How to share a pitch deck with investors and read the signals
Prepare a send-ahead deck, choose PDF or PowerPoint, give each investor their own link with sensible rules, read the numbers and time your follow-up.
The best way to share a pitch deck with investors is to send each one their own link to a send-ahead version of the deck, not an attachment, and to set rules on that link that match how far the conversation has gone. A link named for one firm shows whether that firm read the deck and which slides held its attention, and you can close it whenever you like. This guide covers the difference between the deck you present and the deck you send, choosing between PDF and PowerPoint, the settings worth using on each link, how to read the numbers without kidding yourself, and when to follow up.
The deck you present is not the deck you send
Most founders end up with two versions of the same story. The presented deck is sparse: Kevin Hale, who coaches Y Combinator companies on their Demo Day slides, asks for slides that are legible, simple and obvious, ideally only five to seven of them, because you are there to do the talking.
The send-ahead deck (often called a leave-behind) has to work without you. YC's guide to seed fundraising describes a deck you can walk investors through and then leave behind so they can show it to their partners. Aaron Harris wrote YC's seed deck template for exactly these slightly longer decks used in follow-up conversations.
| Presented deck | Send-ahead deck | |
|---|---|---|
| Who explains it | You, in the room | Nobody: the slides must speak for themselves |
| Length | As few slides as the story needs | A little longer, with context on each slide |
| Words | A big headline and little else | A clear headline plus a line or two of evidence |
| Animations and builds | Fine, you control the clicks | Avoid: each slide should make sense as a still page |
| Where it's seen | A screen behind you | Anywhere, including a phone between meetings |
Should you send it before the first meeting?
Opinions differ. Paul Graham wrote in 2013 that he wouldn't send a deck to an investor who wants it before deciding whether to meet, because the request suggests they aren't really interested. Yet a partner forwarded a cold introduction may need something to read before agreeing to a call. A workable middle path: a short teaser (problem, product, a few numbers, the ask) to get the meeting, and the full send-ahead deck afterwards, each on its own link.
What to put in the send-ahead deck
YC's seed template and Sequoia's guide to writing a business plan agree on the backbone. Combined, a send-ahead deck usually covers:
- Title: the company name and one line on what you do.
- Problem: who has it and what it costs them.
- Solution: what you do, in as few words as possible.
- Why now: what has changed to make this possible (Sequoia asks for this explicitly).
- Traction: the numbers that matter, clearly labelled and dated.
- Insight: what you understand that others don't.
- Business model: how you make money, even if some details are still open.
- Market: how big it is and how you'll take a share of it.
- Competition and alternatives: including what customers do today.
- Team: the founders and why you're the right people. Harris is blunt that this is about founders, not advisers.
- The ask: how much you're raising and what it gets you, ideally a milestone a year or so out.
Harris suggests treating each item as a set of one slide where possible and rarely more than three. Two small touches help a deck that travels: date every metric, so a chart doesn't look stale three months later, and put your email on the last slide.
PDF or the original PowerPoint?
Both work; they fail in different ways.
PDF is the safe default. Microsoft's guidance notes that saving a presentation as a PDF freezes its formatting and layout, and people can view it without PowerPoint. One catch: Microsoft says PowerPoint for Mac doesn't keep hyperlinks in PDFs, while PDFs made in PowerPoint for the web do. If your deck links to a demo video, click that link in the exported file before you send it.
The PowerPoint file itself keeps everything exactly as you built it, including things you've forgotten about:
- Hidden slides. Microsoft is clear that a hidden slide remains in the file and is only skipped during the slide show. That appendix with the downside scenario is still in there.
- Speaker notes. Microsoft warns that the notes pane can contain text you might not want to share publicly. Your private reminder about the co-founder who might leave travels with the file.
- Fonts. If you used a font the reader doesn't have, embed it (File, Options, Save, then "Embed fonts in the file"). PowerPoint for the web can't embed fonts; you need the desktop app.
