Learn how to build ridiculously compelling sales decks based on super tactical examples from industry leaders, so you can put it into practice immediately and start winning deals!

1. THE DECK ON SALES DECKS
Tactics and Templates to build better sales collateral
HOW-TO GUIDE
Updated February 2018 | Author: Alli McKee

2. Why “We Just do Demos” is not enough anymore
B2B Sales is becoming increasingly complex, with an
average of 6.8 buyers per deal (up from 5.4 two years
ago). You need a Sales Deck to carry your message from
the buyer you met with to the buyer you didn’t.
The more people involved, the lower the likelihood of
closing. Without materials to spread the message for you,
you’ve just made your customer into a sales rep...with
zero training or support. That’s a game of telephone.
Source: HBR The New B2B Sales Imperative; Making the Consensus Sale

3. How most of us get Sales Decks wrong today
“When you’re building your next sales
deck, keep one thing in mind:
Prospects don’t care about your
product.”
-Courtney Chuang, DocSend
TOO MUCH TEXT +
INFORMATION
CONFUSION OVER
DELIVERY FORMAT
PRODUCT DRIVEN,
NOT STORY DRIVEN
“We found that by limiting the words
on a slide more attention is spent on
the conversation created by our slide
deck rather than it becoming the
focus.”
-Julian Besonen, Apruve
“Maybe your marketing team made
you a beautiful one but they're ONLY
meant for explaining live, not
showing to a decision maker offline, on
their own time with no guidance.”
– Cole Fox, LeadIQ
Source: Input from industry experts, Example Deck: Microsoft 365 Sales Presentation

4. How to build two versions of the
same deck
HOW TO BUILD OUT
YOUR STORYLINE
How this Guide will help you build your next deck
HOW TO CUSTOMIZE +
VISUALIZE CONTENT
HOW TO FLEX FORMAT +
DELIVERY METHOD
How to Customize Content
Customizing Brand
How to Visualize your Product
Using Simple Visuals
TOO MUCH TEXT + INFORMATION CONFUSION OVER DELIVERY FORMATPRODUCT DRIVEN, NOT STORY DRIVEN
The CXO Deck
The Budget Holder Proposal
The Practitioner Demo

5. Chorus.ai offers software that provides conversation
intelligence for sales teams
...using examples and tactics from these companies
Instead of traditional marketing and sales platforms
that rely on forms and follow ups, Drift connects your
business with the best leads in real-time.
DocSend is a content management and tracking
solution that helps teams find and share the sales
content that closes deals.
Apruve is a B2B credit network that lets sellers extend
risk-free revolving lines of credit to their business
buyers.
Performance advertising software for finding target
audiences and automating advertising tasks on
Facebook, Google, and Instagram.
GitHub is a web-based Git repository hosting service
offering distributed revision control and source code
management functionality of Git.
Source: Crunchbase

6. How to Build Out your Storyline

7. Why a Storyline Matters in your Sales Cycle
“Once we overhauled the DocSend discovery
deck, we saw our completion rate triple.
This meant prospects were actually finding our
story compelling enough to complete the
entire deck. This was crucial because it meant
prospects were ready to convert to the next
stage of the sales process."
– Sonja Jacobs
Source: Docsend ‘Ditch the Pitch’
DECK COMPLETION RATES
Without Story
~20% completion
With Story
~60%+ completion

8. The Mindset Shift: Building a Deck for the
Conversation, not for the Document
“With your messaging, positioning, and content
laid out to support the Why, How, What flow,
you will see more engaged conversations.”
-Matt Gingerich, Bombora
WHY
Value you provide
HOW
Flow of slide titles
WHAT
Text+Visual Slides
Source: Simon Sinek “Start with Why”

9. The 3 Frameworks
GOAL
Support
Purchase
Usage
Big Change
in the
World
Why care?
Stakes
Show the
Better Way
Obstacles
that make
it hard
Proof you
can do itBenefits to
Overcome
them
Problem to
be solved
Who has
the
problem?
What does
it cost the
org today?
Shortfalls
of existing
solutions
Your
Solution
Overview
Confirm
the
problem
Shortfalls
of other
solutions
Proof that
you’re
better
How it
Works
Logo Slide
Demo
What’s
changed to
make yours
Proof that
you’re
better
What your
solution
costs
CXO Deck
Budget Holder
Proposal
Practitioner
Demo
Source: Andy Raskin’s Strategic Narrative framework, Peter Kazanjy’s Founding Sales Deck, Stick’s Sales Deck research

