Demo day is 3-5 minutes, one attempt, no back-and-forth. Every objection here has to be answered on the deck itself because there's no meeting to answer it in.
The clarity bar is brutal at demo day. If the second row of the audience doesn't know what you do 15 seconds in, you've lost them for the rest.
Not applicable : you don't get to answer this in the room. Fix on deck.
Cover slide is one declarative sentence: verb, user, outcome. 'Nimbus Payroll runs global payroll in 60 seconds for remote-first startups.' If you can't finish it in one breath, cut words.
In a 3-minute pitch, the audience remembers one traction number, one team fact, and the ask. If any of those isn't in the top-third of a slide in 48pt type, it doesn't stick.
Not applicable : fix on deck.
One giant number on the traction slide. Growth rate first, absolute number second, cohort retention third. 48pt or bigger.
A market chart with no dated source signals filler. Judges scan for the source in the corner of the chart.
Not applicable : fix on deck.
Cite the market source with a year in small type under the chart. If you don't have a real source, replace the chart with a one-line bottom-up build ('12,000 US restaurants x $400/mo = $57M SOM').
About a third of demo-day decks forget or fumble the ask. Investors won't reach out if they don't know the round size.
Not applicable : fix on deck.
Final slide: round size, milestone the round buys, contact email in 24pt. No logos of other funds, no 'we're speaking to top-tier investors' filler.
Every deck this season claims AI as the catalyst. If your Why Now doesn't cite a specific dated shift, it blends in.
Not applicable : fix on deck.
Replace 'AI' with a specific dated shift: 'GPT-4-class inference dropped below $0.003/1K tokens in April 2024, making per-employee AI cost-viable for the first time.'
Judges are looking for the unfair advantage in 4 seconds. Photos and links don't provide it.
Not applicable : fix on deck.
One line per founder tying background to this specific company: 'CTO built the exact system we're replacing for 4 years at the acquirer's biggest customer.' Photos are decorative.