Before sharing a .pptx, Microsoft recommends running the Document Inspector (File, Info, Check for Issues, Inspect Document) on a copy, because removed content can't always be restored. Then delete any hidden slides you don't want seen.
| PowerPoint (.pptx) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Layout | Fixed as exported | As built, if the fonts are available or embedded |
| Hidden slides | Left out unless you choose to include them | Stay in the file |
| Speaker notes | Not in a standard slides export | Stay in the file |
| Hyperlinks | Kept in a web export; lost in a Mac export (Microsoft) | Kept |
| Meant for | Reading | Reading and editing, once downloaded |
The same logic applies to viewers that show the file as it is. In Breathier, PowerPoint slides appear in the browser as built and hidden slides aren't displayed, but the downloadable file is exactly the one you uploaded. With download off, hidden slides stay out of sight; with download on, they leave with the file. Our guide to sharing a PowerPoint online without converting it goes deeper on formats.
Send a link, not an attachment
Attachments run into size limits: Gmail's personal accounts cap them at 25 MB in total, and anything larger is turned into a Google Drive link automatically (checked on 15 November 2026). More importantly, an attachment is gone once sent, whereas a link can be switched off, can expire and can tell you whether it was opened. That doesn't make leaks impossible: Paul Graham advised founders to assume a deck they hand over will reach whoever they'd least like to have it, and to treat that as a cost of doing business rather than a reason to refuse. Link rules lower the odds and tell you more; they don't make a deck secret. There's more on this trade-off in attachment or link: how to send documents by email.
One link per investor
Sending everyone the same link is like giving every guest the same name badge. Separate links give you three things:
- Separate numbers. You see what each firm read, not a blur of everyone.
- Separate control. You can close one investor's link without touching anyone else's.
- Separate rules. A firm that has met you twice can download the deck; a cold lead can't.
Name each link after who receives it, for example "Acme Ventures – Priya". If you send a fund's partners the deck separately, give each partner a link.
Setting it up in Breathier
Breathier is a free tool built for this. The steps:
- Sign in with your email or Google account.
- Upload the deck as a PDF or PowerPoint file (up to 50 MB).
- Create a link for each investor and name it after them. One document can have up to 50 links.
- Choose that link's rules (see the next section).
- Open the link yourself on your phone and computer to check it looks right. Your own visits aren't counted in the statistics.
- Paste the link into your email. Investors don't need an account; it opens in any browser.
When a Breathier link is pasted into WhatsApp, LinkedIn or Slack, the preview shows the document's title and first page, so your cover slide doubles as a thumbnail. Links with a passcode don't show that preview.
The rules worth setting on each link
| Setting | Use it when | Keep in mind |
|---|---|---|
| Ask for an email | The link may be forwarded, or went through an introducer | The reader types it; it isn't verified |
| Passcode | A version with sensitive figures | Send the passcode by a different channel; ten wrong tries lock the link for 15 minutes |
| Expiry date | Numbers that will date, or a round with a deadline | Pick a date after you expect to close |
| Download off | Early conversations | A deterrent, not protection: it hides the button and blocks printing, but screenshots still work |
| Download on | A partner meeting is coming and they need to circulate it | The file leaves with its hidden slides and notes |
| Switch off | The conversation is over or the round has closed | Closes the link at once; anyone reading is closed out within seconds |
For the thinking behind passcodes and how to send them safely, see how to password-protect a document you share by link.
Reading the signals without fooling yourself
For each visit, Breathier records the email (if the link asks for one), when it happened, the device type, the country, the total reading time, the time on each slide and whether the file was downloaded. A chart shows the average time on each slide across visits, and you can filter by link.
Reading time only counts while the tab is visible and the reader has scrolled, tapped or moved in the last five minutes, so a deck left open overnight doesn't become eight hours of rapt attention. Good news for your judgement, if not your ego.
| What you see | A plausible reading | What it doesn't prove |
|---|---|---|
| Opened soon after sending, every slide read | They gave it proper attention | That they liked it |
| Long time on the market or business model slides | Questions or doubts are coming | Which of the two |
| Stopped after three slides, on a phone | A skim between meetings; they may come back | A rejection |
| New visits days later, from another country or device | Possibly passed to a colleague | Who that is |
| No visit after several days | The email got buried, or you're low on the list | A "no" |
| Downloaded | They want it offline or to circulate it | Anything more |
Paul Graham's advice was to judge investors by their actions rather than their words, because they tend to sound keener than they are. A reading pattern is one small action; the strong ones are a second meeting, an introduction to partners and a request for more documents.