10. Audience
CXO
VP, Director
Manager, IC
1-10MM 10-100MM 100M+
The Budget
Holder
Proposal
The
Practitioner
Demo
COMPANY SIZE
The CXO
Deck
The Budget
Holder
Proposal
The
Practitioner
Demo
The CXO
Deck
The Budget
Holder
Proposal
The CXO
Deck
The Budget
Holder
Proposal
What to use when

11. STORYLINE 1:
The CXO Deck
Source: Andy Raskin’s Strategic Narrative framework, Peter Kazanjy’s Founding Sales Deck, Stick’s Sales Deck research
Big Change
in the
World
Why care?
Stakes
Show the
Better Way
Obstacles
that make
it hard
Proof you
can do it
Benefits to
Overcome
them
Opening

12. Show the Better
Way
What’s in the
CXO Deck
Big Change in the
World
Why care? Stakes
Obstacles that
make it hard
Proof you
can do it
Benefits to
Overcome them
Explain the big shift that
makes your product not
only “cool” but critical. No
mention of your company.
Show winners and losers,
and why this matters.
What happens if they
don’t accept this change?
What would life be like
after this change, if they
take the high road? Still no
mention of your product.
Explain what makes this
Better Way so hard to
achieve. Who’s the enemy?
Demonstrate evidence
that you can make it
happen with quantitative
or qualitative proof.
Reveal the benefits of
your product as keys to
unlock this future and
make success attainable.
Source: Adapted from Andy Raskin’s Strategic Narrative framework

13. Examples: Big Change in the World
THE OLD WORLD THE NEW WORLD
Source: Drift’s HyperGrowth Keynote Deck; DocSend’s new Sales Deck

14. Describe the Old World
Beginning State
We are living in a [New State] World
Describe the New World
After Change, at the Individual Level
Template: Big Change in the World
Source: Stick.ai template

15. Examples: Obstacles + How to Overcome
HOWTO
OVERCOME
Source: Drift’s HyperGrowth Keynote Deck
OBSTACLES

16. Examples: How to Show Proof
Source: Drift’s HyperGrowth Keynote Deck; DocSend’s new Sales Deck
The classic logo slide highlighting
names of recognizable customers
Volume ResultsSocial Proof
Highlight the number of customers
using your product (with press to help)
“Dogfooding” your own product or
sharing results from other customers

17. STORYLINE 2:
The Budget
Holder Deck
Source: Andy Raskin’s Strategic Narrative framework, Peter Kazanjy’s Founding Sales Deck, Stick’s Sales Deck research
Who has
the
Problem
What does
it cost the
org today?
Shortfalls
of existing
solutions
What’s
changed
Proof that
you’re
better
Your
Solution
Overview
Opening
Problem to
be solved
What your
solution
costs

18. Problem to be
Solved
Who has the
problem?
Shortfalls of
existing solutions
What’s changed
to make yours
possible
What your
solution costs
Your Solution
Overview
Focus on which
stakeholders in the
organization feel this most
deeply
What are the alternatives
to your product, and why
don’t they work?
Has there been a shift in
the world that has made
your product’s tech
possible?
Explain the use cases of
the product at a high level.
Who uses it and how?
Source: Pete Kazanjy’s Founding Sales Deck and First Round Review’s “Building your Best Sales Deck Starts Here”
What does it cost
the org today?
Proof that you’re
the best option
What’s the cost - in time,
tools, or talent - of this
problem today?
Qualitative (logos and
quotes) or Qualitative
(Case Study with ROI)
proof your solution works.
Confirm a problem they’re
looking to solve, or inform
them of a problem they
don’t realize they have
After demonstrating the
value you’ll create, explain
the value you plan to
capture via pricing.
What’s in the
Budget
Holder Deck

19. Example: Explain the Problem
Source: Chorus.ai
Start by meeting the customer where
they are, showing them something they
know.
Provocative Selling: How to Explain a Problem they don’t know about... yet
Shock them with something they don’t
yet realize: the value and/or volume of
the problem.
Reveal the solution they didn’t know was
possible, and explain the implications of
it for their business.

