Company Purpose
This article is Part 1 in a 4-Part series about business plans.
- Part 1 - This Article
- Part 2 - Market Size
- Part 3 - The Problem You Solve
- Part 4 - Product Timing
The company purpose slide is arguably the most important slide in the entire deck. This should be a single sentence that outlines the larger goal of the company. Founders often struggle with this slide. Either they don’t want to share their larger vision or they are thinking in terms of product.
Purpose
The entire purpose of this slide is to communicate to the potential investor that you:
- Have a big vision
- A product that addresses a large market (greater than $1 Billion)
- The product and vision fits into the venture capitalist’s portfolio.
If this slide and the concept you are conveying is lost on the investor, you might as well abandon the rest of your deck.
Big Visions
Initially, founders don’t have very big visions. Although you may disagree with this statement, it is hard to change the world. How many times have you stumbled upon a “world changing idea?” Visions are curated and crafted over a period of time.
Founders start with smaller visions. These visions can be considered features ,rather than a full fledged product or offering. Take a step back and really think about how this product can change the world.
Why is it what you are doing is life changing?
Your Idea Isn’t New
This is one of the hardest things to understand as a founder. The idea you are pitching has a 99% chance that it has already been pitched. The investor you are talking to has heard almost the same pitch you are giving from 20 other people.
This is okay.
If the investor hasn’t invested in the idea before, it doesn’t mean they won’t now. Sometimes an investor needs to have a certain amount of social proof or some back time before they decide it is a worthwhile market or product.
Portofolio Fit
It is up to you to do the research to understand whether your company and purpose fits into the VCs portfolio offering.
Qualifying venture capitalists is another post, but at the very minimum make sure the vc you are pitching invests in companies similar to yours. This doesn’t mean they have invested in a competitor.
Doing this research will also help you formulate your pitch. Presenting is all about knowing your audience. Knowing the vc has a basic understanding of your market gives you similar footing in order to communicate.
Challenge
This slide seems like it should be the simplest to create. You know exactly what you are attempting to do. What makes the “single sentence slide” challenging is that it needs to be simple and life changing at the same time.
It is not easy. To help come up with your declarative sentence, do the following. Ask people who don’t know your market or product to give you feedback on the sentence.
Do they understand it? What questions do they ask? What is their first question? Revise the sentence and try it on the next person.