Pitching your startup to investors is a heavily pressurized situation, so it’s easy to make damaging mistakes.

Poor problem explanation is killing but surprisingly common, particularly in fields like biotech and the life sciences. Here the complexity of the technology can easily get in the way of a clear and compelling presentation of the problem it solves.

Similarly, sharing too much detail is often not a good idea before an investor has expressed interest. Do you really need five slides to explain your product or a lengthy introduction to each one of your board members?

Here are five of the most common pitching errors and how to avoid them.