sequoia-structured-bp

name	sequoia-structured-bp
description	Sequoia Capital-style structured business plan / pitch deck framework. 10-slide data-driven format with slide-by-slide writing guides, examples, and checklists. Best for Series A+ and institutional investors. Trigger when users need a rigorous, investor-grade BP structure.
license	MIT

Skill: Sequoia Structured BP

Meta

• Style: Data-driven, investor-grade, modular
• Best For: Series A and beyond; institutional investors; due-diligence-heavy rounds
• Source: Sequoia Capital pitch framework
• Output Length: 10–12 slides
• Tone: Confident, evidence-based, no hype

Core Philosophy

The investor has 3 minutes. Every slide must either (a) reduce risk or (b) increase upside. No decoration.

"If you can't explain it with data, you don't understand it well enough." — adapted from Einstein

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Slide-by-Slide Guide

Slide 1: Company Purpose (1 sentence)

Goal: Make the investor "get it" in 5 seconds.

Formula:

[Company] is a [category] that helps [target customer] [solve problem] by [unique mechanism].

Good Example:

"ChainLedger is a compliance settlement network that helps cross-border B2B traders reduce settlement time from 7 days to 4 hours through real-time sanction screening."

Bad Example:

"ChainLedger is a blockchain-based fintech platform leveraging AI and machine learning to disrupt the payments industry."

Check:

• Can a non-expert understand it?
• No buzzwords (AI, blockchain, disruptive, synergy)
• Contains: who, what problem, how

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Slide 2: Problem

Goal: Prove the problem is real, urgent, and valuable.

Structure:

1. Scene-setting (1 sentence): What world do your customers live in?
2. Pain quantification: Use a number. $18B/yr in fines. 3–5 intermediaries. 4–7 day delay.
3. Who feels it most: Define your ICP (Ideal Customer Profile) narrowly.

Good Example:

"Cross-border B2B payments involve 3–5 intermediaries, 4–7 day settlement, and compliance gaps that cost enterprises $18B/yr in fines globally. The pain is most acute for mid-market manufacturers importing from Asia — they have 2-person finance teams and zero compliance expertise."

Bad Example:

"Cross-border payments are broken. They're slow, expensive, and non-compliant."

Check:

• The problem is quantified with a specific number
• The ICP is defined narrowly (not "all businesses")
• The investor can feel the pain (emotional hook)

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Slide 3: Solution

Goal: Show your solution is inevitable once the problem is understood.

Structure:

1. The insight (1 sentence): What did you see that others missed?
2. How it works (2–3 sentences): Mechanism, not architecture.
3. Before/After: One sentence contrasting old way vs. your way.

Good Example:

"We built an end-to-end compliance settlement network using real-time sanction screening, automated KYC/KYB, and instant settlement rails. Instead of routing through 3 correspondent banks over 7 days, we settle directly in 4 hours with full audit trails."

Bad Example:

"Our platform uses a microservices architecture with PostgreSQL, Redis, and Kubernetes on AWS."

Check:

• Describes outcome, not technology stack
• Contains a before/after contrast
• Can be explained to a 10-year-old

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Slide 4: Why Now?

Goal: Convince the investor the timing is non-negotiable.

Structure: List 2–3 market tailwinds that make this business possible now but not 5 years ago.

Examples:

• Regulatory: "PSD2 + open banking APIs made real-time settlement legally possible in EU"
• Technology: "Cloud compliance tools dropped KYC cost from $50 to $5 per check"
• Behavior: "Post-COVID, 73% of CFOs now prioritize cash flow visibility over relationship banking"

Check:

• At least one tailwind is verifiable (cite source if possible)
• The tailwinds are accelerating, not static
• Without these tailwinds, the business doesn't work

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Slide 5: Market Size

Goal: Show the prize is worth the investor's time.

Structure:

TAM: $X billion (top-down, industry report)
SAM: $Y billion (bottom-up, reachable in 5–7 years)
SOM: $Z million (what you can capture in 2–3 years)

Good Example:

"TAM: $180B cross-border B2B payments SAM: $12B mid-market Asia-Europe trade corridor SOM: $840M Chinese manufacturers with <500 employees"

Bad Example:

"The fintech market is $300T. If we capture 0.01%..."

Check:

• TAM is from a credible source (not self-calculated)
• SAM is defensible (geography + segment + use case)
• SOM is achievable (implies realistic market share)

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Slide 6: Competition

Goal: Show you understand the landscape and have a differentiated position.

Structure:

1. 2x2 matrix: X-axis = speed, Y-axis = compliance depth (pick axes relevant to your market)
2. Where you sit: Explain why you're in the top-right.
3. Moat preview: Hint at what's hard to replicate (don't fully reveal yet).

