If you type “market opportunity slide” in Google, you’re likely to get confused. Some articles have tons of market sizing templates with little to no explanation. Others teach you how to craft a TAM-SAM-SOM slide but label it as a market opportunity slide. The problem is that these two slides don’t mean the same thing.
It’s true that sometimes founders unite market sizing and opportunity sizing on the same slide. But in most cases, these are two separate slides with unique approaches to crafting each and a set of elements to include.
The reason why many founders confuse these two slides is simple—both slides speak about the market, but from various angles.
The market opportunity slide is like an attention-catcher; it’s meant to drive investors’ interest in a market opportunity and a solution you suggest. It must show investors that you really understand the opportunity and your customers. The market size slide, in turn, shows this opportunity in numbers—how big the market is and how many customers you can really reach.
What is a market opportunity slide? How to craft it? And how does it differ from the market size slide in a pitch deck? We’ll answer these and even more questions in this article.
Let’s dive in!
What is the market opportunity slide?
A market opportunity slide shows a market trend, a pain point, or a gap your business can address. It’s like the starting point of your investment story. For instance, you’re tapping into the crypto market, which is really huge, but many people there struggle with paying taxes, and here you are, ready to address this problem with your solution.
A market opportunity slide can be a standalone slide in your pitch deck or mixed with others, such as the why now slide, the problem slide, or the market size slide.
Remember, when a market opportunity requires significant detail (an extensive gap or trend), you’d better keep it as a standalone slide.
Here are some examples of how opportunity sizing can be mixed with other elements of a pitch deck and tips on how to differentiate these slides if they go separate:
Market opportunity slide vs. Why now slide
You can combine market opportunity with the why now aspect to make the urge and the timing of the market sound more powerful.
➡️ Tip #1:
If these are separate slides in a pitch deck, remember that the why now slide is about the timing of the opportunity (why it’s the best time for your startup to enter this market right now), while the market opportunity slide is about the context and the scale of the opportunity (where you can develop your business and why exactly here).
Market opportunity slide vs. Market size slide
To give a full view of the market’s potential, you can mix the market size with the opportunities on one slide.
➡️ Tip #2:
If these are separate slides, remember that the market opportunity slide sets the stage for why this market matters for you and your business, which you can then support with hard numbers on your market size slide.
Market opportunity slide vs. Problem slide
The market opportunity may go together with the problem to show demand and, at the same time, highlight the gap your solution tends to address.
➡️ Tip #3:
If these are separate slides, remember that the market opportunity slide shows the bigger picture of the market and its potential, while the problem slide speaks about the specific pain point your startup is solving within this market.
Why does this slide matter for your pitch deck?
A market opportunity slide in a pitch deck sets the playing ground for your business. You show the scale of the market and the areas your solution can make an impact.
This slide helps you go beyond just numbers, as you have space to show your qualitative insights and catch investors with your narrative—your ability to find a unique angle from which they can look at the market and see an opportunity for your business and their money.
Via opportunity sizing, you also demonstrate the market’s potential and how effectively you can grow and scale your business.
Tips on how to craft a winning market opportunity slide
Of course, it would be much easier if we go like, “Follow these steps, and you’ll surely get a killer market opportunity slide.” But in reality, there’s no one-fits-all solution.
The main rule here is to set the context for your investment narrative, to grab investors’ attention, and to convince them not to close your deck right away.
That’s why a market opportunity slide can be about one powerful sentence or about a couple of solid facts, and, of course, it’s always about visuals. Your task here is to find something really cool and unique about the market you’re breaking into and to show investors how your business fits and plans to disrupt it.
At Waveup, we’ve helped more than 1,000 clients to raise funds (check out some of success cases here), crafted hundreds of pitch decks, and we’re ready to share some insider tips on opportunity sizing with examples:
- You can take this market opportunity slide as a template to compare the old vs new paradigm—which traditional industry principles are outdated and how they should be changed. This approach is good for industries that are under transformation at the moment, and you want to show how your solution can assist this shift.
- A problem-solution framing works well for crowded markets as it helps founders shift focus from competition to a brand’s unique value proposition. This slide effectively shows a consumer problem (misinformation and ineffective products) and then puts the company as the solution.
- To arrive at a killer market opportunity slide, you can try to focus on future trends instead of solving current problems. As it’s done here—the main focus is on Gen Z and Millennials and their role in luxury market purchases after several years. In such a way, you can show how your business can adapt to meet the changing customer behaviours.
- This slide shows that the real estate market is huge, but most people can’t access it. By focusing on the gap between the market size and accessibility, you not only give a market overview on a slide but can emotionally connect with the audience to create a feeling of FOMO.
It’s important to note that the real estate pitch deck differs from those in other industries.
