Slide 07 · 9 template examples · 2 teardowns

How to make a great traction slide

One honest curve of a metric that matters.

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Formula and examples

How each of our seven deck templates handles this slide, side by side.

The winning fundraising deck template

Traction

required

One honest curve of the metric that matters. Label the axis. Pre-empt the two follow-up questions.

Formula

[Metric that matters, in dollars] · [current level] · [# customers] · [MoM growth] · [retention / NRR].

Strong example

ARR: $196K · 34 customers · 22% net new MoM · 118% NRR at 6mo cohort. 8 months since launch.

Must have

One chart, one metric, dollars on the y-axis
MoM growth and retention in a line under the chart
A single sentence you could defend cold, per month shown

Avoid

Signup, waitlist, or vanity charts as the hero metric
Two axes on one chart to hide the smaller number
Cohort or retention claims you cannot walk through by month

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The winning sales deck template

Customer proof

required

Show one customer that looks like this buyer, with a number and a quote you can call to verify.

Formula

[Customer, size, stage]. Before: [pain in their words]. After [N months]: [outcome number]. Reference: [name, title, willing to take a call].

Strong example

Helio, Series B, 210 engineers in 19 countries. Before: 9-day paycheck cycle, $380K/yr in fees. After 5 months: 2-hour cycle, $52K/yr in fees. Reference: Priya Rao, Head of Ops, priya@helio.co.

Must have

One customer that maps to the buyer's stage and size, not five random logos
A before/after number the buyer can benchmark against
A named reference the buyer can actually call

Avoid

A logo wall with no numbers
Case-study links behind a form the buyer will not fill
Anonymous quotes ('A Fortune 500 CFO said...')

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The winning demo day deck template

Traction

required

One curve, one dollar metric, one growth rate the room will remember.

Formula

[Metric in dollars]: [current level]. [# customers]. [MoM growth]. [Since when].

Strong example

ARR $196K. 34 customers. 22% MoM. 8 months since launch.

Must have

Dollars on the y-axis, months on the x-axis
MoM growth as a percentage, said out loud
The month you launched, so the room can size the curve

Avoid

Signups, waitlist, or 'active users' as the hero metric
A hockey-stick chart with no y-axis label
'We can't share that publicly' from the stage

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The winning board deck template

KPI dashboard

required

The same 8-12 metrics, quarter over quarter, actual vs. plan, colored.

Formula

[Metric] | [Q-1 actual] | [Q plan] | [Q actual] | [vs. plan color].

Strong example

ARR | $1.78M | $2.20M | $2.10M | yellow. Logos net-new | 26 | 22 | 14 | red (SDR ramp slipped 6 weeks, hired 3 SDRs Apr 1). NRR | 118% | 115% | 121% | green.

Must have

The same rows every quarter (no reshuffling, no metric changes without a footnote)
Actual vs. plan colored (green/yellow/red), not just numbers
A one-line note under any red row (why + what we're doing)

Avoid

Changing which metrics you report each quarter
'Growth rate' with no denominator
Red rows with no explanation underneath

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The winning board deck template

Sales pipeline

optional

Named logos in stage-gated columns, with dated commit for the current quarter.

Formula

Commit for [Q]: [$X] across [N] logos. Best case: [$Y]. Named risks: [3 deals + reason].

Strong example

Q3 commit $840K across 6 logos (Loop, Helio, Cascade, Northwind, Vault, Beacon). Best case $1.4M. Risks: Loop (CFO change, Jun 12), Vault (procurement stall since May 30), Cascade (competing with Deel).

Must have

Named logos, dated (last-touch or next-milestone date)
Commit vs. best-case, not a single 'pipeline' number
3 named deals at risk and why

Avoid

A single 'pipeline' number with no logos
Renaming a deal to a different stage instead of losing it
Skipping this slide two quarters in a row (the board notices)

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The winning investor update template

Key metrics (5-8 rows)

required

The same 5-8 metrics every month, this month vs. last, so investors can see the trend at a glance.

Formula

[Metric] | [last month] | [this month] | [delta %].

Strong example

ARR $160K / $196K / +22%. Logos 27 / 34 / +7. NRR 116% / 118% / +2pp. MRR/customer $487 / $493 / +1%. Gross margin 70% / 72% / +2pp. Cash $2.1M. Runway 14 mo.

Must have

The same rows every month (no reshuffling)
Delta as a % or basis points, not just the raw number
Cash on hand + runway, always the last two rows

Avoid

Different metrics every month (investors compare month over month)
'Growth' with no denominator
Skipping runway ('we'll cover it next month')

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The winning investor update template

Progress vs. goals

required

Score the goals you set last month (or last quarter), green/yellow/red, one line each.

Formula

[Goal set on {date}]: [status color] · [what happened, one line].

Strong example

Set Feb 1: land 5 new logos in March: GREEN, closed 7. Set Feb 1: hit 20% MoM: GREEN, 22%. Set Feb 1: ship USDC rails: YELLOW, shipped in beta with 3 customers, GA slipped to April.

Must have

The exact wording of the goal from last update (copy-paste)
One color per goal (green, yellow, red)
A one-line 'what happened', not just a color

Avoid

Rewording last month's goals to make them look green
'On track' with no color and no update
Setting new goals without scoring the old ones

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The winning investor update template

Wins (3, specific)

required

Three specific, defensible wins from the month, with numbers where possible.

Formula

[Category: customer / product / team]: [what happened, with the specific number or name].

Strong example

Customer: Loop (Series B fintech, 240 eng) signed, first international payroll live in 8 days. Product: USDC rails shipped to 3 pilot customers, avg settlement 2h 14m. Team: Ravi Menon (ex-Wise Africa) joined as CTO.

Must have