How each of our seven deck templates handles this slide, side by side.
The winning fundraising deck template
Solution
Show the change to the customer's day. Save architecture for the appendix.
Formula
[Company] turns [old workflow] into [one concrete new action]. Before: [3 artifacts of the old way]. With [Company]: [3 outcomes the customer feels].
Strong example
Nimbus turns payroll into one button in Slack. Before: US EOR plus UK EOR plus Wise plus a spreadsheet, 11 days, 6 hours/month. With Nimbus: one vendor of record, paid in 2 hours, 20 min/month.
Must have
- Before / after on one page, same axis both sides
- Verbs describing what changes for the customer, not features
- One line that names the wedge product ('one button in Slack')
Avoid
- Architecture diagrams and infrastructure logos at seed
- Feature lists ('supports X, integrates with Y, offers Z')
- Screenshots with no annotation of what the reader is meant to see
The winning fundraising deck template
Product
Prove the thing exists. One shipped surface the customer touches, not a wall of screens.
Formula
The [product surface] a [customer role] uses to [do the core job]. Live since [month]. [N] customers using it today.
Strong example
The Slack app a Head of Ops uses to run monthly payroll for 40 countries in one click. Live since Nov 2024. 34 customers using it today.
Must have
- One annotated screenshot, product shot, or short loop
- Names of the two or three surfaces that ship today
- A line separating what's live from what's on the roadmap
Avoid
- A product wall with everything from onboarding to reporting
- Roadmap items shown as if they ship today
- Screens with no callout of the thing the reader should notice
The winning sales deck template
Product narrative
Show the change to their team's day in three screens tied to the pain they just named.
Formula
Screen 1: how [pain #1] disappears. Screen 2: how [pain #2] disappears. Screen 3: what the [buyer role] sees at month end.
Strong example
Screen 1: hire a Lagos contractor from Slack, one form, one signature. Screen 2: pay them in USDC, settled in 2 hours. Screen 3: Anna sees one line in Netsuite, category-coded, month-end done.
Must have
- Screens shown in the buyer's own workflow order (hire, pay, close)
- Every screen ends with a sentence starting 'so your team...'
- No settings pages, no admin walls, no 40-tab UI tours
Avoid
- A demo that starts at the login screen and works forward
- Feature call-outs the buyer never asked about
- Showing roadmap in the same demo as live product
The winning sales deck template
Implementation plan
De-risk the buy by showing exactly what week 1, week 4, and week 12 look like on their calendar.
Formula
Week 1: [migration + integrations]. Week 4: [first live paycheck run]. Week 12: [full countries live, first quarterly review].
Strong example
Wk 1: Netsuite + Rippling data sync, Nimbus CSM Ravi + Loop's Priya. Wk 4: first Lagos + Warsaw payroll live, 40 contractors. Wk 12: 22 countries live, first QBR with Anna and CFO on Nov 14.
Must have
- Named owners on both sides (Nimbus CSM + buyer champion)
- One integration or dependency called out per phase
- A go-live date the buyer can put in their calendar today
Avoid
- 'Onboarding takes 2-6 weeks' with no owner or artifact
- Hiding a required professional-services fee in the appendix
- Skipping the QBR / review checkpoint
The winning demo day deck template
Solution (one line + one image)
Say what you did about the problem, in one verb, with one image of the product.
Formula
[Company] turns [old workflow] into [one concrete new action].
Strong example
Nimbus turns payroll into one button in Slack.
Must have
- One verb (turns, replaces, collapses)
- One product surface visible in the image
- No feature list on the slide
Avoid
- 'A platform that...' or 'a solution that...'
- A crowded UI screenshot with no callout
- Reading the bullets that are already on the slide
The winning demo day deck template
Product (20-second loop or 3 frames)
Prove the product exists and looks nothing like the pain slide.
Formula
[Customer role] does [core job] in [# of clicks/seconds].
Strong example
Anna at Loop runs monthly payroll for 22 countries in 4 clicks and 2 hours.
Must have
- The video loops cleanly, no dead time at start
- One caption per frame naming the change
- Ends on the outcome, not the settings screen
Avoid
- A screen recording with the presenter's mouse hunting for a button
- Audio on the demo (the room is watching the presenter)
- A demo that requires the presenter to narrate the UI
The winning board deck template
Product roadmap
One page: what shipped this quarter, what ships next quarter, what got cut and why.
Formula
Shipped: [3 items, dated]. Next quarter: [3 items, dated]. Cut or pushed: [what + why].
Strong example
Shipped Q2: Slack app v2 (Apr 4, +14 activated), USDC rails (May 12, first $180K settled), audit exports (Jun 20, 3 accounts unblocked). Next: SAML SSO, ADP import, in-app compliance alerts. Cut: mobile app (v3 pushed to Q4, low pull).
Must have
- Every 'shipped' item has a date and a customer or metric behind it
- 'Cut / pushed' column is not empty
- One line tying next-quarter items to a KPI on slide 3
Avoid
- Roadmap as a wish list with no dates
- Not saying what was cut ('everything shipped on time')
- Presenting product without tying to KPIs the board cares about
The winning partnership deck template
Integration point (technical, one screen)
Show one specific technical touchpoint that makes this real, in one screen the partner's PM can read.
Formula
The integration lives at [specific surface]. Data flow: [our system] -> [their API] -> [their surface]. First shippable: [scoped v1].
Strong example
Integration: Nimbus onboarding embed inside Rippling's contractor tab. Data flow: Rippling contractor create webhook -> Nimbus creates payment profile -> deep link back to Rippling. V1: onboarding + monthly sync (no reporting), 6-week build.
Must have
- One specific integration surface (webhook, embed, deep link, OAuth)
- Data flow direction called out, not just 'bi-directional'
- A scoped v1, not the full roadmap
Avoid
- 'Deep bi-directional integration' with no surface named
- A 12-month integration roadmap for the first pitch
- Skipping the data flow direction
The winning partnership deck template
Technical readiness
Show that on your side, everything they need to plug into already exists.
Formula
APIs: [live / v?]. SDKs: [languages]. Webhooks: [live]. SOC 2: [Type II date]. Sandbox: [live]. Docs: [link]. Sub-processor list: [link].
Strong example
APIs: v2, live since Aug 2025. SDKs: TS, Python, Go. Webhooks: 14 event types. SOC 2 Type II: Jan 2026, KirkpatrickPrice. Sandbox: sandbox.nimbus.co, live. Docs: docs.nimbus.co. Sub-processors: 8, listed.
Must have
- SOC 2 Type II date and audit firm
- Live sandbox their PM can hit today
- Public API docs, linkable
Avoid
- SOC 2 'in progress' as a checkmark
- 'Docs coming soon' at pitch time
- Sandbox behind a sales call
The winning recruiting deck template
Scope of the job (first 90 days)
Show exactly what the first 90 days look like on their calendar.
Formula
Day 30: [context loaded, 1 shipped artifact]. Day 60: [first hire, first process]. Day 90: [first KPI moved].
Strong example
Day 30: shipped new comp plan, ran 40 customer calls, first AE JD live. Day 60: 2 AEs offer-out, weekly forecast cadence in place, ICP v2 shipped. Day 90: pipeline up 40%, first AE closed, ARR run-rate to $2.6M.
Must have
- A shippable artifact by Day 30 (comp plan, ICP doc, first hire started)
- A named process or team change by Day 60
- A metric moved by Day 90 (small but real)
Avoid
- 'Learn the business' as Day 30 (too vague)
- First KPI moved at Day 180+ (too late for a senior hire to feel traction)
- Skipping the artifact per phase