- Another way to craft a good market opportunity slide for your pitch deck is to demonstrate a clear problem and position your company as a solution to it. Here, we have regulatory and operational issues—messy rules, gaps in payments and tracking in the cannabis industry, but the company is ready to address them.
- Unlike the previous example with a specific problem, here the market opportunity slide focuses on a global issue—buildings waste 30% of energy and cause emissions. It’s an effective approach to interest investors who want to tackle global challenges and make the world better.
Some more recommendations.
✅ Keep your slide concise and visually balanced. There must be a clear pain point, a trend, or a gap presented in simple yet impactful words. The problem must be understandable to anyone in the room, even if it’s complex or technical.
✅ Don’t put a pile of text or lots of data. First, investors don’t like overloaded slides, and second, you have a market size slide to show numbers.
✅ Make visuals speak out loud. Try to use comparison tables, infographics, graphs, icons, catchy images, and statistics. You may also highlight key phrases in bold and play with the colors and fonts.
What is the market size slide?
As we’ve mentioned earlier, many confuse the market opportunity slide with the market size slide. In this part, we’re going to talk about the market size and later on, we’ll compare the two slides to see the exact differences.
The market size slide (aka TAM-SAM-SOM slide or market overview slide) is exactly what it sounds like—a slide that shows your market size. That’s where investors expect to see the market that you’ll call “home,” how big this market is, and which part personally you are going to take.
There are several ways you can show your market in a pitch deck. Here, we’ll talk about some of them, including market sizing examples:
- The most common one is a TAM-SAM-SOM market segmentation. Market sizing, in this case, can be done using either a top-down or a bottom-up approach (a quick spoiler: you’d better use a bottom-up approach).
If you decide to take this way, remember that your TAM-SAM-SOM slide must convince investors that you know your market and your product perfectly well and that you have a scientifically benchmarked GTM strategy.
You can find more information on the TAM-SAM-SOM approach itself and how to leverage it here:
Let’s have a look at a market sizing case on the following slide:
Why this slide is a good example of market sizing: Here, the market is broken down into clear tiers with a targeted focus (SEA market), supporting stats (120,000+ hotels), and nice visuals. It’s simple and concise, and the claim put on the top is catchy and data-proven. That’s exactly what investors care about: clarity, focus, and credibility.
- Of course, a TAM-SAM-SOM approach is effective. But what if you plan to enter a massive yet nascent market? What will you show on your market size slide then? Your TAM and penetration rates—aka Greenfield market opportunity—are what to show in such a case.
Let’s check an example below:
Why this market sizing template works well: It clearly states the TAM along with supporting statistics and early traction. Such an approach gives investors a clear picture of a massive market with room for growth, while early traction shows them that the company has already started capturing this market and is doing well.
- Another way to demonstrate market size in a pitch deck is to use top-down logic—when you present the general market and narrow it down to a specific industry segment. The most important thing here is to use data from reputable and credible sources.
Check out an example of a potential market below:
Why this market slide works well for a pitch deck: The bar chart shows strong market growth over time while adding a 15.5% CAGR highlights the scalability of this market opportunity. The slide also demonstrates pain points and trends, which adds context and makes the opportunity sizing more relevant. It’s clear, concise, and has simple visuals—everything that can make a slide investor-friendly.
What is the difference between a market opportunity slide and a market size slide?
It’s no wonder that many confuse these two slides. They’re closely related and speak about the same thing—the market, but the way they do it differs.
The market opportunity slide speaks about the opportunity you plan to ride with your solution. There’s a gap or demand in the market or even an industry trend, and this slide shows how your product or service is to solve it for your target audience.
The market size slide is where you can show the big numbers—how large the market is, which segments you’re targeting, and how many customers you’re planning to reach.
The market opportunity slide typically goes first to create a feeling of FOMO and catch investors’ attention. Then the market slide of a pitch deck comes in—it details “your” market and “your” customers, supporting the opportunity context with the data.
While a market opportunity slide and a market size slide are usually separate, they can sometimes be combined in a single slide.
Wrap-up: A market opportunity slide or a market size slide?
It’s best to go both. Especially if we’re talking about complex issues that need much detail, in such a case, your market opportunity slide will be the point of interest for investors, something that could make them say, “It sounds like a really big story! I’m ready to see the rest of the pitch deck.” And the market size slide should convince investors to say, “Okay, the growth potential is clear. It may be worth considering.” If crafted effectively, this combo can be a good starting point for building investor interest and getting a term sheet.
Remember that neither a good market opportunity slide nor a market size slide alone can guarantee investor interest. You must take care of other elements, such as team, business plan, financial model, competition, etc.
We hope that this article has given you a clearer understanding of what a market opportunity slide is, why it’s important for your deck, and how to craft it well. If you have any questions about pitch deck creation, fundraising, or startup growth, our Waveup team is here to help you.