how you arrived at your valuation here. That comes later. Focus the slide on what the money will do, not what your startup is worth.
Mistake 5: Designing it like a footnote
If your ask slide looks like an afterthought, it will feel like an afterthought. Use clean, visual formatting. Give it space. Let it breathe. We often use a bold headline, an infographic or two, and just enough text to frame the logic. No clutter.
You’re not just asking for money. You’re asking someone to believe in your vision enough to back it with their time, reputation, and capital. That belief doesn’t come from how much you ask for — it comes from how you ask.
Get the number right. Show them the plan. Tie it to a milestone. Deliver it with confidence.
That’s what turns an ask slide from a box-checking formality into a powerful final note — one that leaves the room thinking, I want in on this.
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