Good Example:

"Legacy banks (bottom-left): 7 days, high compliance but manual. Fintechs (top-left): 1 day, low compliance. We're the only player in top-right: 4 hours + full automated compliance."

Check:

• You acknowledge real competitors (not "we have no competition")
• The axes are meaningful to customers, not just to you
• You explain why others can't easily move to your position

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Slide 7: Product

Goal: Show the product is real and differentiated.

Structure:

1. Screenshot/demo: One image or 30-sec Loom.
2. Key differentiator: One feature no one else has.
3. Integration: How customers adopt (API, dashboard, Slack bot, etc.).

Check:

• There's visual evidence (screenshot, not wireframe)
• The differentiator is defensible (not "better UI")
• Adoption path is low-friction

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Slide 8: Business Model

Goal: Show how you make money and that the economics work.

Structure:

1. Pricing: Simple, transparent. One primary model.
2. Unit economics: CAC, LTV, gross margin if available.
3. Expansion revenue: How customers grow over time.

Good Example:

"SaaS: 0.15% per transaction + $2k/mo platform fee. Enterprise: custom pricing. Unit economics: CAC $4,200 (inside sales), LTV $48,000, gross margin 82%."

Check:

• Pricing is simple enough to explain in one breath
• Unit economics are directionally correct (don't need perfection)
• There's a path to expansion revenue

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Slide 9: Traction

Goal: Prove momentum. This is the most important slide for early-stage.

Structure:

1. The one metric that matters: Pick the metric that best shows product-market fit.
2. Trend line: Show growth over time (6–12 months).
3. Logo wall: 3–5 customer logos (with permission).

Metric Selection Guide:

Stage	Best Metric
Pre-launch	Waitlist size + engagement rate
Post-launch	MAU/DAU + retention curve
Revenue	MRR + MoM growth rate
Scale	Net revenue retention + expansion rate

Good Example:

"120+ enterprise customers, $50k MRR, 12% MoM growth last 6 months. Core vertical renewal 90%+."

Check:

• The metric is a leading indicator (not vanity)
• There's a trend (growth, not a static number)
• The metric is specific ("120 customers" not "rapidly growing")

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Slide 10: Team

Goal: Answer "Why you?" — why this team will win.

Structure:

1. Founders: Relevant experience, not credentials.
2. Key hires: Who you've recruited that validates the vision.
3. Advisors: 1–2 credible names if available.

Good Example:

"CEO — ex-Ant Group payments lead (8 yrs, built $2B settlement product). CTO — ex-infrastructure architect at Stripe. COO — ex-HSBC compliance director."

Bad Example:

"Team has degrees from MIT, Stanford, and Harvard."

Check:

• Each team member's experience directly maps to the business
• Credentials are secondary to relevant achievements
• There's no "MBA from HBS" without context

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Slide 11: Financials

Goal: Show you understand the financial trajectory.

Structure:

1. Historical (if any): Revenue, burn, runway.
2. Projections: 3-year forecast. Conservative, base, optimistic.
3. Use of funds: Where the new money goes.

Rule: Never show a hockey stick without explaining what changes to make it happen.

Check:

• Projections are bottom-up ("10 sales reps x 5 deals/quarter x $50k ACV") not top-down ("1% market share")
• Burn rate and runway are disclosed
• Use of funds is specific ("hire 3 engineers" not "growth")

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Slide 12: The Ask

Goal: Make it easy to say yes.

Structure:

We're raising $X on a $Y pre-money valuation.
Use of funds: [specific allocation]
Milestones with this round: [3 measurable goals]

Good Example:

"Raising $1.1M on $8.3M pre-money. Use: 40% engineering (compliance automation), 30% sales (2 senior AEs), 30% operations. Milestones: $200k MRR, 3 enterprise pilots, EU regulatory approval."

Check:

• The amount is specific (not "$1–2M")
• Valuation is stated (or "open to discussion")
• Milestones are measurable and time-bound

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Self-Review Checklist

Before sending, run through this:

• Can I read the entire deck in 3 minutes?
• Is every number sourced or defensible?
• Do I explain "why now" with market tailwinds?
• Is the team slide about relevant experience, not credentials?
• Does the traction slide show a trend, not a snapshot?
• Is the ask specific with measurable milestones?
• Are there zero buzzwords (disrupt, synergy, AI-powered)?
• Would my mom understand the problem and solution?

Anti-Patterns to Avoid

1. The "Everything Deck": >15 slides. Cut to 10.
2. The "TAM Fantasy": Top-down market size without SAM/SOM.
3. The "No Competition" Claim: Every market has competition. Acknowledge it.
4. The "Team of Geniuses": Credentials without relevant experience.
5. The "Hockey Stick": Exponential growth projections without mechanism.