20. Template: Cost of the Problem Today
Source: Stick.ai template
Prospect Logo
This problem costs $X today
Statistic
Cost driver two
Statistic
Cost driver one
Statistic
Cost driver four
Statistic
Cost driver three
Your LOGO

21. Example: What’s Changed
Source: Lightning AI
Start with the Status Quo: A statement
that captures current state that they
can’t refute
Frame the big change as a simple
question (rather than announcing
technical buzzwords)
Explain this new state of what’s
possible, not necessarily mentioning
your product yet
“WHAT IF” APPROACH

22. Example: Your Solution Overview
Source: Apruve, Lightning AI
If multi-stakeholder product, use a
timeline/flowchart to take them through the user
flow to simplify a complex system
If a tool that fits into a complex stack, map
out the other players and how you would fit
into their existing ecosystem or toolkit
USER FLOW MAP OF LANDSCAPE

23. Template: Proof that you are the best Option
Video or Photo Footage of Customer
Simplified Product Screenshot
LOGO Value-based Outcome Achieved
Describe Product Benefit that made
it possible:
Quote Describing Action taken by
Customer
Source: Stick.ai template

24. STORYLINE 3:
Practitioner’s
Demo
Source: Andy Raskin’s Strategic Narrative framework, Peter Kazanjy’s Founding Sales Deck, Stick’s Sales Deck research
Confirm
the
Problem
Shortfalls
of other
Solutions
Proof that
you’re
better
How it
Works
Logo Slide
Demo
Opening

25. Confirm the
Problem
Shortfalls of
other Solutions
What makes you
the best option
How it Works Logo SlideDemo
If they are looking to solve
this problem, they’re
evaluating other solutions.
Show why they aren’t
good enough.
Given that landscape of
existing solutions, why are
you better than the rest?
More granular explanation
of how this product works
to prove to practitioners
and/or technical users
that implementation is
feasible.
Social proof is most
powerful here, so a wall of
familiar and similar logos
is the best way to give
your user confidence in
their ability to get value
out of your solution
Core purpose of this
meeting is to get into the
product and show them
how it works in practice.
Focus on one user’s
perspective or persona to
avoid confusion.
What’s in the
Practitioner’s
Demo
This audience knows the
problem exists, and is
looking for a solution.
Start by confirming that.

26. Example: Confirm the Problem
Source: Chorus, GitHub Overview Deck
If you’re selling to an audience who’s already looking for
a solution, you don’t need to re-convince them of the
problem. That’s just frustrating.
Here, Github doesn’t make the case for version control
(that’s a no brainer). Instead, they explain what they are
by labeling their offering within familiar terms: they’re a
repository hosting service.
STAKE YOUR SPOT IN A CATEGORY

27. Example: How it Works
Source: Chorus, GitHub Overview Deck
If your product integrates within an existing stack,
use familiar screenshots with simple callouts (note:
not of your product, but of a familiar interface).
For technical products, use a structural
diagram to lay out the architecture with
supporting details, as if in a product spec.
SCREENSHOT + CALLOUTS STRUCTURAL DIAGRAM

28. Template: Demo Overview
Source: Stick.ai template
Prospect Logo
What we will cover in today’s Demo
Benefit 1
as answer to Problem 1
Your LOGO
Benefit 2
as answer to Problem 2
Benefit 3
as answer to Problem 3
Screenshot 1 Screenshot 2 Screenshot 3

29. How to Customize + Visualize Content

30. How to Customize Content
AGENDA MID-PRESENTATIONOPENING
“My top advice - nail your disco
questions and put them in the agenda
slide. You'll save so much time and
start off a conversation so it doesn't
feel one-sided.” – Colette Nataf,
Lightning AI
“Personalization, and more
personalization….we utilize slide #7 to
re-capture the attention of our
prospects and refocus on their
company/needs.” – Julian Besonen,
Apruve
“Your first slide needs to be about what
you've learned from YOUR
CUSTOMERS. Use the voice of your
customers to give you credibility.”
-Douglas Landis
Source: ClearSlide Webinar, Lightning AI, Apruve

