One-liner: How to articulate your idea so anyone can understand
I’ve coached more than 200 startups over the years, and I’ve noticed that many of them struggle with the same thing: articulating what they do and why it’s important. In future articles, we’ll discuss all the components of an effective investor deck, but for now, we’ll stick to the most basic concept of all - your company - or idea - one-liner.
What is a one-liner?
Your one-liner is one sentence that clearly articulates what you do. A good one-liner always includes what your product or solution is. It usually includes whom it is for, and it might also include what it’s intended benefit is or a special or differentiating feature [see more: value prop].
When you’re crafting your one-liner, try to make it as simple as possible. Try not to use industry-specifc jargon and acronyms. I tell my founders to employ ELI5 practices. ELI5 stands for “explain-like-I’m-5” and is one of my favorite subreddits. It’s where experts break down complex topics into easily digestible nuggets of information that anyone - even a 5-year old - can understand.
Oftentimes as founders we’re so deep in our industries that we forget that average people don’t know (and probably don’t care about) all the ins-and-outs and nuances of what we’re doing. So take a step back and try to look at your solution with completely fresh eyes.
Some examples of solution one-liners:
GridCure provides software-as-a-service predictive analytics for electric utilities
Wibedo is a platform that allows employers to hire on-demand service and shift workers in minutes
Karaz is a diabetes management platform for doctors and their patients
When will you use your one-liner?
Whether you’re an established company or simply ideating solutions, you should have a one-liner.
Your one-liner will likely be one of the most common things you share about your business. You can use it when anyone asks you what you do or what your business is [when I need to quickly explain my startup, I usually use my one-liner + my value prop or problem statement + one-liner + value prop]. You can use it in email intros, investor decks, proposals, or even live conversations. You may be surprised how often you use it!
Testing your one-liner
I strongly suggest that you test your one-liner with different people, especially people who don’t work with you. Maybe even ask them to quickly explain back what you’re doing - without any additional context. If people have a hard time comprehending what you’re doing, consider adjusting your one-liner. You may want to A/B test different one-liners to see which one resonates the best with the most people.
💡TLDR: A one-liner is one sentence that clearly explains what you do. It always explains what your solution is and may also include whom it is for. You will use your one-liner all over the place and with all different types of people so make sure it is easy to understand. Try testing different variations of your one-liner with different people to see which one is the most impactful and easy to understand.
📖 Exercise: Craft your one-liner. Test it with different people and adjust it as needed.
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