Use numbers when you speak

In this module so far, we’ve covered how VCs analyse your team in detail. We’ve looked at the two criteria they use to assess teams and gone through three additional traits that make them rate your team more highly.

As we’ve gone over these criteria and traits, we’ve provided practical advice on how to use them to make your own team sound stronger. However, you may have noticed that all of this guidance has followed a pattern. The advice so far has revolved around telling VCs specific stories or facts in order to make them believe the right thing about your team. All our advice has had the following shape.

When describing your team, say X to show VCs that you meet criteria Y / possess trait Z.

However, there’s an elephant in the room. In the same way that a job interview isn’t just an opportunity for a company to extract information about a candidate, a VC’s assessment of your team isn't exclusively based on cold analysis of your words. Their view of how great you are is shaped by how well you come across in meetings with them. How you present matters – and so far we’ve barely discussed it.

Presenting well requires far too much nuance to be covered in one lesson – people have written whole books on it. That said, having seen thousands of pitches as a VC, I’ve identified five behavioural patterns that consistently make founders sound better or worse. Each lesson in this section of the module will provide you with an easy-to-use presentation tip based on one of these patterns.

In this lesson we’ll start with the first of them, using numbers when talking to VCs.

Tip #1 → Use numbers when you present

Whether it’s right or wrong, VCs perceive founders who use numbers when they talk as better. Your message could be exactly the same, there’s just something about sprinkling in figures as you speak that makes you sound more impressive. Don’t believe me? Here are some examples of statements by founders with and without numbers.

Compare this statement on market size:

We’re in a really big market

To this one:

We’re in a $6bn market

Or this statement about retention:

A lot of users stick around for a long time

To this version:

95% of users are still active in month six

In both of these examples, the core message didn’t change, but the number-enhanced versions sound like they come from more serious people.

Numbers are unreasonably effective at making you sound on top of things. They make you come across as precise, detail oriented and an expert. VCs want to invest in people with these traits – so using numbers when possible improves how you’re perceived.

You can use this to your advantage. As you plan your pitch, map the statements you intend to make and look for the numbers that back up your claims. Then, don’t just put them on your slides and forget about them – use them when you talk. Not only will it make your statements more believable, it will also make you sound stronger as a founder. VCs might even lovingly call you ‘data driven’.

Conclusion

To help you put this into practice, instead of just moving onto the next tip, the next lesson will provide you with a deep dive on using numbers effectively in investor meetings. Using real footage of founders pitching, we’ll show you how to choose the right stats across the various scenarios you’ll face when pitching.