Pitching Without a Deck

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

Founders pitching investors almost always use a pitch deck.

It's a convenient way to organize the story.

Graphics, charts, and glyphs help tell the story in a short, concise fashion.

In some cases, the pitch deck is not available for the pitch.

For example, the founder receives an impromptu introduction in the coffee shop.

The investor expresses interest, so the founder presents the deal without a deck.

The key to pitching without a deck is to focus on the elements that the investor is most interested in.

Financial investors want to hear the numbers behind the deal.

Cost of the problem, size of the market, revenue and traction, and months to break even are the key numbers.

Strategic investors want to hear about the strategy behind the business.

The problem to be solved and the uniqueness of the solution the founder has will intrigue them.

Business model investors want to hear about multiple revenue streams.

This could come from recurring revenue, monetizing data, and applying AI.

Impact investors want to hear the positive impact of the business on the community.

This could be increasing graduation rates for students, removing plastic bottles from the waste stream, or lifting others out of poverty.

Consider the primary interest of the investor in pitching without a deck.

Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let's go startup something today.

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For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

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The Advantage of Being the Nice Guy Investor

Hello, this is Hall T. Martin with the Startup Funding Espresso -- your daily shot of startup funding and investing.

The investor holds sway over the startup founder since they hold the decision of who to fund.

Some investors take advantage of this and treat founders poorly just because they can.

It's better to be the nice guy investor.

Here's why:

The nice guy investor builds relationships rather than burns them.

The more positive relationships the investor has, the more founder referrals he will get.

The more positive the investor's brand, the more likely other investors will seek him out to syndicate deals.

The most successful investors are the ones with the best brand and access to the most deals.

As the world increasingly moves fundraising online, the investor's track record with startups becomes more widely known.

Through social media, the investor's actions will be made known to more people.

With each startup interaction, the investor is building their brand.

Make each interaction valuable to the founder.

Over time, the interactions will add up, and the investor will gain a reputation for being the nice guy.

Thank you for joining us for the Startup Funding Espresso where we help startups and investors connect for funding.

Let's go startup something today.

_______________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/
For eGuides check out: https://tencapital.group/education/
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.

In this episode of Investor Connect, we welcome back Angela Lee of 37 Angels and Columbia Business School to share an update on the angel investing landscape and strategies for investing in turbulent markets. Angela reviews today's venture market dynamics, including deal volume near peak levels, a "barbell" effect where mega-funds dominate capital raising and drive larger early rounds (often in AI), and a challenging exit environment with underperforming venture-backed IPOs and fewer distributions back to LPs—making it especially hard for emerging VC fund managers.

She also addresses questions on AI valuations, emphasizing the need to understand which layer of the AI stack a company plays in and cautioning investors who lack deep AI expertise. Angela then moves into practical investing tactics, highlighting the power-law nature of venture returns and the importance of diversification by making more investments rather than doubling down too early. She warns that angel follow-ons and bridge/extension rounds often correlate with weaker outcomes and encourages investors to evaluate bridges rigorously, including whether terms and valuation truly compensate for risk. She also advises pressuring test burn and runway assumptions, noting that founders often under-raise and that today's environment may require planning for 24–36 months of runway even as some AI-enabled teams run leaner. The conversation wraps with term-sheet and valuation considerations, including the importance of post-money SAFE caps, the increasing prevalence of "cap-only" SAFEs (and 37 Angels' refusal to invest in uncapped instruments), and how investors should think about valuation discipline given that many exits are acquisitions under $200M.

Angela answers audience questions on secondaries, noting the market is still a small slice overall, pricing has been volatile, and investors must understand what they're buying—often common stock with fewer protections—especially in hot names that can trade at a premium.

Visit 37 Angels at www.37angels.com/

Reach out to at www.linkedin.com/company/37-angels , and on x.com/37angelsny

________________________________________________________________________

For more episodes from Investor Connect, please visit the site at: http://investorconnect.org

Check out our other podcasts here: https://investorconnect.org/
For Investors check out: https://tencapital.group/investor-landing/
For Startups check out: https://tencapital.group/company-landing/
For eGuides check out: https:/_/tencapital.group/education/
For upcoming Events, check out https://tencapital.group/events/

For Feedback please contact info@tencapital.group

Please follow, share, and leave a review.

Music courtesy of Bensound.