Two rules of etiquette. First, readers are told on the link's page that you can see they opened it and how long they spend on each page, so this isn't covert. Second, never quote the numbers back ("I noticed you spent four minutes on slide seven"); use them to choose what to say. Our guide to what time on each page tells you covers the caveats in more detail.
Timing the follow-up
The follow-up starts in the meeting. Graham's rule was never to leave a meeting with an investor without asking what happens next, and YC's seed guide says the same: don't walk out leaving things ambiguous. Then:
- The same day: thank them, send their send-ahead link and answer anything you promised to look into.
- Once they've read it: if the time clustered on one or two slides, address those in your next message with evidence: a customer quote, a cohort chart, a clearer unit economics slide.
- If there's no visit after a few days: resend once, with a one-line summary in the body. Inboxes eat emails.
- When your numbers move: Graham observed that growth between meetings makes investors keen to close, while flat numbers cool them. A short update with a fresh link is a good reason to get back in touch.
- When the answer is no, or silence persists: switch the link off and part on good terms. As YC's guide points out, a no today can be a yes another time.
YC lists being slow to follow up among the things not to do with investors. Being fast isn't the same as being relentless: one useful message beats three nudges.
FAQ
Should I send my pitch deck before the first meeting?
It depends on how you met. If a deck is needed to get the meeting, send a short teaser on its own link and keep the full send-ahead deck for after you've talked. Paul Graham saw a request for the deck before any meeting as a weak signal of interest.
Is PDF or PowerPoint better for a pitch deck?
PDF is the safer default because its layout is fixed and it carries no speaker notes or hidden slides unless you choose to include them. A PowerPoint file keeps your slides exactly as built, but check it with the Document Inspector first and embed any unusual fonts. Whichever you choose, open your own link on a phone before sending it.
Can I stop investors from downloading or forwarding my deck?
You can turn download off, which hides the download button and blocks printing, and you can switch a link off at any time. Neither stops a screenshot or someone forwarding the link while it's open. Asking for an email and naming each link after its investor at least give you a clue when a deck travels.
Will investors know I can see their reading time?
With Breathier, yes: the link's page tells readers that the sender can see that they opened it and how long they spend on each page. Being open is the right default; just don't quote the numbers back to them.
What does it mean if an investor reads my deck several times?
Usually that it's being taken seriously: they may be preparing questions or showing it to colleagues. New visits from another country or device on the same link suggest it was passed on, but they don't tell you to whom. Treat it as a cue to send something useful, not as a sign the money is coming.
How long should a send-ahead pitch deck be?
Long enough to tell the story without you, and no longer. YC's seed template has about ten sections, each ideally one slide and rarely more than three. If a slide needs you to explain it, it needs a clearer headline, not more slides.
For more guides like this one, browse the resources hub.
Sources
- How to build your seed round pitch deck, Y Combinator (Aaron Harris): the seed deck template, slide order and the advice to keep each section short.
- A guide to seed fundraising, Y Combinator (Geoff Ralston): the deck as a leave-behind for partners, leaving meetings with clear next steps, not being slow to follow up, and parting on good terms after a no.
- How to design a better pitch deck, Y Combinator (Kevin Hale): legible, simple, obvious slides and five to seven slides for a spoken pitch.
- Writing a business plan, Sequoia Capital: the sections Sequoia expects, including why now, competition and financials.
- How to Raise Money, Paul Graham (September 2013): sending decks before meetings, assuming decks get passed on, judging investors by actions and asking what happens next.
- Save PowerPoint presentations as PDF files, Microsoft Support: PDFs freeze layout, hidden slides are optional in the export, and Mac exports drop hyperlinks.
- Hide or show a slide, Microsoft Support: a hidden slide remains in the file.
- Remove hidden data and personal information by inspecting documents, Microsoft Support: speaker notes and other hidden content, and running the Document Inspector on a copy.
- Embed a font in a presentation, Microsoft Support: how to embed fonts, and that PowerPoint for the web can't.
- Gmail attachment size limits, Google Gmail Help: the 25 MB limit for personal accounts and automatic Drive links for larger files (checked on 15 November 2026).