31. Template: Opening
Source: Stick.ai template
Prospect Logo
What we have learned about [Prospect]
Your Logo
Key Learning 1
In their words
Key Learning 2
In industry expert’s words
Key Learning 3
In their words

32. How to Customize with your Prospect’s Brand
Source: Colors that Convert by Stick.ai
Use your prospect’s primary
brand color and logo to
customize your sales deck to
their brand, rather than your
own.
Note: the tradeoff is you lose an
opportunity to push your own
brand, but gain an opportunity
to build the relationship.
BRANDING

33. How to Visualize your Product Idea with Metaphors
“You wouldn’t invite your
customers into an empty store,
so why would you do that with
your website?”
In a recent keynote, Drift CEO
David Cancel makes the
problem palpable with this
image, no matter how familiar
you are with Drift or Marketing
technology.
VISUAL METAPHORS
Source: Drift’s HyperGrowth Keynote 2017

34. How to use Simple Visuals
COMPARISON PROCESSRELATIONSHIPS
Comparing two states as diagrams
(hierarchical on left vs. customer-
centric cycle on right) shows the “why”
instantly.
Flowcharts and funnels clarify complex
processes into simple steps.
Contently uses a Venn Diagram to
show the new state of the world and
how stakeholders interact.
Source: Contently, Zuora, LeadCrunch

35. How to Visualize your Case Studies
Case Study TemplatePersona Map
Replace your generic quote + logo case studies with ones that
explain (1) the Outcome achieved, (2) the Customer’s Action it
took to get there, and (3) the Benefit/Feature of your Product
that made it possible.
For a product that impacts multiple roles or personas in the
org, map out the roles, and then link each “button” to persona-
specific case studies
Source: Chorus.ai

36. More Visual
Formats to Try
Source: Stick.ai
OPENING PROBLEM SOLUTION HOW IT WORKS
LISTMAPPROCESSHIERARCHY

37. How to Flex your Format based on Delivery Method

38. How to Build two versions of the same Deck
Title and supporting text boxes should be self-
sufficient so a reader could understand
Keep only keywords to guide the
conversation, else your audience will be
reading not listening
“Can you send me something I can send
to my boss?”
“Here are a few slides to guide our
conversation”
Source: Stop Presenting that Proposal! by Stick.ai

39. Source: Stick.ai templates
Prospect Logo
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
Your Logo
Consectetur
adipiscing elit.
Aenean
Ullamcorper
turpis vel euismod
aliquam. Aenean
Eros velit,
vulputate non
suscipit.
Template: Slide to Present

40. Source: Stick.ai templates
Template: Slide to Send
Prospect Logo
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet
Your Logo
nulla urna. Vivamus quis felis nulla.
Duis sollicitudin nibh vitae
pharetra
pretium. Pellentesque ac augue eu
nunc volutpat pharetra non ut
augue. Morbi accumsan
turpis quam, sed vestibulum
metus consectetur at. Aliquam
viverra pretium massa. Proin enim
est, porttitor at.
Consectetur
adipiscing elit.
Aenean
Ullamcorper
turpis vel euismod
aliquam. Aenean
Eros velit,
vulputate non
suscipit.

41. Thank you to contributors
Pete Kazanjy Andy Raskin Julian Besonen Colette Nataf Alexandra Kane Sonja Jacobs Cole Fox
Dale Zwizinski Jeff Sauer Russ Heddleston Mike Haylon Eric Charles Doug Landis Ledi Imeraj
Richard Harris Jeremey Donovan Matt Gingerich Gaetano DiNardi Alli McKee
About the Author: Alli McKee is the CEO and
Founder of Stick, a visual communication
platform automating design, starting with
presentations for B2B sales and marketing
teams.
Connect on LinkedIn to read more daily
updates on startups, sales, marketing, and
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