Book excerpt: Author Paul Getty has seen thousands of brilliant founding CEOs present to angel investors, venture capitalists, and institutional investors. And he has seen thousands of them fail in their quest for the money they sincerely believed would lead to entrepreneurial success and riches for all. Again and again, he watched would-be tech titans fail to create a good first impression, deliver poor presentations, tell lengthy stories that put investors to sleep, and fail to address the critical issues sophisticated investors are most eager to hear about. If only they'd read The Twelve Magic Slides: Insider Secrets for Raising Growth Capital. Getty's slide topics—developed while coaching hundreds of company founders to fundraising success—cover each of the twelve key themes investors want to know about in depth before they part with their hard-earned money: the problem you see, your solution to it, the resulting business opportunity, the amount of money you need to grow the firm, and the potential returns for investors, among others. Getty, managing director of Satwik Capital Advisors in San Jose, California, shows that properly developing each slide—and the thinking behind it—can get you the investment capital required to vault your company to the next level. But The Twelve Magic Slides is more than a book about how raise money from professional investors. It presents a whole new way of how to think about and develop a successful startup. Regardless, it will show you better ways to accomplish your goals and increase the chances you’ll get the green light from investors. Whether you are seeking startup funding from the angel down the street, or trying to convince investment bankers to help take you public, The Twelve Magic Slides provides a clear step-by-step process that will enable you to: Identify the key elements of the business that must be developed to attract external capital Understand the critical dos and don’ts CEOs must know to sell their story to investors in a quick and efficient manner Create twelve perfect slides and a presentation that secures investor interest from the start and gives them plenty of reasons to write you a check You need to find money to fund your company’s growth. Investors need to find entrepreneurs and ideas they can believe in. The Twelve Magic Slides presents a proven method for attracting funds from angel investors, venture capital firms, private equity firms, and institutional investors. It will give you the knowledge and confidence you need to ask for—and receive—the capital you need to launch or grow a business.