“Walk me through the bottom-up.”
“It is a £40bn market” is the red flag. Say instead: the segment you can serve, and the build behind it. Customers × price × frequency should land within the quoted figure’s order of magnitude.
Free PDF Instant downloadEvidence-graded
Series A Claim Checklist: Check Every Deck Claim Before Investors Do
This free Series A claim checklist covers the deck claims investors check first, and how to make each one hold up. It works for any deck facing scrutiny: a funding round, a board pack, a lender review or a buyer’s procurement team.
23checks
8trigger phrases
60 spre-meeting test
- 01Market size
- 02Traction and revenue
- 03Unit economics
- 04Competition
- 05Team, capability and why now
- 06Eight trigger phrases
- 0760-second test and claim log
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For decks facing investor, board, lender or procurement scrutiny
What it asks
Three Questions Investors Ask First
Each one comes from the checklist, with the red flag behind it and what to say instead.
“Show me the cohort behind that retention figure.”
A cohort table should back every retention claim. It exists, it matches the headline and it is ready to share. When one number fails a check, every other number inherits the doubt.
“What does the customer do today instead?”
“We have no real competition” means either the market does not exist or the search was not done. Name the status quo (spreadsheets, agencies, in-house teams, doing nothing) and the real alternatives.
The checklist covers 23 checks across five claim categories, eight trigger phrases, a 60-second pre-meeting test and a claim log worksheet. Get the Free PDF
What’s inside
What’s in the Checklist
Five claim categories and 23 checks. Each category lists what a careful reader checks, the phrases that make them dig, and what to say instead. The 60-second test scores your three most important claims before you walk in.
01
Market size
5 checks: named source and year; top-down and bottom-up reconcile.
02
Traction and revenue
5 checks: every metric defined where it is quoted.
03
Unit economics
5 checks: acquisition cost, lifetime value, payback and margin, method shown.
04
Competition
4 checks: the status quo and the real alternatives, named.
05
Team, capability and why now
4 checks: evidenced experience and a dated shift.
06
Eight trigger phrases
The phrases that start a dig, and what to say instead.
07
60-second test and claim log
Score three load-bearing claims, then log every one.
In one sitting
How to Use It in Three Steps
-
Run the five categories
Market size, traction, unit economics, competition, team. Tick each check or note what is missing. A missing check is a question you will be asked.
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Listen for the eight phrases
Each trigger phrase is paired with what to say instead. Replace them in the deck before someone hears them in the room.
-
Take the 60-second test
Score your three load-bearing claims, then log every claim with its source and date. That log is what you hand over when asked.
Go deeper
Want Your Deck Checked for You?
The checklist gives you the framework. A free First Signal reads your deck or page and flags the claims a careful reader would doubt. Release Assurance checks every claim against named sources, and a named verifier signs the result before it goes out.
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