Reading :: The Pitch Deck Book

The Pitch Deck Book
By Tim Cooley

I saw this book on Amazon and it was inexpensive enough that I went ahead and grabbed the Kindle version. I'm glad I did, even though I don't think I will end up reading it over and over. 

Cooley nails the point of the pitch deck, which is not to sell, but to start a conversation. So what is the best way to start a conversation? Cooley goes over various lengths of arguments: an elevator pitch, a one-pager (sort of like a resume for your startup), a one-paragraph, a one-liner, and of course the standard pitch deck.

Most of the book focuses on the pitch deck, examining its anatomy and common mistakes that people make when putting them together. He contextualizes these within pre-pitch and post-pitch activities as well. At the end of the book, he shows us several slide decks with speaker notes -- and his own commentary on what does and doesn't work for each slide. 

The book sometimes tends to fragmentary advice rather than a strong overview. But since the book is also pretty short, this approach works well enough. It really feels as if an experienced pitcher is taking us through the dos and don'ts. 

If you're interested in developing a pitch for a startup, I'd definitely take a look at this book.