How come we solved the mystery of the Egyptian hieroglyphs, but still can’t read the ones from Crete? For centuries we admired the eagles, lions, tools and human shapes carved in the Egyptian stones. We knew they meant something but didn’t have the key to understand them. So how can we decipher an unknown language?
The key to understanding an unknown language is to find translations. For the hieroglyphs, the key was finding the Rosetta stone – a bilingual royal decree written both using hieroglyphs and Greek. It was the bridge between the two ancient worlds, as it used phonetic characters for both foreign and local names. This allowed translating characters, then concepts and finally words.
Some business websites look like written in an ancient, unknown language. To understand the strategy, the products and the philosophy of a business, we need a Rosetta stone of sorts: a one-page prospectus. Here are the main three elements such a document must cover:
1. What’s your story
2. What do you do
3. Who do you work with
1. What’s your story
People love stories. We want to know how Microsoft started and how Steve Jobs fought them. We’re puzzled why Yahoo didn’t buy Google when they were a small team. Start your prospectus with your story. Pick up the most interesting bit about you or your business and get the ball rolling from there.
While starting up in a garage is a common beginning for lots of startups, you could start by telling your reader how did you:
– realize there is a problem specific people have
– came up with a product idea
– got your fist 2 customers
The story needs to focus the attention on your unique perspective and introduce the context in which you work. Your work is the main focus of the prospectus and comes after your story, in the second part.
2. What do you do
The second part covers your work. Coming after the story paragraphs, it needs to have a different visual layout. Choose a two or three-column layout to get the attention of the reader. These points cover how you work and what do you do: your products, your guiding principles and your work methods.
If you already have 3 or more products, group them in two or three areas of interest. When starting up you can pick three sides of the problem your business intends to help to solve. Or choose three principles you wish to put forward in your business. Let’s see some examples.
For an e-commerce online platform:
Market | Sell | Scale
For a business producing video game textures and compression tools:
Texture | Compression | Basis
While building De Amicis the focus of our articles and products is on:
Empathy | Structure | Energy
The work is done in the context of your customers – people or businesses needing (and paying for) your products. The third part of the prospectus focuses on them.
3. Who do you work with
Who are your customers? Are they companies or are they people like you and me? It is very important to showcase your products through the voice of one or two of your typical customers. Include quotes and testimonials which fit your target profile, the person or the company your products serve best.
Testimonials also suggest to some readers that they may NOT be a good fit for your product, principles or methods of work. That may be as important as getting the best customers. Customers who don’t fit your world-view will tend to fight your strategy and suck your energy. The main goals of the prospectus are attracting the right customers and filtering out the bad ones.
But a one-page prospectus is not enough to sell my products
The prospectus alone won’t sell your products. But it should be an important part of your sales strategy, one tactic you can use in combination with others. It can be part of your cost proposal to establish your history, authority, and specificity for any decision-makers. It can also be part of your marketing brochure, book or website. Let’s look at some examples.
Prospectus examples
Example 1 – Blugento – online shop
The prospectus for an e-commerce platform could focus on the
Market | Sell | Scale triplet:
Example 2 – Binomial – image/texture compression product
In this example, we have a company producing a suite of software tools called Basis. They are used by video games, streaming services, virtual & augmented reality, so the prospectus could focus on
Texture | Compression | Basis
Example 3 – PC PAL – healthcare software components
PC PAL has three product lines, so the prospectus can focus on the three medical areas covered by them:
Growth charts | Family trees | Patient registries
Why not having a one-page prospectus is a mistake
The one-page prospectus clarifies your message and translates it to your customers. Not having one is risking misunderstanding and misalignment with your audience. Use it in your marketing and sales material to present your unique point of view.
Tell your story to explain where do you come from and how did you build your business. What do you do and how do you do it is your selling proposition. Cover products and services, but also your principles and your methods of work. Close the circle by showing who do you work with, who your customers are and what they’re saying about you.
Give your customers a Rosetta Stone and help them understand your business and products using a one-page prospectus.
P.S. Use the bellow gallery to compare the three examples.
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