Investors fund people. Here's how to show them yours.

Hey friends,

We’re cruising through the Core 10 Pitch Framework! Last week, we looked at two often-overlooked sections of your pitch deck: Competition and Why Now.

This week, it’s all about people—first your customers, then your team.

In the early days of building a startup, people matter more than anything else. Investors know that you, your team, and your customers can make or break your success. Your job is to show them you’ve got the right people on board.

For The Rest of Us, these two slides can bring up a lot of bias and misunderstanding. I’ll walk through how to frame the conversation so investors can really see the value in your lived experience, and your customers’ too.

Step 8: Go-To-Market (GTM) — How You’ll Find and Keep Customers

“Go-to-market” (GTM) means different things to different people, but what investors are really asking is this: 

How are you going to find your customers, convince them to buy what you’re offering, and keep them coming back?

This might be one of the most misunderstood sections in a pitch deck, and one of the least clearly explained in the advice founders get.

Your GTM section de-risks the investor concern that you won’t be able to get traction. This isn’t about proving you’ll go viral; it’s about showing that you have a strategic, thoughtful plan for identifying, acquiring, and retaining the people or businesses who will pay you. This is typically one slide.

Think in Phases: Now / Next / Later

When discussing your GTM strategy, I recommend using a Now / Next / Later framework. It helps you stay grounded in the early-stage tactics without losing sight of your long-term growth strategy.

• NOW: Start with your early adopters. Who are your ideal first customers, and how are you reaching them today? This is your proof-of-concept phase. Your goal is validation: Are you reaching the right people with the right message? Are they engaging? How are you doing this quickly and cheaply?

• NEXT: Once you've validated your initial approach, how will you scale it? What will you double down on? What partnerships, tools, or channel expansions will help you grow beyond your early adopters?

• LATER: How will you reach broader segments and unlock exponential growth? Will you layer in new channels, add sales teams, explore affiliate models, or land distribution deals? Be clear that this phase is about scaling what you’ve already proven.

How it’s Different for The Rest of Us

We may not have the same networks or budget to launch splashy GTM campaigns, but scrappy, resourceful traction is often more impressive. If you’ve grown with limited spend or grassroots channels, say so. Investors love efficiency. Don’t assume they’ll understand or value your approach right away – spell it out for them.

For example:

“Our early growth came from WhatsApp referrals in immigrant parent groups, a distribution strategy VC newsletters aren’t writing about, but one that works. This mirrors culturally trusted patterns in similar segments.”

If you haven’t already, you’re going to notice a theme to my advice: never assume and spell everything out.

Many traditional investors won’t recognize your acquisition strategies because they might not be familiar with your customer channels. If the investor doesn’t have experience with or hasn’t invested in a company that utilizes things like WhatsApp groups, community-based onboarding, faith-based marketing, affinity groups, etc., they won’t appropriately value what the traction indicates for scaling.

Step 9: Your Team — Your Greatest Competitive Advantage

At the early stage, investors aren’t betting on your fully-baked product. They’re betting on you and your ability to execute, adapt, and attract others to the mission.

That makes your Team slide a lot more important than many founders realize. Your product will change. Your market might shift. Your GTM could pivot. What investors really want to understand is: Why are YOU the right person to lead this company, and who’s in the trenches with you to make that happen? This is typically one slide.

Bookend the Pitch with People

In the Scroobious Core 10 Framework, we start with you as founder - your origin story and mission. We end with you again, this time in your capacity as the CEO and builder. It’s an intentional arc: you begin with purpose and close with proof. Investors meet the human behind the idea and leave with confidence in your ability to make it execute and make it real.

If you’re a first-time founder or you don’t “look like” who investors have traditionally backed, your lived experience becomes your edge. You are likely closer to the customer than anyone else in the room. Call that out. For example:

“As a parent of a child with food allergies, I’ve lived this problem for five years. That personal experience, combined with my background in supply chain operations, gives me a unique edge in building a better distribution solution.”

How it’s Different for The Rest of Us

The Team slide can feel especially fraught when you don’t have a co-founder with a tech exit or a roster of ex-Google advisors. Your early team might not look like what investors expect to see in “venture-backed” startups. That isn’t a weakness; it’s context, and it’s your opportunity to own the narrative of what credibility looks like.

There’s also a real double standard at play. Solo founders from underestimated backgrounds, especially women and founders of color, are often judged more harshly. Building solo can be misread as a lack of momentum rather than a deliberate, strategic, resilient choice. Show how you’re gathering support and building momentum.

Investors often have an unconscious image of what a “strong leader” looks like, and if your leadership style, communication, physical appearance, or background doesn’t match their expectations, you may be unfairly seen as less capable or less serious. That doesn’t mean you need to perform someone else’s version of leadership. It means you need to clearly show how your leadership works: how you build trust, drive outcomes, and grow your team.

That’s it for this week. We are nearing the end of the beta reader process, but it’s not too late to join!

If you’re interested in reading the full chapters and joining a community of like-minded founders, apply to be a Beta Reader.

Thanks for reading, and have a great week!

Allison