Get Backed: Craft Your Story, Build the Perfect Pitch Deck, and Launch the Venture of Your Dreams Paperback – November 17, 2015

Bought this book for a class and it came as expected!

I have zero experience with entrepreneurship, but I know a heck of a lot more now than I did prior to reading this book. It’s amazing how much you can learn from 225 pages.Prior to reading this book, I envisioned entrepreneurship and the relationship between entrepreneur and investor to be about one thing - money. After reading this book, I realize that the monetary agreement between entrepreneur and investor is the byproduct of a relational connection, or friendship, not the other way around. The authors are masters at explaining how to initiate and foster those friendships. As the authors explain, those friendships are fostered through the entrepreneur having a sense of modesty, being humble enough to ask for the investor’s suggestions, being willing to listen instead of speak, and once that relationship is established, being confident enough to ask the investor to join in the venture. In almost any profession, getting your colleagues to buy-in to a plan or vision is something of great benefit, and something that is likely only going to happen if genuine relationships are established. These guys understand that and explain how to make that happen in the book.A large portion of this book focuses on the reasons for creating a pitch deck (as opposed to a business plan) and gives the reader step-by-step instructions for what to include in the pitch deck and how what’s included should be displayed. One of the great things about this book is that the authors include actual pitch decks from successful start-ups so that the reader has real-world examples to follow. Quite frankly, I’ve never seen such beautiful, and modern, presentations. I regularly deliver presentations for my job and these pitch decks make my slides look antiquated and dull. I plan to adopt the authors’ approach. Less words, more beautiful images, and tell a story.If you’re an experienced entrepreneur who has already raised millions of dollars for successful start-ups, you should read this book. You’ll learn something and refine your craft. If you’re an aspiring entrepreneur that has a great idea but is clueless how to get started, you should definitely read this book. It’s an A-to-Z road map for how to put your idea into action and make it a reality. If you’re an intellectual or genuinely curious person who wants to know how to more effectively communicate a great idea, how to get others on board with that great idea, and how to establish genuine friendships through that process, this book is also for you. And lastly, if you’re a Friday evening Shark Tank watcher and stare at the screen mostly confused, read this book. You’ll feel smarter. Plus, Barbara endorses the book on the front cover.Enjoy.

This book is a great guide if you're getting ready to raise capital for your startup or even if you're in between rounds and your just looking to build a deck as an exercise to think more deeply about your business. Our team has used it multiple times to build new versions of our deck and I always take something new away when going through it. Its strengths are its simplicity and practicality. It provides a great series of template slides and the examples are useful. The startup financing primer is a decent intro as well.Definitely buy the physical copy!!! The Kindle version is fine, but you'll be missing out on 50% of the value if you don't have the actual book.I see a few student reviews on here. This book is not for you. This book is most valuable if you're actually building a company and in the middle of raising a funding round. For people who are not in that position, I get that it can be fun to learn this stuff but you'll be better off spending your time gaining experience.If you're a student who enjoyed reading the book, then here's a challenge.Take the insights from the book and create your own Personal Pitch Deck (treat yourself as a startup seeking investment). Then find 10 growing startups you'd like to work for and pitch them on yourself. The pitch deck will blow away all the boring resumes hiring managers come across. This is an ideal tactic for either landing the unpaid internship or entry-level position with minimal relevant experience.

The media could not be loaded. Is there a formula for raising a million dollars? This is the question that Evan Baehr and Evan Loomis tackle in their debut book, an insider’s manual for entrepreneurs who want to raise a ton of money — from startup founders, to small business owners, to Kickstarters.Where this book truly shines is in the “Actual Pitch Decks” chapter (page 73). These decks have raised well over $100 million, and the founders' commentary makes it feel like you're reading a secret playbook for successful entrepreneurs. Why struggle for years in the trenches, trying to get your fledgling startup off the ground, when you can raise all the money (and friends) you need to prosper? After reading this book, it seems much easier (and wiser) to do the latter. One of the authors tells a personal story about how he raised over $2 million in a month for his idea. Not his business… his IDEA. I shudder to think of how many of my own ideas never got anywhere, simply because I didn’t know how to raise money. Now I know.If you’re wondering how to take your Lean Startup to the next level, this book might just be the answer you're looking for.