A one-sentence product
If one sentence cannot say it, the problem is usually not expression — it is that you have not yet decided what to give up.
What you'll run into
- 介绍自己的产品要说三分钟，对方听完还是不知道它干嘛的
- 每次都得先讲一堆背景，才能说到产品本身
- 让 AI 生成首页，它写出来的标题全是「重新定义」这类空话
The common cause of not being able to say it clearly is wanting to serve two groups at once. Stuff two target users into one sentence and it falls apart. The right response is not better wording — it is picking one.
How to fill the four boxes
| 格子 | 填什么 | 填错的样子 |
|---|---|---|
| 给谁 | 一类具体的人，最好带上身份和处境 | 「所有需要记账的人」 |
| 什么时候 | 一个具体的时刻或触发点 | 「随时随地」 |
| 从什么状态 | 他现在的处境，含现在用的笨办法 | 「效率低下」 |
| 到什么状态 | 一个能被看见的结果，不是一个功能 | 「提升协作效率」 |
A few ways to write it badly
帮个人和团队更高效地管理任务
个人要快，团队要可追溯，两边的产品长得完全不一样
一个更智能、更简洁的效率工具
没有对比对象，也没有具体场景，套谁都行
基于大模型的智能知识管理平台
说的是你用了什么，不是用户得到了什么
帮独立顾问在写方案时，从过去三年的项目文档里翻出能复用的段落
谁、什么时候、从哪来、到哪去，四格齐了
What to do once it is written
- Stick it on the first line of the project file. Every time you're torn on whether to build a feature, read this sentence again — most of the time the answer is right there.
- Use it as the draft for homepage copy. A product you can explain in one sentence doesn't need three screens of homepage to do the explaining.
- Read it to someone with no context. If they can paraphrase it afterward, it passes; if you have to add explanation, it's not right yet.
- Rewrite it every so often. Direction drifts as you build. If a rewrite shows all four boxes have changed, that's a signal to stop and think.