Bay Angels Rubric

The Bay Angels Deal Flow Committee scores pitch decks to determine which Founders will be invited to pitch at our pitch events.  The following Rubric is ONLY for the purposes of scoring pitch decks and is intentionally more comprehensive than what would actually be presented LIVE.

Our Rubric assigns scores for 10 specific content areas (scoring 1-10 pts for each area, with 10 being the best and 1 being the lowest; top score is 100 and the worst score is 10).  Each submission is reviewed by a quorum of evaluators.

To ensure a fair and equal evaluation, priority is given to companies that include the information requested below in their pitch decks and presentations:

1. Business Description & Presentation
2. Market Analysis
3. Product or Service Analysis
4. Competition
5. Marketing Strategy
6. Traction
7. Operations
8. Management
9. Finances
10. The Ask

1. Business Description: Details of the venture and what it does; and the overall effectiveness of the actual presentation.

• • How well was the concept explained?
  • How reasonable, sustainable, and scalable is the new concept?
  • Did the presenter(s) engage the audience and hold their attention?
  • Did the presenter(s) appear to speak with confidence and authority?
  • Were visual aids (i.e. PowerPoint® slides) clear and valuable?
  • Was the pitch exciting and compelling?
  • How efficiently did the team allot their time?

2. Market Analysis: Characteristics of the market and description of its customers.

• • • Is there a genuine need for the product or service?
    • How well was the target market defined?
    • What is the size and growth of the market?
    • What is the consumers’ willingness to pay for the product/service?

3. Product or Service Analysis: The specifics of the product or service.

• • • • Is the description clear?
      • Is the product feasible?
      • How easily can it be duplicated?
      • Is there a legitimate problem, and solution statement?
      • Is there a presence of potential substitutes for the product?

4. Competition: Identify current and potential competitors.

• • Have the current and potential competitors, competitive responses and analysis of strengths and weaknesses been adequately defined?  
  • Are you convinced the competitive differentiation is sufficient and sustainable over a long period of time?

5. Go-to-Market Strategy: How sales will be achieved.

• • How Realistically defined is the marketing plan?  
  • Does the plan adequately address price, place, product, promotion over a realistic timeframe?  
  • Are resources sufficiently allocated for marketing?

6. Traction: Quantify traction achieved to date.

• • How much revenue has already been generated?  
  • What level of adoption has been achieved?  
  • Did the company quantify their market feedback?

7. Operations / Scalability / Key Milestones: How the product or service will be produced and delivered.

• • Scaling:  What will be the scaling challenges and how will those be addressed?
  • Supply Chain / Delivery:  How and where will the product or service be produced and/or delivered?
  • Partnerships / Licenses:  What strategic partnerships and/or licenses will be needed to scale?
  • Costs / Support:  What are the Costs of Customer Acquisition and key elements of supporting a large customer base?
  • Gross Margin:  How will the gross margin evolve from today vs. at high volume?  Why?

8. Management: An assessment of the entrepreneur(s) and team.

• • Does the team exhibit the experience and skills required for operation?
  • What is the depth and breadth of the team’s capabilities?
  • Does the team demonstrate the ability to grow with the organization and attract new talent?

9. Finances: An overview of the required resources and economics of the venture.

• • Assumptions: What are the key assumptions to support claims of revenue, costs and net income as the firm grows, and what will drive changes in these metrics over time?
  • Forecast:  What is the P&L forecast (income, expenses, net income, breakeven point) for at least the next 5 years, and is it reasonable given the assumptions?
  • Risks: What are the key risks that may impact business growth and how will these risks be mitigated?
  • Valuation: What is the current business valuation and what method was used to calculate this?

10. The Ask: The terms and conditions offered to investors.

• • Offer: Did the entrepreneurial Founder/team explain the funding offer (round, terms, discounts, etc.)?  
  • Investor Return: How does “the ask” tie to the business valuation, and is it reasonable for investors?
  • Exit: What is the expected Exit Strategy and timing?  How feasible is such an Exit Strategy?