Investor Update
Quick answer
A free investor update template for UK founders. 8 slides: highlights, lowlights, key metrics, cash and runway, product and team, and specific asks. Send it monthly or quarterly. Edit online, download the PDF or send it as a tracked link to see which investors read it.
Customise it, then press "Send as tracked link" in the editor: you get a link to send instead of an attachment, and see who opened it and which slide they stopped on. Or put it in a data room with an NDA gate. Free to start, no card.
What goes on each slide?
Slide structure
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01 Slide
[Company] investor update
[Month Year]
For our investors and advisors. Confidential.
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02 Slide
Highlights
Three things that went well this period, with numbers.
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03 Slide
Lowlights
What went wrong or slipped, and what we are doing about it.
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04 Slide
Key metrics
Revenue or MRR, growth on last period, customers, churn, and one product metric. The same metrics every time.
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05 Slide
Cash and runway
Cash in bank, monthly net burn, runway in months, and any change to the plan.
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06 Slide
Product and team
What shipped, who joined or left, open roles.
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07 Slide
Asks
Specific intros, hires or advice you need. Name the companies or roles.
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08 Slide
Thank you
[Founder] · [Email]. Next update: [Date].
Investor context for Investor Update.
What investors look for
- The same metrics in the same order every time
- Cash and runway stated plainly
- Honest lowlights, not only wins
- Specific asks they can act on
- Progress against what you said last time
When to use this template
- Monthly updates to angels and seed investors
- Quarterly updates to a larger cap table
- Keeping prospective investors warm before the next round
What NOT to include
- Vanity metrics that change from one update to the next
- Full financial statements; share those in a data room
- Confidential customer details
- Long narrative; keep each slide to a few lines
Investor Update.
FAQ
What should a monthly investor update include?
Highlights and lowlights, the same core metrics every time, cash in bank with burn and runway, product and team news, and a short list of specific asks. Consistency matters more than length, because investors compare one update with the last.
How often should I send investor updates?
Monthly from pre-seed to Series A is the common norm, quarterly once the company is larger or the next round is further away. Pick a cadence you can keep and send on the same day each period.
Should I include bad news in an investor update?
Yes. A lowlights section with what slipped and what you are doing about it builds trust, and investors who hear about problems early can help sooner. Surprises at the next fundraise do more damage.
Why send an investor update as a link instead of an attachment?
An attachment cannot be withdrawn once sent and tells you nothing about who read it. A tracked link shows which investors opened the update and which slides they spent time on, which tells you who to follow up before your next round.
What format should an investor update use?
An email body works for a short update. Use a short slide pack or PDF when you include charts and financials. This template is a slide pack you can fill in and send as a link.
Keep going.
Related reading
How do you share your finished deck securely?
Send your finished deck through a per-recipient tracked link. See which slides each investor read, for how long, and on which day. NDA gate, watermark, expiry - all on the £29 Pro plan. UK/EU data residency by default.